Mamie White of “Wild & Wonderful Whites” Arrested
Mamie Warner, aka Mamie White, sister of Dancing Outlaw Jesco White, and one of the main characters in the 2009 Johnny Knoxville-produced film The Wild & Wonderful Whites of West Virginia has been arrested in Boone County on numerous charges. Mamie was taken into custody on November 8th for first offense driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI), possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, and assault and battery of a police officer with a weapon. She was taken to the Southwestern Regional Jail in Holden, WV and placed on $25,000 bond.
Mamie had a very small appearance in the original The Dancing Outlaw movie that was released through PBS in 1991 that began the cultural fascination with the White family of West Virginia, and eventually landed her brother Jesco appearances on the TV show Rosanne and other high profile roles. In 2009’s The Wild & Wonderful Whites of West Virginia, Mamie was arguably the focal point of the film as the family’s matriarch after the passing of her mother, Bertie Mae White. Mamie commonly acts as de facto manager and liason for her brother Jesco, who was also arrested near the release of Wild & Wonderful Whites, but all the charges against Jesco were later dropped.
The Wild & Wonderful Whites of West Virginia explicitly depicts Mamie White, and other members of the White family abusing and selling prescription drugs and other illegal substances. Since the release of the film, Mamie and other White Family members have distanced from the depictions, and claimed they were taken advantage of by the film. Mamie told the Coal Valley News, “I’m not happy with the scenes of drug use and neither is Jesco…We haven’t gotten enough from Johnny Knoxville to amount to anything.”
The Whites have appeared in songs by numerous country music artists, including Big & Rich, and Hank Williams III who also appeared in the Wild & Wonderful Whites film, but later distanced from the film as well.
November 11, 2013 @ 10:30 am
I couldn’t get all the way through The Wild and Wonderful Whites.
Way too voyeuristic. Made me real uncomfortable. I saw Jesco in a bar about three years back, that guy is barely functional at all. A rolling wreck.
November 11, 2013 @ 12:39 pm
I find the film expotative of some very disfunctional poeple. Not surprising to hear she was arresated. More shocking that they are all not in prison or a mental institution. One of the sadest depictions if not glorification of addiction, mental illness and overall disfunction i’ve ever seen.
November 11, 2013 @ 12:41 pm
She done blowed it all to hell!
November 11, 2013 @ 3:05 pm
This is a shame. I heard that some of the people who produced the Wild & Wonderful Whites were trying to get a new show starring Mamie off the ground. I hope the best for her and the rest of the family.
November 11, 2013 @ 4:46 pm
I watched Wild and Wonderful Whites and felt like I was watching the freak show at a circus.
They make a strong disincentive to use drugs, to not work, to get naked in front of the women folk in the family, etc.
They don’t rise to the level of being crackers.
November 11, 2013 @ 7:47 pm
Well never saw the documentary but for those who did: my friend and comedian Hal Sparks was talking about this movie and described the knife stabbing part between her and the boyfriend and argued that the stabbings were in Self-Defense.
But the biggest standout part was this kid apparently playing in these crap toys and popped up out of nowhere saying “Momma, tell em how that mother(cusser) tried to punch you at church”
July 6, 2014 @ 10:46 am
Let me tell you something about that boy, he is very intelligent and very protective of people that he loves and of people whom has shown him kindness and compassion! He can’t help his environment! It is truly a fight for survival for him.
September 26, 2018 @ 11:18 pm
I just made a post on his documentary saying the same thing..just because he’s crazy from the environment he grew up in don’t underestimate this man’s intelligence.he’s a smart man , he did what he did to survive in his family
May 12, 2024 @ 10:43 am
My family n I loved the show. Country folks surviving Boone county the only way they know how. Hard lives.
November 12, 2013 @ 11:24 am
And songs about pick up trucks and cold beer are the dumbing down of southern culture and perpetuating country stereotypes????
November 12, 2013 @ 1:07 pm
Can someone explain the hype about this family? I just don’t get it. Honestly they seem like any other poor white trash family with addictions. Why celebrate and exploit their lives?
November 12, 2013 @ 6:28 pm
I think it comes down to Jesco White and his tap-dancing talent. Watch this video for instance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYANAHEwZ6g
April 8, 2018 @ 6:55 pm
A documentary was originally planned for D Ray, Jesco’s father who was a good man an considered
the best mountain dancer in the country in a time when mountain dancing was evolving and gaining
popularity across the country. Instead the money-hungry exploiter of the White family ran across Jesco
first – saw a way to make money from raw sensationalism and the rest is history. By the way, the movie about Jesco (not same as documentary) was the brain-child of someone more demonic than Jesco could ever be. About 90 percent of it is false and the other 2 percent is greatly overstated. May the tormented White family RIP. Any of you think you could survive the wild WV mountains with no education or job? Rhetorical…
November 8, 2024 @ 10:51 pm
So true. I watched the Movie (not the Doc.) & was really pissed off at Bullshit they made up & tried to pass off as fact. Jesco can really Dance & he has a good Heart. He lives in Tennessee now & is trying to live a peaceful Life. He also loves Animals, if People would take the Time to look up info & watch his Videos on YouTube they would know that.
November 12, 2013 @ 1:28 pm
Well Chris, because they can be exploited, that’s why. The greedy need no other reason.
November 13, 2013 @ 8:32 am
I feel they’ve been exploited for simply not knowing the difference, compared to the life style of others they live a happy rock & roll lifestyle. everyone is entitled to live a happy life which each person is different in finding what they proclaim is their own happiness in life. It’s not kind to be judgmental of others regardless of how much of a “crazy” lifestyle they lead…
November 18, 2013 @ 12:26 pm
Buy the ticket, take the ride. Anyone who has had to try to co-exist around a bunch of whiskey tango bad actors like this family knows that prison is an awesome place for them.
February 13, 2014 @ 8:30 am
Is the lawyer in the movie – Francis Curnutte – related to the singer-songwriter Steve Curnutte who lives in Nashville?
February 27, 2014 @ 8:42 am
who are you to judge if we grewup the way they did it all would seem normal. They need help yes.at least their father got them checks comin in.there good people who lost it when their dad died.if someone famous (not johnny knoxville ) would come in n help n lead them to the lord n better life. We are what or how were raised n there’s no father figure i see in none of these women lives.i don’t like t part with tnewborn sad.they. Need help n lots if love. Jesus is the answer. They grewup poor n some cant or dont know how to get out.
March 25, 2014 @ 10:11 am
Like the man said….”they have a young man there who went to M.I.T. M.I.T. Why isn’t someone following him around??”
Great question.
April 10, 2014 @ 9:39 am
They love their 5 minutes of fame, they live the way they want…we thought the movie was great viewing. I haven’t laughed so hard since Austin Powers…did any one the”shocked” viewers think maybe they were putting on a bit for shock value, please…
June 22, 2015 @ 2:19 pm
Yeah, the movie is funny and makes you think, and then you think, Hey, I work hard for a living and am a shmoo, yet these folks who proudly proclaim that they all get crazy checks from the government, are just leaches and criminals playing the system. Glorify them all you want, but realize that there are many many white’s of WV all over.
I didn’t find them funny or especially enlightening, I found them tragic and willfully ignorant.
November 24, 2015 @ 12:31 am
Hahahahahahaha. Really!!! That Brandon Po kid really thought he was going to get a suspended sentence or simple probation for “Attempted Murder” and “Sooting at police officers” hahaha omg!!!
June 15, 2016 @ 3:07 am
I haven’t seen all of the wild wonderful whites but I have meet her sat in her living room and talked with Mamie she a good person and my friend so don’t judge her till you meet her everyone makes mistakes and we should all clean out our on closest before we talk about someone else
April 25, 2020 @ 4:52 pm
Just watched the documentary. It’s a real rollercoaster of emotion at times. Mostly distain for me then some compassion as well. The government crazy checks,well,so much for compassion. I want to say it is what it is. But have to say I had NO IDEA “it” was so awful.
November 3, 2021 @ 11:29 am
I think the police are all scared of them. One of them should be arrested for a lot of stuff she has done but they won’t do nothing
October 23, 2022 @ 12:31 pm
They’re no different than poor people anywhere that live in rural drug infested counties with few jobs or opportunities. I live in McNairy county in Tennessee and half the people here are just like them and have drug issues also. The same people in and out of jail.