That question was among one I answered on a MySpace survey a few days ago. I answered, "yep," with no explanation. I've met several famous people over the years, but the one I thought of initially was the first one I met.
I was in seventh grade on a field trip at Opryland when I caught my first and only real-life glimpse of Porter Wagoner. The rhinestone-laden suit, with sequined wagon wheels, were over the top in my young mind as the steely blue-eyed Wagonmaster, with brilliant, combed-back blond hair, weaved through us throngs of youngsters who were more interested in the Wabash Cannonball ride than the man who helped make Dolly Parton on her way to international fame.
I didn't ride the Wabash that day. And the image of Porter Wagoner never left me.
On Sunday, Porter Wagoner died at the age of 80. I knew death was imminent when it was announced on Friday that he had gone into hospice care. But I wasn't ready for it to be this soon.
I cannot claim to be a Wagoner fan. I know he was the face of the Opry over the past several years, but I didn't follow him closely. His face, however, is one of the etchings in my memory from childhood. Watching "The Porter Wagoner Show" on Saturday afternoons was what one did in rural East Tennessee in the 1960s and 1970s.
One of my earliest memories is of watching Porter and Dolly on my aunt's tiny black-and-white TV. They sang together and hawked Black Draught and other products. (I can still hear Dolly extolling the virtues of Cardui.) And I remember Speck Rhoads, the comedy relief for the show. Can't remember a darned thing he said, but the man deserves a nod for the Comedy Hall of Fame for simply wearing that bowler hat and loud plaid suit in public. It actually made Porter's garb look ... well, kind of normal.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqmyfQDN6ik
In Dolly's autobiography, she reveals that her song, "I Will Always Love You," was written for Porter. That, in my opinion, makes it all the more poignant.
If I should stay
Well, I would only be in your way
And so I'll go, and yet I know
That I'll think of you each step of my way
And I will always love you
I will always love you
Bitter-sweet memories
That's all I have, and all I'm taking with me
Good-bye, oh, please don't cry
cause we both know that I'm not
What you need
I will always love you
I will always love you
And I hope life, will treat you kind
And I hope that you have all
That you ever dreamed of
Oh, I do wish you joy
And I wish you happiness
But above all this
I wish you love
I love you, I will always love
I, I will always, always love you
I will always love you
I will always love you
I will always love you
Source: LyricsFreak
Rest in peace, Wagonmaster.
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