Lars Henry Kristofferson: What happened to Kris Kristofferson’s father?

Lars Henry Kristofferson is the father of Kriss Kristofferson. Lars Henry Kristofferson’s son is an American retired country singer, songwriter, and actor. Among his songwriting credits are “Me and Bobby McGee”, “For the Good Times”, “Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down”, and “Help Me Make It Through the Night”. Throughout his career, he has garnered numerous accolades including a Golden Globe Award and a Grammy. As an actor, Kristofferson is known for his roles including  A Star Is Born,  Stagecoach, and the Blade film trilogy.

Lars Henry Kristofferson: Bio Summary

Who was Kris Kristofferson’s father?

Lars Henry Kristofferson was born on August 16, 1905, in Tacoma, Pierce, Washington, USA to his parent  Lars Herbert Fredrik Kristofferson and Elin Karolina (Johansson) Kristofferson. He was the son of Swedish immigrants. Lars was not the only child of his parents. Per Wikitree, he has six siblings-  Herbert Frederick Kristofferson, Olga Marie (Kristofferson) LaPore, Dorothy Bernice (Kristofferson) Pawlak, Ellen Kristofferson, Helmer Karl Kristofferson and Margaret Ann (Kristofferson) Ness.

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 Lars Henry Kristofferson was a U.S. Air Force major general

Kris Kristofferson’s father was a U.S. Army Air Corps officer (later a U.S. Air Force major general). The singer’s grandfather was an officer in the Swedish Army. While Kristofferson was a child, his father pushed him toward a military career.

According to PAN AM MUSEUM FOUNDATION, Kris Kristofferson’s father was a brigadier general Air Force pilot, and flew “over the hump” at night, numerous times. After WWII came to an end, he put his skills to use by joining the Pan American World Airways, as the Chief Pilot for the Pan American Airways Africa Division.

A few years later, General Kristofferson was appointed Operations Manager for the Pacific-Alaska Division. In 1956, he resigned his position to become the manager of the aviation division of Arabian-American Oil Company in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.

Lars Henry Kristofferson was married to  Mary Ann (Ashbrook) Kristofferson. Their marriage produced three children including Kris. The other two are Karen Kirschenbauer and Kraigher Kristofferson. According to Democraticunderground, he did not give his children middle names because he disliked having such a long name. The family moved around frequently as a youth because of Henry Kristofferson’s military service, and they settled in San Mateo, California.

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How did Kris Kristofferson’s father die?

Kris Kristofferson’s father, General Kristofferson passed away on New Year’s Day 1971. He was 65 years old at the time of his death. Information related to the cause of his death has not been made available to the public. According to findagrave Lars Henry Kristofferson was Cremated, however, the location of his ashes is unknown.

While Captain Kristofferson was well known in his own right, it was his son who flew the world singing American country music, Kris Kristofferson. Due to pressure from his family, Kris enlisted in the U.S. Army, where he eventually rose to the rank of captain after receiving his commission as a second lieutenant. After obtaining flight instruction at Fort Rucker in Alabama, he graduated to become a helicopter pilot.

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He finished Ranger School as well. He served with the 8th Infantry Division and was stationed in West Germany at the beginning of the 1960s. He started a band and continued his music career at this time. The “Why Me” singer made the decision to quit the Army and focus on songs instead.

Due to his professional choice, his family disowned him; it’s unknown from the sources whether they later made up. They saw it as a rejection of everything the Kristofferson family stood for, although Kris says he is proud of his time in the military and received the Veteran of the Year Award at the 2003 American Veterans Awards ceremony.