Why am I
doing this?

Some of you have asked over the years where the name “LeeBoy” came from. Well, like a lot of good Kentucky stories, this one involves a golf course, a couple of legendary characters, and a little bit of mischief.

Forty-some years ago, I was playing golf with my boss at the Campbell House in Lexington. Coming off the 18th hole was none other than Gatewood Galbraith.

If you knew Gatewood, you know there was absolutely NOTHING ordinary about that man. The hemp suits, the Corvette, that unmistakable personality, and a thing or two to say about liberty.
Gatewood was a Kentucky original in every sense of the word.

As he walked by, Gatewood tossed a golf ball in my direction.

I never saw it coming.

But I certainly HEARD it. And FELT it.

“LEE BOY!”

I looked up, and there stood Gatewood, wearing that unmistakable grin of a man who'd spent his whole life raising hell and enjoying every damn minute of it.

And that was it. From that day forward... every time Gatewood Galbraith saw me, I was LeeBoy.

The name stuck. Forty-some years later, here we are.

Gatewood was one of my heroes. Not because I agreed with every position he ever took, but because he had the RAW courage to stand up for what he believed. He was defending individual liberty and civil rights long before some of those positions became fashionable.

And Lord knows, Gatewood NEVER asked anybody's permission to be himself.

Over the years, I had the pleasure of sharing lunch with Gatewood at the legendary Campbell House, often joined by its owner, another remarkable Kentucky character named Kilbern Cormney.

Kilbern had begun making his fortune with vending machines in Havana, Cuba, before Castro came to power. He was a businessman, an entrepreneur, and one of those larger-than-life personalities who seemed to have a story about EVERYTHING.

And I was ALWAYS willing to listen.

Kilbern would often pick up the lunch tab.

Gatewood, as far as I could tell, never paid anyway. 😊 The respect those two had for each other was amazing.

What made those lunches so special was that I was sitting with two men who, in very different ways, had helped shape the Kentucky I knew.

And Kilbern's connection to my hometown of Richmond went back decades.

Kilbern Cormney and the Richmond We Remember

Kilbern Cormney was, in many ways, the GODFATHER of famous Richmond's bar and social scene. For almost 23 years.... Richmond/EKU made the annual "Playboy's BEST College Party Town" list. We don't have a downtown anymore. Just lawyers' offices and banks.

Kilbern's influence stretched back to the mid 1940s, when Richmond was a very different place.

Kilbern built the famous building at First and Water Streets that would eventually become one of Richmond's most beloved establishments: **The Family Dog**.

Together with his business partner, Hugh “Speck” Young, he opened the LEGENDARY **Speck's Restaurant and Bar.**

And Speck's was more than just somewhere to get a meal or have a drink.

It was a gathering place. A place to hear LIVE MUSIC, meet friends, celebrate, socialize, and occasionally get into a little harmless trouble.

Through Speck's, Kilbern helped introduce a new era of live entertainment to Madison County. During the 1950s and into the 1960s, it became one of the area's early nightspots, laying the groundwork for the dozens of bars, clubs, and music venues that would follow.

Long before I ever sat across from Kilbern Cormney listening to his business stories, he'd already helped give Richmond a place to make stories of its own.

Mention Speck's to Richmond folks now in their late 60s, 70s, or early 80s, and watch what happens.

Their eyes light up.

Suddenly, they're young again. The music is playing, the place is crowded, and they're remembering people and moments they haven't thought about in decades.

Now mention the Family Dog to the crowd that came of age during the 1970s, '80s, and '90s.

You'll get that very same reaction.

Different generations. Different names. Same building. And a whole lot of memories.

THAT is what makes Richmond's history so special to me. These weren't just buildings or businesses. They were places where friendships began, romances blossomed, bands played, and memories were made that people still carry fifty years later.

And I had the extraordinary privilege of knowing and learning from some of the great men who helped make it happen.

Gatewood and Kilbern respected each other, and I had enormous respect for both of them.

I listened. I asked questions. I soaked up every bit of wisdom and KNOWLEDGE I could from those two legends.

Kilbern taught me a great deal about business, opportunity, and the importance of relationships.

Gatewood reinforced something I have believed my entire life: If you believe in something, have the damn courage to stand up for it, even when standing up isn't particularly popular.

Those lessons stayed with me.

And every time somebody calls me LeeBoy, I still think about Gatewood, that golf ball, and that unforgettable grin.