Alice Brock, Inspiration For Arlo Guthrie’s ‘Alice’s Restaurant,’ Dies At 83

On Friday (November 22), Arlo Guthrie announced on Facebook that Alice Brock, the inspiration behind his 1967 hit song, “Alice’s Restaurant,” had died at the age of 83. Guthrie shared that Brock died in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where she had lived for over 40 years, and he mentioned that her health had been failing recently though no cause of death was given. The song, with lyrics that tell the story of “two years ago on Thanksgiving, when my friend and I went up to visit Alice at the restaurant,” has since become a holiday classic and a protest anthem. “This coming Thanksgiving will be the first without her,” Guthrie wrote in his lengthy remembrance. “Alice and I spoke by phone a couple of weeks ago, and she sounded like her old self. We joked around and had a couple of good laughs even though we knew we’d never have another chance to talk together.” (Billboard)