Little Girl Blue
Growing up, Janis was far from the belle of the ball. She was the outcast, the underdog, even receiving flak from the future Dallas Cowboys coach, Jimmy Johnson. “It felt like the universe conspired against me,” she admitted. A victim of teenage obesity and acne, she bore physical scars, smoothed only by dermabrasion. Her hair was a wild, untamed mane and unlike her 1950s Texan classmates, she found camaraderie with the Black community.
Her peers often cruelly dubbed her a ‘freak’ or ‘pig.’ Janis, however, embraced her individuality, stating, “I was a misfit. I found solace in books, in painting, and in deep thought. I bore no hatred towards Black individuals.” During her tenure at the University of Texas, a group of malevolent boys launched a successful campaign, crowning Joplin the “Ugliest Man on Campus,” a title she wore with defiant pride.