Over his lengthy career, Kaufman served as road manager for the Rolling Stones, The Flying Burrito Brothers and Gram Parsons, among others. After Parsons’ drug overdose in Sept. 1973, Kaufman and a friend attempted to honor Parsons’ wishes by trying to incinerate the musician’s body at a favored site in Southern California’s Joshua Tree National Park. Both men were fined for the theft of the coffin, and the story became the basis for the 2003 movie, Grand Theft Parsons, with Kaufman portrayed by Johnny Knoxville, co-creator of MTV’s Jackass.
Along with the memorable slogan, “moving people, not equipment,” on his business card, Kaufman penned an autobiography with Colin White recounting his 1960s escapades in a book titled Road Mangler Deluxe in 2005. Its anecdotes confirm, among many other details, that Kaufman’s urination difficulties were indeed the source of inspiration for Frank Zappa’s song, “Why Does it Hurt When I Pee?”
Kaufman also served as road manager (or “mangler,” as he put it) for Emmylou Harris, Frank Zappa, Joe Cocker, Carlene Carter, Rosanne Cash, Rodney Crowell, Etta James, Jonathan Richmond, Vince Gill, Albert Lee, Marianne Faithful, The Divynals, Marty Stuart, Nash Ramblers and others.
