The Pioneer Woman: From Heifers to Hollywood

by Nichol Nelson, Posted Mar 19th 2010 @ 10:30AM

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Suddenly, the little story of a woman on the prairie is not so little anymore. Ree Drummond, better known as The Pioneer Woman, is about to go Hollywood. Drummond's food-centric blog may be her claim to fame, but it's her serialized -- and sometimes soapy -- chronicle of her unlikely romance with her now-husband that has Tinsel town entranced. Columbia Pictures has optioned the book under the title "The Pioneer Woman," and Reese Witherspoon is rumored to be attached to the project.

It's not surprising: "Black Heels to Tractor Wheels" has all the trappings of a big-screen rom-com, and Drummond has a huge built-in fan base. The book (which will be published by William Morrow in February 2011) captures the intoxicating nature of unexpected romance, and it's all the sweeter because it's a true story. After living in Los Angeles for years, Drummond made a pit stop to visit family in Tulsa on her way to live in Chicago. Days later, she met "Marlboro Man," an Oklahoma rancher with no desire to trade in his cowboy boots. Sparks fly; cue the swelling closing credits.

Drummond, who now has four children with Marlboro Man (his real name is Ladd) alluded to the deal early Thursday on her Twitter account: "My gosh," she wrote. "I go out to feed cattle for a few hours and look at what happens!" A few minutes later, she posted an explanation: "Confirmed: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels (the book, not the blog) was optioned. Think Green Acres meets Harlequin Romance meets Forest Gump."

She describes the book thusly on her website: "Grab a cup of coffee. Curl up with a blanket. Have a box of Kleenex and a fan handy. Here's the complete saga (to date) of the rip-roaring true story of how I met my husband, Marlboro Man, and how I went from spoiled city girl to domestic ranch wife in the blink of an eye. "

For all of Drummond's "aw, shucks" attitude, this is not exactly her first brush with fame. Her first cookbook, "The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl" was released late last year and quickly hit number one on the New York Times bestseller list. She made the rounds of the early morning television talk shows, and every one of her book tour stops was packed. But she's quick to give her fans credit for her success. Later in the day Thursday, another tweet went out: "Thank you guys for being so nice and wonderful. If the movie gets made, you're ALL invited to the premiere! Heh heh."

Related: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels

Filed Under: Television/Film, Celebrities
Tags: pioneer woman movie, ree drummond, reese witherspoon, The Pioneer Woman, the pioneer woman movie

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

3-19-2010 @2:48PM Flappy said... Didn't Reese already do this movie? It was called Sweet Home Alabama.
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3-30-2010 @11:22PM regina said... i was one of those avid new fans that read her blog religiously. until shortly before christmas. when she used an epic post to tell me how great it would be for me to give a NG Atlas to my friends and loved ones for christmas. gorgeous but very expensive, my words not hers. at first i was puzzled then, oh yeah, i got the picture. i hope she made a tidy commission off it. currently on amazon...$103.00-$165.00 new.

my problem? i went down and read the posts of her followers. the oh gosh what a great idea, oh how wonderful, etc. some people follow others with blinders on and those that are followed know it. so i did some checking and stumbled across a blog about her cookbook and her real life beyond cooking and home schooling. i deleted her from my favorites and my links. i don't visit her site anymore, my beloved smittenkitchen keeps me enchanted, not waiting for the next ad post.

i wonder if the book/movie will also include the fact that she married one of the richest landed cattle ranchers in the state oklahoma? top land owners in america? her husband and brother-in-law are listed as #77 below.

http://static.texashuntfish.com/media/2009/02/18/orig/6b668187-54ed-49a6-8e10-6f27b4328f19.pdf

i don't resent happy marriages, lovely children or money. i utterly resent someone posting an "oh, i've just had this great idea for a christmas gift and want to share it with you, my readers" and 10 paragraphs later she's still blathering on as to why i should buy it.
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3-30-2010 @3:11PM Kate Jenks said... I understand your frustration, but Ree repeatedly says that she is not paid to endorse any company or product on her blog. While I am not one to take claims (especially on the internet) at face value, I have to believe that by now her blog is big enough that she would be called on this if it is a lie. So I really believe her when she says she is simply expressing personal opinions, particularly since I have never seen any evidence that this is not the case.

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3-31-2010 @7:08PM regina said... Really? I hope you are right, here's the atlas blog and the url to go along with it:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/homeandgarden/2009/10/christmas-gift-idea-national-geographic-atlas-of-the-world/

Christmas Gift Idea: National Geographic Atlas of the WorldOct. 20, 2009

Next Christmas Gift Idea—I promise—will be under $20.
This one—I promise—is not under $20.
But it’s awesome, very awesome, and would make a fantastic, timeless gift for any geography-loving family in your life—yours included!
(I gave this to my own household for Christmas a few years ago, so I’ve set the precedent for you. Gift away!)

The whopper of a book—it’s 19 x 12 inches in size—comes in a sturdy, protective case.
This is a forever book. It’s special.

We had one of these in our house when I was a little girl. I would spend hours—I mean hours—examining all the pages. I can’t explain why, but I found it so interesting—freaky, eerie, and interesting.

Looking at the large maps and images in this atlas is such a different experience that looking at them on a globe.

The images in this atlas are huge. They almost take your breath away.
It’s a big world out there.

The atlas contains more information about areas of the world than you’d ever need to know.
And that’s a comforting feeling.

Look at China. HUGE.
It’s almost too much to comprehend.

It’s not unlike looking at a map of Oklahoma:
Okfuskee
Oolagah
Talala
Tahlequah
Watonga
Waurika
Cleveland
No, really! There’s a Cleveland.

Here’s what’s fun: sitting down with my twelve-year-old and challenging her to correctly pronounce some of these.
Not that I’d even know if she was correctly pronouncing them, but it’s still a fun game.

Remember that remote country in southeast Asia where America fought a war forty years ago?

It’s doesn’t seem so remote on this atlas.

I wanted to show my children where their grandfather, my dad, served in an evac hospital the year I was born. I was surprised that the place I’d always known as “Pleiku” is spelled, in Vietnamese, “Play ku”.

I’m in love with this Atlas.

I’ll tell you what freaked me out the most as a little girl.

The maps of the various ocean floors.

Does this not give you chills? Look at the mountain ranges.

There’s a whole world under there!
I’ll stop now.
I just get a little excited sometimes. Large world atlases do that to me.
Again, this book, with 416 pages and its huge size, is not cheap. But it’s also not a candle that’ll burn out in a couple of weeks, or a board game, whose pieces will get eaten by your basset hound named Charlie (hypothetically speaking, of course.) It really is a forever gift—something that can be enjoyed and learned from for years and years.
It’ll awaken your hunger for knowledge of the world. That much I promise you.
Here’s the link on Amazon:
National Geographic Atlas of the World, Eighth Edition
Love,
Pioneer Woman

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4-10-2010 @4:56AM larae said... I dont think the Pioneer Woman is with the Marlboro Man any longer. He has a new baby with his ex (who he previously has a daughter by) and she now goes by the lastname Drummond also.
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4-24-2010 @7:49PM Ness said... larae:
And you know this because.....? I think you're just trying to stir up trouble. If this is true then what is PW still doing at the ranch? I don't think Ladd would give Ree the ranch that's been in his family for generations if they were no longer together. Besides, they're taking their kids to Disney World in May. I'm sure there will be pictures. I'm sure that if they really weren't together the woman you say he's with now wouldn't go along with the idea of Ladd and Ree pretending to be together just for her blog. I know I wouldn't if I were this woman. So,what I'm saying is that you're just jealous or worse-- totally nuts. Not that you would ever admit it, of course.
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4-24-2010 @8:17PM Ness said... Regina,
So let me get this straight. You no longer read Pioneer Woman because she really,really liked the National Geographic Atlas of the World, Eighth Edition and hadthe temerity to blog about it? She wasn't forcing anyone to buy it. I didn't. Besides, bloggers are supposed to divulge if something they write is a paid advertisement. As popular as her blog is; don't you think she would have gotten in trouble for this by now?
I sure hope Deb of Smitten Kitchen doesn't make the mistake of blogging about a product she uses and likes because you would have to stop reading her blog too. I wouldn't want you to run out of blogs to read
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