REMEMBERING PATSY CLINE… (click here to read the entire story)

March 5, 2008

45 Years ago today- the world lost the Greatest female singer ever-

The one, the only…Ms. Patsy Cline

…”Anything but Country”- that’s the usual answer I get when my friends and I are trying to decide on a radio station.  Normally, we can’t decide….so everyone is always instructed to bring a couple of CD’s for the road trip and we’ll sit through them as we drive (everyone is allowed one “veto”).  When it’s my turn…I usually yell out- “Ok, one Country song and then”….  (that’s usually as far as I get before hearing VETO! screams from everyone).

“But…It’s Patsy Cline”.  Then of course the standard phrase is next… “Oh, she’s not Country… I like her”.  Wait, wait…so because someone that usually hates country, likes Patsy…. that makes Patsy “not Country”?  It’s always the same excuse…but they love Patsy. 

Patsy, wearing one of her famous western dresses. 

(This dress is now displayed in the Country Music Hall of Fame!)

I can’t say that I blame them…I’m a pretty big fan myself.  I’m even a charter member of her fan club. (YES!, she still has a fan club…Elvis still has a fan club, several in fact…so don’t make that face.)  There is even an annual Patsy Cline Memorial Celebration in her hometown of Winchester, Virginia over Labor Day Weekend to celebrate her life. It starts on Friday evening and ends on Monday morning.  For me, the most touching part of the entire weekend is the Memorial Service.  Another highlight of the weekend is the fact that Patsy’s husband, Charlie Dick- has attended each and every fan club gathering over the last 20 years.

Patsy and Charlie on their wedding day, 1957

Until I became such a huge fan of Patsy’s, I never really understood why all those people lined up at Graceland.  I mean, I like Elvis…I just didn’t get it.  Then I went to Graceland… I get it now.  I never understood those silly girls screaming their heads off and crying when the Beatles played on the Ed Sullivan show…I get it now.  I feel all that (times ten) when I’m at Patsy’s grave.  It’s something that’s too hard to explain, so I won’t try.  But- I’m pretty sure you have a singer that makes you melt and you “get it”.

That guy up there in the picture with Patsy is George Hamilton IV.  He played several shows with Patsy early on in their careers.  He always speaks so warmly of Patsy and has attended several of the Labor Day events to honor her in Winchester.  He’s the nicest guy you’ll ever meet and he really respected Patsy as an entertainer.  George has some great stories….one of my favorites is when he says “Kitty Wells may have opened the door for women in Country Music- but Patsy kicked that door down!”  He’s the best.

During the early days of Country Music, gingham and lace were pretty much the standard attire for women.  Patsy had her own style and and a frame that you’d usually only see in Hollywood.  Her mother, Hilda Hensley, was a wonderful seamstress and would hand craft some of Patsy’s most famous stage costumes.  Patsy would design them herself and then show the sketches to her mother and Ms. Hensley would create western stage clothes that would rival Nudie’s Rodeo Tailors in North Hollywood, CA.  As Patsy’s style changed so did the dresses.  During the early 60’s she began wearing a variety of dresses in beautiful colors made from silk, sequins and chiffon.  Once again the talents of her mother were called upon to create more of these signature stage costumes that would be worn for publicity photos, concerts and album covers over the next several years.

Ms. Hilda Hensley and Patsy’s famous red westen costume.

The one thing that always amazes me about Patsy is how people that actually knew her, say how great she was with her fans.  Sometimes you hear things about entertainers and it sounds like it could never be true.  I’ve seen the ten page letters she’s written to fans in the early 60’s and it’s amazing that she took the time to do that (and often!)  It’s also kind of neat to hear how she’d stay for hours after a show, signing autographs until the very last fan that wanted one or even a picture with her- got one.

Patsy poses with some fans while on tour in Canada.

Speaking of which…I’m sure Patsy would be very proud of the way her husband Charlie and their children Julie and Randy have continued to extend that same personal respect and friendship to her fans, just as she always did.  In fact, one fan from Texas named Louise Seger- stayed in contact with Patsy for several months and those letters have since become the basis of an International hit play written by Ted Swindley. 

Read about it here:

http://www.alwayspatsycline.net/

Patsy played all the venues where a true star was invited to perform.  Aside from becoming a member of the Grand Ole Opry- she also played Carnegie Hall, The Hollywood Bowl and American Bandstand.  She even headlined her own show in Fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada at the Mint Casino.

One of my favorite Patsy pictures….”Country Diva”.

Patsy Cline had come a long way from her first taste of fame after winning “Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts“…(for all you youngsters out there, that was the equivilant of winning “American Idol” back in the day).  Patsy was becoming a huge draw and was touring the nation. She even did a show with Rock-N-Roll star Roy Orbison!  By now, her hits included “Walkin’ After Midnight, I Fall To Pieces, Crazy, She’s Got You, Heartaches, Strange, Imagine That, Leavin’ On Your Mind, So Wrong” and a dozen others.  Patsy was finally living her dream.  She won just about every major award at the 1962 DJ Convention, including “Star of the Year”.  

 

Patsy Cline on stage at the “Grand Ole Opry”.

On March 3, 1963 she played a benefit concert for a DJ that had lost his life and left behind a wife and children.  Patsy along with several other members of the Grand Ole Opry peformed in Kansas City at the Memorial Hall to a capacity crowd.  However, not everyone that wanted to see the show got in.  After noticing the large crowd still waiting, the entertainers agreed to a second show that would again benefit the DJ’s widow and her family.  Patsy had a slight cold but agreed to a second show.  The picture below, is one of the last known photos taken of her. 

Patsy Cline, backstage- March 3, 1963.

Patsy Cline- along with Opry Stars Cowboy Copus & Hawkshaw Hawkins flew back towards Nashville with Patsy’s manager/pilot Randy Hughes on March 5, 1963…

  They never made it home.

After her death, Patsy’s recordings continued to sell and she still won major awards years after she passed.  One of the greatest honors she would ever receive was her induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame- located in Nashville, Tennessee.  She was the FIRST female solo artist inducted into this elite group of stars.

PATSY CLINE’S plaque at the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Patsy was “re-discovered” by millions of fans via the Loretta Lynn movie based on her best selling book “Coal Miner’s Daughter”. Beverly D’Angelo portrayed Patsy in the movie.  After a growing interest in Patsy’s music started to reach a whole new generation of fans, the idea for a new film based entirely on Patsy Cline was made starring Jessica Lange as Patsy and Ed Harris as Charlie Dick.  It was called “Sweet Dreams”, named after one of Patsy’s most famous songs.  Prior to that, the only way fans could connect to Patsy’s music was through her albums.  One album has always been a hit-

 Greatest Hits- released in 1967.

The album “Patsy Cline’s Greatest Hits” has sold over TEN MILLION copies and is listed in the 2005 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records.  Patsy holds the honor of  “Most weeks on the US charts for an album by a female artist of any genre in history.”  At the time, the album had spent a total of 722 weeks in the Billboard Music charts and during that period- the album held the No. 1 position for almost FIVE YEARS total!!

Patsy also earned a special Grammy Award for “Lifetime Achievement”, she also has the honor of having the #1 Jukebox Hit of all time for “Crazy”.  She was also ranked #1 by CMT in their countdown of 40 Greatest Women In Country Music History.  Patsy was also honored by the United States Postal Service with a stamp in her likeness.  She has a street named after her on the Universal Studios lot in California.  Patsy even has her very own star on the world famous Hollywood Walk of Fame!

Husband Charlie and Daughter Julie attended the Hollywood Walk of Fame star dedication ceremony for Patsy Cline on August 3, 1999.

There are several documentaries that have been issued by Patsy’s Estate.  Their titles are “The Real Patsy Cline”, “Remembering Patsy” and “Sweet Dreams Still”.  All contain so many wonderful performances of Patsy at her best. 

If you’re ever near Winchester, Virginia- you can visit her grave.  It’s marked with an elegant bronze plaque that reads:

“DEATH CAN NOT KILL WHAT NEVER DIES- LOVE”.