Jan Beeman

Jan Beeman was the "earth mama" of the Armadillo World Headquarters concert hall in the mid-1970s. She was the soul of the Armadillo kitchen, a mentor to young artists, and "the face of hospitality" to touring musicians such as Frank Zappa and Van Morrison, who loved the 'Dillo for its home-cooked meals.

"If there was an important meal to cook, Jan cooked it," recalled Bruce Willenzik, an Armadillo alumnus who now runs the annual Armadillo Christmas Bazaar. "Whenever Zappa called, he asked for Jan. She knew all the musicians, their personalities, and tried to give them what they needed. Lose a button off your shirt? Hold on: Jan will sew it on for you. You say you need to do some laundry? Jan will fold it up for you."

Beeman, who died Wednesday in California due to complications from colon cancer, was almost 40 when she joined the Armadillo staff in the early 1970s after moving to Austin from San Angelo. She quickly assumed the role as a mother figure. Her vegetable casserole, with broccoli and cauliflower, was a signature dish. Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead raved about the shrimp enchiladas created in her kitchen.

"Jan was the calm, centered, mature older adult with common sense and a lot of heart. I can still see her standing in that kitchen, a big old spoon in her hand," Willenzik remembered. "She had some gray in her hair. And in those days, at the Armadillo, gray hair or wrinkles were as rare as a silk tie or a silk suit."

After leaving the Armadillo in 1977 (it closed three years later), Beeman founded a production company and managed the Doak Sneed band and Balcones Fault. Budding Austin musicians, including a young Stevie Ray Vaughan, sought her advice.

Even after she moved away from Austin in the 1980s, she continued in her role as a nurturer, working as a nurse in California.

In the words of Armadillo founder Eddie Wilson: "She made a whole lot of people feel well-cared for."