June Carter Cash

Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash in 1969

Background information
Birth name Valerie June Carter
Born June 23, 1929
Maces Spring, Virginia, US
Origin Hiltons, Virginia, USA
Died May 15, 2003 (aged 73)
Nashville, Tennessee, USA
Genres Country
Occupations Singer-songwriter, actress, dancer,
comedienne
Instruments Vocals, guitar, banjo, harmonica,
autoharp
Years active 19392003
Associated
acts
Carter Family, The Carter Sisters,
Johnny Cash
June Carter Cash
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Valerie June Carter Cash (June 23, 1929 May 15, 2003)
[1]
was an American singer,
dancer, songwriter, actress, comedian, and author who was a member of the Carter
Family and the second wife of singer Johnny Cash. She played the guitar, banjo,
harmonica, and autoharp, and acted in several films and television shows. Carter Cash
won five Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Christian Music Hall of Fame in
2009.
[2]
She was ranked No. 31 in CMT's 40 Greatest Women in Country Music in 2002.
Contents
1 Biography
1.1 Early life
1.2 Career highlights
1.3 Personal life
1.4 Death
2 Awards
3 Legacy
4 Discography
4.1 Albums
4.2 Albums with Johnny Cash
4.3 Singles
4.4 Singles with Johnny Cash
4.5 Featured singles
5 See also
6 References
7 Further reading
8 External links
Biography
Early life
June Carter Cash was born Valerie June Carter in Maces Spring, Virginia, to Maybelle Carter and Ezra Carter. She was born into country
music and performed with the Carter Family from the age of ten, beginning in 1939. In March 1943, when the Carter Family trio stopped
recording together at the end of the WBT contract, Maybelle Carter, with encouragement from her husband Ezra, formed "Mother Maybelle
& the Carter Sisters" with her daughters, Helen, Anita, and June. The new group first aired on radio station WRNL in Richmond, Virginia,
on June 1. Doc (Addington) and Carl (McConnell)Maybelle's brother and cousin, respectivelyknown as "The Virginia Boys," joined
them in late 1945. June, then 16, was a co-announcer with Ken Allyn and did the commercials on the radio shows for "Red Star Flour",
"Martha White", and "Thalhimers Department Store", just to name a few.
[3]
For the next year, the Carters and Doc and Carl did show dates
within driving range of Richmond, through Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and Pennsylvania. June later said she had to work harder at her
music than her sisters, but she had her own special talentcomedy.
[4]
A highlight of the road shows was her "Aunt Polly" comedy routine.
Carl McConnell wrote in his memoirs that June was "a natural born clown, if there ever was one." She attended John Marshall High School
during this period.
[5]
After Doc and Carl dropped out of the music business in late 1946, Maybelle and her daughters moved to Sunshine Sue Workman's "Old
Dominion Barn Dance" on the WRVA Richmond station. After a while there, they moved to WNOX in Knoxville, TN, where they met Chet
Atkins with Homer and Jethro.
In 1949, Maybelle & The Carter Sisters, along with their lead guitarist, a young Chet Atkins, were living in Springfield, Missouri, and
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performing regularly at KWTO. Ezra "Eck" Carter, Maybelle's husband and manager of the group, declined numerous offers from the Grand
Ole Opry to move the act to Nashville, Tennessee, because the Opry would not permit Atkins to accompany the group onstage. Atkins'
reputation as a guitar player had begun to spread, and studio musicians were fearful that he would displace them as a 'first-call' player if he
came to Nashville. Finally, in 1950, Opry management relented and the group, along with Atkins, became part of the Opry company. Here
the family befriended Hank Williams and Elvis Presley (to whom they were distantly related), and June met Johnny Cash.
June and her sisters, with mother Maybelle and aunt Sara joining in from time to time, reclaimed the name The Carter Family for their act
during the 1960s and 1970s.
With her thin and lanky frame, June Carter often played a comedic foil during the group's performances alongside other Opry stars Faron
Young and Webb Pierce.
Career highlights
While June Carter Cash may be best known for singing and songwriting, she was also an author, dancer, actress, comedian, philanthropist,
and humanitarian.
[6]
Director Elia Kazan saw her perform at the Grand Ole Opry in 1955 and encouraged her to study acting. She studied
with Lee Strasberg and Sanford Meisner at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York. Her acting roles included Mrs. "Momma" Dewey in
Robert Duvall's 1998 movie The Apostle, Sister Ruth, wife to Johnny Cash's character Kid Cole, on Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman (199397),
and Clarise on Gunsmoke in 1957. June was also "Momma James" in The Last Days of Frank and Jesse James.
As a singer, she had both a solo career and a career singing with first her family and later her husband. As a solo artist, she became
somewhat successful with upbeat country tunes of the 1950s like "Jukebox Blues" and, with her exaggerated breaths, the comedic hit "No
Swallerin' Place" by Frank Loesser. June also recorded "The Heel" in the 1960s along with many other songs. She won a Grammy award in
1999 for her solo album, Press On. Her last album, Wildwood Flower, was released posthumously in 2003 and won two additional
Grammys. It contains bonus video enhancements showing extracts from the film of the recording sessions, which took place at the Carter
Family estate in Hiltons, Virginia, on September 1820, 2002. The songs on the album include "Big Yellow Peaches," "Sinking in the
Lonesome Sea," "Temptation" and the trademark staple "Wildwood Flower".
Her autobiography was published in 1979, and she wrote a memoir, From the Heart, almost 10 years later.
[7]
Personal life
Carter was married three times and had one child with each husband. All three of her children would go on to have successful careers in
country music.
She was married first to honky-tonk singer Carl Smith from July 9, 1952, until their divorce in 1956. Together they wrote "Time's
A-Wastin'". They had a daughter, Rebecca Carlene Smith, aka Carlene Carter, a country musician.
[8]
June's second marriage was to Edwin "Rip" Nix, a former football player, police officer, and race car driver, on November 11, 1957. They
had a daughter, Rosanna Lea aka Rosie, on July 13, 1958. The couple divorced in 1966. Rosie Nix Adams was a country/rock singer. On
October 24, 2003, Rosie died on a bus from possible carbon monoxide poisoning.
[8]
Carter and the entire Carter Family had performed with Johnny Cash for a number of years. In 1968, Cash proposed to Carter during a live
performance at the London Ice House in London, Ontario, Canada. They married on March 1 in Franklin, Kentucky,
[7]
and remained
married until her death in May 2003, just four months before Cash died. The couple's son, John Carter Cash, is a musician, songwriter, and
producer.
In 1970, Carter's distant cousin, future U.S. President Jimmy Carter, became closely acquainted with Cash and Carter and maintained their
friendship throughout their lifetime. In a June 1977 speech, Jimmy Carter acknowledged that June Carter was his distant cousin, with whom
they shared a common patrilineal ancestor.
[9]
Carter was a longtime supporter of SOS Children's Villages. In 1974 the Cashes donated money to help build a village near their home in
Barrett Town, Jamaica, which they visited frequently, playing the guitar and singing songs to the children in the village.
[10]
Death
June Carter Cash died in Nashville, Tennessee, on May 15, 2003, of complications following heart-valve replacement surgery, in the
company of her family and her husband of 35 years, Johnny Cash.
[7][11]
At Carter's funeral, her stepdaughter, Rosanne Cash, stated that "if
being a wife were a corporation, June would have been a CEO. It was her most treasured role."
[12]
Johnny Cash passed away four months
after June's death. Both are buried in Hendersonville Memory Gardens near their home in Hendersonville, Tennessee.
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June Carter in 1999.
Awards
Carter and her future husband, Johnny Cash, reached No. 2 on the US Country charts with their 1967
duet of "Jackson". Their performance won the 1968 Grammy Award for Best Country & Western
Performance Duet, Trio or Group.
The two now married won the 1971 Grammy Award, for Best Country Vocal Performance by a
Duo or Group, for their 1970 duet "If I Were a Carpenter".
Carter Cash won the 2000 Grammy Award, for Best Traditional Folk Album, for her 1999 album
Press On. The album was a top 15 success on the Americana Chart.
Carter Cash's last album, Wildwood Flower, was released posthumously in 2003. Carter Cash won
the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album, and she also won the 2004 Grammy
Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for the single "Keep on the Sunny Side".
[3]
Legacy
June Carter was played by Reese Witherspoon in Walk the Line, a 2005 biographical film of Johnny
Cash (played by Joaquin Phoenix). The film largely focused on the development of their relationship over the course of 13 years, from their
first meeting to her final acceptance of his proposal of marriage. Witherspoon performed all vocals for the role, singing many of June's
famous songs, including "Juke Box Blues" and "Jackson" with Phoenix.
[13]
Witherspoon won an Academy Award, Golden Globe, BAFTA
and Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actress in the role.
[14]
Musician and actress Jewel portrayed June Carter Cash in a Lifetime television movie called Ring of Fire, which aired on May 27, 2013.
The film is based on John Carter Cash's memoir Anchored in Love: An Intimate Portrait of June Carter Cash.
[15]
Discography
Albums
Year Album
Chart Positions
US
Bluegrass
US
Country
1975 Appalachian Pride
1999
Press On
It's All in the Family
2003
Wildwood Flower 2 33
Louisiana Hayride
2005
Keep on the Sunny Side: June Carter Cash - Her Life in Music
Church in the Wildwood: A Treasury of Appalachian Gospel
Ring of Fire: The Best of June Carter Cash
2006 Early June
Albums with Johnny Cash
Year Album
Chart Positions
US
Country
US
1967 Carryin' On with Johnny Cash and June Carter 5
1973 Johnny Cash and His Woman 32
1978 Johnny & June
2006
16 Biggest Hits: Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash 26 126
June Carter and Johnny Cash: Duets
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Singles
Year Single
Peak
positions
Album
US
Country
CAN
Country
1949 "Grandma Told Me So"
Non-album songs
1950
"Root Hot or Die"
"Bashful Rascal"
1951
"Thing"
"Mommie's Real Peculiar"
1953
"No Swallerin' Place"
"You Flopped When You Got Me Home"
1954 "Tennessee Mambo, Left Over Mambo"
1955 "He Don't Love Me Anymore"
1956
"Strange, Strange Woman"
"Baby I Tried"
1961 "Heel"
1962
"Mama Teach Me"
"Overalls and Dungarees"
1963 "I Pitched My Tent (On the Old Camp Ground)"
1964
"Tall Lover Man"
"Go Away, Stranger"
1965 "Everything Ain't Been Said"
1971 "A Good Man" 27 12
1973 "Follow Me"
1975 "The Shadow of a Lady" Appalachian Pride
2003 "Keep on the Sunny Side" Wildwood Flower
"" denotes releases that did not chart
Singles with Johnny Cash
Year Single
Peak positions
Album
US
Country
US
CAN
Country
CAN
CAN
AC
AU UK
1964 "It Ain't Me Babe" 4 58 85 28
Orange Blossom
Special
1967
"Jackson" 2 Greatest Hits, Vol. 1
"Long-Legged Guitar Pickin' Man" 6
Carryin' On with
Johnny Cash and
June Carter
1969 "If I Were a Carpenter" 2 36 1 13 11 52
Hello, I'm Johnny
Cash
1971 "No Need to Worry" 15 7
International
Superstar
1972 "The Loving Gift" 27 22
Any Old Wind That
Blows
1973 "Allegheny" 69 35
Johnny Cash and
His Woman
1976 "Old Time Feeling" 26 24 Greatest Hits, Vol. 3
"" denotes releases that did not chart
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Featured singles
Year Single Artist
Peak
positions
Album
US
Country
1949 "Baby, It's Cold Outside" Homer and Jethro 9 Non-album song
See also
Walk the Line
References
^ "June Carter Cash in the 1930 US Census" (http://rootdig.com/2007/03/1930-census-june-carter-cash.html), Root dig, March 2007. 1.
^ "Awards" (http://web.archive.org/web/20120515174455/http://hallmuseum.com/9awards.htm). Christian Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
2009. Archived from the original (http://hallmuseum.com/9awards.htm) on May 15, 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2013.
2.
^
a

b
"June Carter Cash" (http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/cash_june_carter/bio.jhtml), Artists (biography), CMT. 3.
^ Bufwack, Mary (1998), "Carter Sisters", in Kingsbury, Paul, The Encyclopedia of Country Music, New York: Oxford University Press, p. 85. 4.
^ "Walk the line, drive the road" (http://www.virginia.org/WalktheLineDrivetheRoad/). Virginia. 5.
^ "June" (http://johnnycash.com/june/june2.html), Johnny Cash.com. 6.
^
a

b

c
Downey, Ryan J. Country Star June Smith First Wife Carl Smith 73. (http://mtv.com/news/articles/1471909/20030515
/cash_june_carter.jhtml) MTV.com. 2003-05-15.
7.
^
a

b
"Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash" (http://marriage.about.com/od/entertainmen1/p/johncash.htm), Marriage (profile), About. 8.
^ Carter 1978, p. 1115 (Conference on HIRE, June 14). 9.
^ "Johnny Cash" (http://sos-childrensvillages.org/get-involved/celebrities-as-partners/pages/johnny-cash.aspx). Spotlight on. SOS Children's
Villages. 2006. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
10.
^ June Carter Cash (http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=7446405) at Find a Grave 11.
^ Capital News (AU), June 2003 http://capitalnews.com.au/editorial.asp?editorial_id=313&issue=44 |url= missing title (help). 12.
^ "The Reel Deal" (http://oregonherald.com/reviews/mark-sells/reviews/walktheline.html), Oregon Herald, December 2005, retrieved 2007-03-23. 13.
^ "Awards for Walk the Line" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0358273/awards). IMDb. 14.
^ "Jewel Will Play June Carter Cash in TV Movie" (http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20592960,00.html). People. May 6, 2012. Retrieved
May 28, 2012.
15.
Further reading
Carter, James 'Jimmy' (1978), Public papers of the presidents of the United States: Jimmy Carter, 1977 (http://books.google.com
/books?id=biqLkX0CCzQC&dq=%22june+carter%22+%22jimmy+carter%22+cousin&source=gbs_navlinks_s), Government
Printing Office.
Cash, June Carter (1979), Among My Klediments, Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, ISBN 0-310-38170-3.
Dawidoff, Nicholas (1998), In the Country of Country: A Journey to the Roots of American Music, Vintage Books,
ISBN 0-375-70082-X.
McConnell, Carl P (January 24, 1976), A Brief History of My Family and an Autobiographical Sketch of My Musical Life.
Background for liner notes for a Doc and Carl album recorded at Johnny Cash's Nashville studio. Online at "Southern music"
(http://www.southernmusic.net/).
Zwonitzer, Mark; Hirschberg, Charles (2002), Will you miss me when I'm gone? The Carter Family and their legacy in American
music, New York: Simon & Schuster.
External links
June Carter Cash - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_Carter_Cash
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Wikimedia Commons has
media related to June Carter
Cash.
Keep on the Sunnyside: June Carter Cash Remembered (http://junecarter.wetpaint.com/), Wet
paint.
June Carter Cash (http://junecarter.proboards80.com/) (forum), Pro boards 80.
"June Carter Cash" (http://music.yahoo.com/ar-291783---June-Carter-Cash), Music, Yahoo!.
June Carter Cash (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0141745/) at the Internet Movie Database
A.P. Carter Museum (http://virginia.org/site/description.asp?AttrID=10670&CharID=287406), Virginia.
Friends of the Carter Family Fold (http://friendsofthefold.com/).
"June Carter Cash" (http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=7446405). Find a Grave. Retrieved November 30,
2013.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=June_Carter_Cash&oldid=613000146"
Categories: 1929 births 2003 deaths People from Nashville, Tennessee People from Scott County, Virginia
Deaths from surgical complications American Christians American female country singers American female dancers
American banjoists American country singer-songwriters American female guitarists Country musicians from Virginia
Burials in Tennessee Grammy Award-winning artists Autoharp players Grand Ole Opry members Liberty Records artists
Johnny Cash Cash-Carter family
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