TOM RUNNELS, 67, LOCAL SCULPTOR, ARTIST AND AUTHOR, DIES

Tom Runnels, sculptor, artist and author, who practiced his artistic crafts in a remote little corner of his native Bollinger County known as the Cat Ranch, will remain in that little corner of his world forever.

Runnels, 67, died Sunday at Marble Hill, Mo.

He will be buried Wednesday in the Cat Ranch Cemetery on the Runnels property.

Runnels, who was born at Marble Hill, often likened himself to "The Gambler" in Kenny Rogers' song of the same name. Runnels knew "when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em." And, he was content with the hand he was dealt.

"When my hand was dealt, I was satisfied," he once said in an interview. "Not because it was such a good hand, but because I played it the best I knew how."

Runnels made a living with his art and has his artwork in all 50 states, Canada, South America and other countries.

Although Runnels was better known for his sculpture and artwork, he was a master storyteller who put his stories onto the printed page without losing their unique flavor, as evidence in two illustrated books, "Before T.V," and "Slipshod But Not Shabby."

To the artist, sculptor and author, playing the best he knew how was simple stuff.

"You usually wait until you retire to do what you want to do," Runnels said recently. "I'm doing what I want to do right now. What could be better?"

Sculpting was Runnel's special craft. In fact, Cat Ranch visitors hardly passed the gate before they were treated to a sampling of the artist's works.

The ranch's front entrance is adorned with a huge cougar-type sculpture that stretches completely across the driveway and bears the name of the ranch. Just past the gate is a larger-than-life size sculpture of a bucking bronco, Runnels called "Bandit."

Runnels displayed his works in numerous shows and often accepted consignments.

One sculpture, "The Archer," stands atop Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tenn. Although kneeling, the archer is 7 feet tall.

Many of Runnel's sculptures bear a western theme, a tribute to the artist's dream of being a cowboy. Runnels headed west one time, looking for the great outdoors and adventure.

"I found there was no such thing as a real cowboy, and I was disappointed with the West," he said. "Behind every rock there was a beer can or a cigarette package."

Runnels often reflected that his 70-acre Bollinger County ranch had as much wide-open space as you need. His ranch was called the Cat Ranch long before it was his.

The urge to practice art, Runnels thought, was something he was born to do. He had no radio or television.

He used to borrow a pencil and paper from his sister to draw comic characters.

At age 7, or 8, Runnels tried his hand with sculpture after seeing a face someone carved on a fence post, and thought he could do better.

Runnels found an 8-inch-long piece of cypress and started carving with his penknife. "An artist who lived here at the time saw the carving and commented that I was an artist," Runnels said. It was then, he said, he knew his destiny.

Runnels attended Southeast Missouri State University after serving four years in the Air Force. He then studied at the prestigious Kansas City Art Institute.

When Runnels created his first pieces, he let his emotions rule their outcome. In some cases his moods -- sadness, happiness, whatever -- showed up in his work.

"I would like for the people who know me to be able to say that I have warmed myself by the fire of life," he wrote in one "Before TV" segment, "and, that the creative pieces that philosophical fire has produced have brought warmth to many more lives as well."