by Pa Rock
Citizen Journalist
January would seem to be a very good time for bringing baby girls into the world. Just this past Sunday, a mere two days ago, we witnessed the birthdays of two exceptional American women: Michelle Obama, the woman who showed the world how vital and important a nation's "First Lady" could be, had her fifty-seventh birthday, and Betty White, a lady who has been a television star almost since television first began, turned ninety-nine. And today another female American icon is having a birthday: Dolly Parton is seventy-five!
I've never seen Michelle Obama or Betty White in person, nor is it likely that I will ever have that privilege. But I did see Dolly many years ago - when she was in her twenties - at the Shrine Mosque in Springfield, Missouri. It was a great show that included Dolly's famous singing partner - of that time - Porter Wagoner. Dolly, the buxom blonde with the voice of an angel, and Porter with his own pretty hair and a sequined jacket - they were quite the pair!
Porter Wagoner was a native of West Plains, Missouri, the town where I currently live. He performed locally here in his youth, and made a few trips back to West Plains as an adult. One of our major streets here is named after him. Last year I was bragging to my barber about having seen Dolly in Springfield while I was in college, and he one-upped me by saying that he had seen her on the square in West Plains singing from atop a hay wagon!
Never try to upstage a local!
Did you know that Dolly Parton wrote the song "I Will Always Love You" that Whitney Houston turned into a monster hit? And did you know that she wrote it for Porter Wagoner? Well now you do!
And did you know that Dolly Parton is a genuine philanthropist, one who has supported a wide variety of charitable causes including child literacy and hunger relief, and who donated a million dollars for research on a COVID vaccine? Well, now you know that, too!
Happy birthday to three ladies of January - and thank you all for making our lives so very much brighter!
1 comment:
Do you know what year it was when Dolly and Porter were at the Shrine Mosque in Springfield? My dad had been Porter's lawyer and he took my brother and I to the show and we got to go backstage. I got to meet Dolly too and she was so beautiful and sweet. She had on a black velvet vest and pants. I am trying to figure out how old I was at the time.
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