This is an I-Heart podcast.

This is Lee Habib, and this is Our American Stories,

the show where America is the star and the American people coming to you from

the city where the West begins, Fort Worth, Texas. Being a rodeo clown is hard work and important

work. Besides being expected to entertain massive crowds, bull riders literally put their lives

in the painted hands of those involved in this

unique profession. You to share his story on becoming a rodeo clown is Leon Coffey. We'd like to thank

the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for providing us with this audio.

Let's get into the story.

My dad told me when I was born we had horses.

I don't think I've had been a day in my life that I didn't own at least one.

Oh man, I was born in Blanco, Texas in 1954 in the courthouse.

Because in Blanco, Texas, the courthouse was in front and the hospitals in back.

And we got a website called Courthouse Babies.

It's quite the conversation piece.

Craig Grandad, my granddad and my dad broke mules for the highway department on the American Quite the conversation fish.

Great granddad, my granddad and my dad broke mules for the highway department when they made roads for mule teams in Fresnoes.

Granddad, when he died, was 72 years old and he had 40 head of horses.

My dad had to go get all of them horses after he died and those two were the people that trained me and

formed my life and long before I could walk they put you on them horses and on them baby coats and let your little babies ride around on them just kind of get them gentle and are you accustomed to people and

but I was the littlest of the herd my all my

my kinfolk my granddad would gather all the boys up every every summer and

...