Kris Kristofferson

Kristoffer Kristofferson  was an American country singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are "Me and Bobby McGee", "For the Good Times", "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and "Help Me Make It Through the Night", all of which were hits for other artists.

In 1985, Kristofferson joined fellow country artists Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash in the country music supergroup the Highwaymen, which was a key creative force in the outlaw country music movement that eschewed the traditional Nashville country music machine in favor of independent songwriting and producing.

As an actor, Kristofferson was known for his roles in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (1973), Blume in Love (1973), Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974), A Star Is Born (1976) (which earned him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor), Convoy (1978), Heaven's Gate (1980), Stagecoach (1986), Lone Star (1996), and the Blade film trilogy (1998–2004). Kristofferson was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2004.

Personal life

In 1961, Kristofferson married his longtime girlfriend, Frances "Fran" Mavia Beer, eventually divorcing. 
Kristofferson briefly dated Janis Joplin and Barbra Streisand before her death in October 1970.

His second marriage was to singer Rita Coolidge in 1973, ending in divorce by 1980. 
Kristofferson married Lisa Meyers in 1983.

Kristofferson and Meyers owned a home in Las Flores Canyon in Malibu, California, and maintained a residence in Hana on the island of Maui. 

Kristofferson had eight children from his three marriages: two from his first marriage to Fran Beer; one from his second marriage to Rita Coolidge and five from his marriage to his third wife, Lisa (née Meyers) Kristofferson.

Kristofferson said that he would like the first three lines of Leonard Cohen's "Bird on the Wire" on his tombstone:

Like a bird on the wire
Like a drunk in a midnight choir
I have tried in my way to be free

Kristofferson died at his home in Maui, Hawaii, on September 28, 2024. He was 88.