Alice Brock, the iconic figure behind the eatery that inspired Arlo Guthrie’s renowned Thanksgiving anthem, “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree,” has passed away at the age of 83, leaving a rich legacy in American folk culture.

The announcement of her passing, made just a week prior to Thanksgiving, was shared on Friday (Nov. 22) by Guthrie through the official Facebook page of his record label, Rising Son Records. Guthrie revealed that she passed away in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where she had lived for approximately 40 years, and mentioned her declining health. Further information surrounding her death was not immediately disclosed.

“This Thanksgiving will mark the first without her,” Guthrie reflected. “Alice and I had a phone conversation a couple of weeks ago, and she sounded just like her vibrant self. We shared some jokes and enjoyed a few good laughs, even though we both understood that we wouldn’t have another opportunity to speak together again.”

Born as Alice May Pelkey in New York City, Brock was a lifelong advocate for social change and a member of various organizations, including the Students for a Democratic Society. In the early 1960s, she made the bold decision to drop out of Sarah Lawrence College, relocating to Greenwich Village where she married Ray Brock, a talented woodworker who encouraged her to leave the hustle of New York City and start anew in Massachusetts.

Guthrie, who is the son of the legendary folk musician Woody Guthrie, first crossed paths with Brock around 1962 while attending the Stockbridge School in Massachusetts. At that time, she worked as the school librarian. Their friendship blossomed, and they maintained contact even after he left school, often staying with her and her husband in the converted church in Stockbridge that served as their home.

On Thanksgiving Day in 1965, a seemingly innocuous task led to Guthrie’s arrest, ultimately sparking his evasion of military service during the Vietnam War and giving birth to a song that has become both a protest anthem and a beloved holiday classic. While helping the Brocks with trash disposal, Guthrie and his friend Richard Robbins found themselves in a predicament when they couldn’t locate an open dumpster. They resorted to tossing the trash down a hill, leading to their arrest for illegal dumping, a small offense that had significant consequences.

By 1966, Alice Brock had taken the reins of The Back Room restaurant in Stockbridge, while Guthrie was on the rise as a musical artist. His breakthrough song, a lengthy talking blues piece, narrated his arrest and the subsequent impact it had on his draft eligibility. The song’s catchy chorus paid homage to Alice, even though the restaurant itself was not formally named after her—yet it became a part of popular lore, remembered by countless fans:

“You can get anything you want at Alice’s Restaurant/ You can get anything you want at Alice’s Restaurant/ Walk right in it’s around the back/ Just a half a mile from the railroad track/ You can get anything you want at Alice’s Restaurant.”

Initially, Guthrie believed his song was too lengthy to achieve commercial success; however, it quickly evolved into a radio classic and a staple of American culture. Alice’s Restaurant became the title of his million-selling debut album, which later inspired a movie and a cookbook. Alice Brock authored her memoir titled My Life as a Restaurant and collaborated with Guthrie on a children’s book named Mooses Come Walking. Before her passing, they were in talks about an exhibition to celebrate her contributions at her previous home in Stockbridge, which is now known as the Guthrie Center, hosting free Thanksgiving dinners ever since.

Throughout her career, Brock operated three distinct restaurants, although she later admitted that her passion for cooking and business was not initially strong. She attributed her professional endeavors as a factor in her marriage’s dissolution, while firmly denying any rumors of infidelity. Her legacy was immortalized by Guthrie, who famously noted late in “Alice’s Restaurant” that “You can get anything you want” at Alice’s Restaurant, “excepting Alice.”