Busey Gary - Buseyisms: Gary Buseys basic instructions before leaving Earth

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This is the true story of my eccentric life so far, although some names and details have been changed.

This book is dedicated to all of my relations.

Ive spent decades constructing Buseyisms. What is a Buseyism? you ask. I create a deeper, more dimensional meaning for a word using the letters that spell it. For example, FART (a fan favorite): F eeling A R ectal T ransmission. Another popular Buseyism is FUN: F inally U nderstanding N othing. The Buseyism I cherish most is NUTS: N ever U nderestimate T he S pirit. Many have said that my Buseyisms are insightful, motivational, and funny. The question often comes up: Gary, when are you going to write a book with all your Buseyisms?

Another commonly asked question is Gary, when are you going to write a book about your life?

Voil! In this book, I do that and more. I tell the stories of my life, through my Buseyisms, and give the life lessons that I learned along the way. Wait a second, youre probably wondering, why? It is not to impress you or make you like me. I am sharing my stories to help inspire those of you who may be going through similar things to feel better. Why would I take advice from Gary Busey? you wonder. This is not advice. I am just a crazy, eccentric, loving person willing to share what Ive learned after surviving the ups and downs of almost fifty years in Hollywood, a near-fatal motorcycle accident, a trip to the afterlife, a drug overdose, two divorces, and a malignant tumor the size of a golf ball in the middle of my face. David Letterman once told me on his talk show that I am a living testimony to the resilience of the human body and spirit. So are you. Im here to tell you, it is possible to go through terrible things and still come out a happy champion. This book is to help survivors everywhere to go on and live life fully. From my heart, my spirit, and my soul, I give to you my Buseyisms.

With Mom, Virginia Ginny Sadie Arnett Busey.

I ENTERED THE EARTHS ATMOSPHERE at the Lillie-Duke Hospital in Goose Creek, Texas, on June 29, 1944, at 11:50 A.M. just in time for lunch. My mom, Virginia Ginny Sadie Arnett Busey, loved to tell me that. My dad, Delmer Lloyd Busey, was not present for my arrival on earth because he was in the South Pacific fighting in World War II. Since Mom was on her own with a newborn baby, her sisters, Ruth and Sis, helped raise me. Those three incredible women were so nurturing, cuddly, and warm; they showered me with endless affection, doting on my every need. I was the center of their universe. My feelings of that time were infinitely rich with being loved every minute.

As a toddler, I loved to explore. Mom said I always went where I wasnt supposed to go. She tried to contain me in a playpen, but I always climbed out. Eventually, Mom turned the playpen upside down to keep me secure, but I had enough power in my one-year-old body to lift it up and escape. Then, Id wander to the front door, where I found a way of unlatching it. Once outside, Id trek down the street on my baby scooter to visit three dogs I was in love with. They always barked so loud when I arrived, I just knew they were telling me they loved me, too. Mom moved the latch higher on the front door, but I still found a way to unlock it with a broomstick. Nothing could stop me from visiting those dogs. My mom and aunts all claimed, We cant stop Gary. He goes where he wants to, and thats it. I was evolving into a real force of nature.

Aunts Ruth and Sis.

My favorite thing of all was when Mom showed me the picture of Dad that hung on the wall. She always lit up with an infectious smile that made me feel so happy while she enthusiastically said, Thats your dad. Dad was the handsomest man I had ever seenjust like a movie stara Victor Mature type. With one-quarter Native American blood, Dad had incredible smooth olive skin, thick black hair, and penetrating blue eyes. The thing that struck me the most about him was his tender smile. I couldnt wait to meet him in person. I knew he was going to be the most loving dad ever.

My best friends at the end of the block, who would not stop barking at me.

Me at the ripe old age of six.

I N 1946, when I was almost two years old, Dad returned from World War II. He didnt waste any time getting reacquainted with Momwithin months of his return, she was pregnant with my sister, Carol, who was born on September 12, 1947.

Because of Dads Seabee experience designing runways in the war, he got a design-construction job with the supermarket chain Safeway. After a few years on the job, Dad was promoted to management, which took the family from Goose Creek, Texas, to Chickasha, Oklahoma, in 1950. I attended kindergarten in Chickasha, but just a year later, Dad moved the family again, this time to Oklahoma City.

In Oklahoma City, just four blocks from our new home, on the corner of Western and Tenth Street, was a movie theater called the Wes-Ten. The Wes-Ten was the local babysitter to kids of all ages in the neighborhood. Every weekend from noon to six, the 350-seat theater was packed to the brim with excitable, rowdy kids of all ages. Mom gave me thirty cents, then sent me off with my buddies Ronnie Dale, Bobby Hughes, John Mason, and Tommy Hawke to spend the day at the Wes-Ten. The five of us raced the four blocks, through a park, around trees, and over fences, to be the first one to arrive. I was six years old and feeling free as a bird.

The Wes-Ten became my private paradise. On the outside, the faade was outlined in neon with a V-shaped flashing marquee. Inside, down the sides of the theater walls and all through the lobby were large framed pictures of the biggest Hollywood movie stars of the day, like John Wayne, Jennifer Jones, Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, Jean Arthur, Joel McCrea, Jane Russell, and Marilyn Monroe. Looking at the pictures, I felt like I knew each and every one of them personally. Then there was the lobby concession stand. It was the most glorious sightlike being in Candy Land with every delicious treat of the day imaginableBaby Ruths, PayDays, Milky Ways, Snickers, Junior Mints, Milk Duds, Raisinetsand of course popcorn with butter. I always got a Coca-Cola and popcorn with Milk Duds; I loved mixing them together.