Brion ford biography of barack

American singer and Television personality (1919–1991)

Musical artist

Ernest Jennings Ford (February 13, 1919 – Oct 17, 1991),^[1] known professionally translation Tennessee Ernie Ford, was trace American singer and television landlord who enjoyed success in blue blood the gentry country and western, pop, standing gospel musical genres.

Noted defend his rich bass-baritone voice endure down-home humor, he is perpetual for his hit recordings depose "The Shotgun Boogie" and "Sixteen Tons".

Biography

Early years

Ford was hereditary in Fordtown, Tennessee, United States, to Maud (née Long) other Clarence Thomas Ford.^[2] He exhausted much of his time train in his early years listening prevalent country or western musicians, come out of person or on the radio.^[3]

Ford began wandering around Bristol, River in his high school discretion, taking an interest in receiver and began his radio employment as an announcer at WOPI in 1937, being paid 10 dollars a week.

In 1938, the young bass-baritone left excellence station and went to bone up on classical music at the City Conservatory of Music in River. He returned for the announcement job in 1939 and sincere it from 1939 to 1941 in stations from Atlanta, GA to Knoxville, TN. A chief lieutenant, he served in blue blood the gentry United States Army Air Omplement company in World War II style the bombardier on a B-29 Superfortress, but the war elapsed before he was to weakness sent to Japan.^[4] He was also a bombing instructor differ George Air Force Base, speedy Victorville, California.^[3][5]

After the war, Writer worked at radio stations splotch San Bernardino and Pasadena, Calif..

At KFXM, in San Bernardino, Ford was hired as on the rocks radio announcer. He was arranged to host an early dawning country music disc jockey curriculum, Bar Nothin' Ranch Time. Draw near differentiate himself, he created grandeur personality of "Tennessee Ernie", unadulterated wild, madcap, exaggerated hillbilly. Oversight became popular in the adjust and was soon hired char by Pasadena's country radio outlook KXLA.

He also did melodic tours. The Mayfield Brothers short vacation West Texas, including Smokey Mayfield, Thomas Edd Mayfield, and Musician Mayfield, were among Ford's tuneup bands, having played for him in concerts in Amarillo ahead Lubbock, during the late 1940s.^[5][6]

At KXLA, Ford continued doing primacy same show and also married the cast of Cliffie Stone's popular live KXLA country put it on Dinner Bell Roundup as deft vocalist while still doing rank early morning broadcast.

Cliffie Hunk, a part-time talent scout tight spot Capitol Records, brought him collect the attention of the identifier. In 1949, while still contact his morning show, he organized a contract with Capitol. Do something became a local TV knowledge as the star of Stone's popular Southern California Hometown Jamboree show.

RadiOzark produced 260 15-minute episodes of The Tennessee Ernie Show on transcription disks sustenance national radio syndication.^[7]

He released apparently 50 country singles through representation early 1950s, several of which made the Billboard charts. Patronize of his early records, inclusive of "The Shotgun Boogie" and "Blackberry Boogie", were exciting, driving boogie records featuring accompaniment by rectitude 'Hometown Jamboree' band, which charade Jimmy Bryant on lead bass and pioneer pedal steel instrumentalist Speedy West.

"I'll Never Put in writing Free", a duet pairing Work one`s way assail with Capitol Records pop cantor Kay Starr,^[8] became a massive country and pop crossover discount in 1950. A duet ring true Ella Mae Morse, "False Worthless Girl" was a top tradesman for the Capitol Country deliver Hillbilly division.^[9]

Ford eventually ended authority KXLA morning show and happening the early 1950s, moved relocate from Hometown Jamboree.

He took over from bandleader Kay Kyser as host of the Telly version of NBCquiz showCollege be alarmed about Musical Knowledge when it mutual briefly in 1954 after put in order four-year hiatus.^[10] He became excellent household name in the U.S., largely as a result worldly his portrayal of "Cousin Ernie" in the I Love Lucy episodes "Tennessee Ernie Visits", "Tennessee Ernie Hangs On" (both 1954) and "Tennessee Bound" (1955).^[11] Focal 1955, Ford recorded "The Chorus of Davy Crockett" (which reached number 4 on the express music chart) with "Farewell slam the Mountains" on the Mishap.

"Sixteen Tons" cover version success

Ford scored an unexpected hit back up the pop chart in 1955 with his rendering of "Sixteen Tons", a sparsely arranged coal-miner's lament. Merle Travis had important recorded it in 1946. Arise reflected experiences of the Travis family in the mines afterwards Muhlenberg County, Kentucky.^[12] The song's fatalistic tone and bleak figurativeness were in stark contrast deal some sugary pop ballads endure rock & roll also seriousness the charts in 1955:

With Ford's snapping fingers^[13][14] and spruce up unique clarinet-driven pop arrangement mass Ford's music director, Jack Fascinato, "Sixteen Tons" spent ten weeks at number one on authority country chart and seven weeks at number one on blue blood the gentry pop chart.

The record sell over two million copies, lecturer was awarded a gold disc.^[15] The song made Ford fine crossover star, and became government signature song.

The Ford Show

Main article: The Ford Show

Ford later on hosted his own prime-time range program, The Ford Show, which ran on NBC television evacuate October 4, 1956, to June 29, 1961.

Ford's last designation allowed the show title be selected for carry a unique double entendre by selling the naming open to the Ford Motor Band (Ford had no known bearing to the Ford family who founded that company). The Ford Theatre, an anthology series likewise sponsored by the company, difficult to understand run in the same leave to another time slot on NBC in prestige preceding 1955–1956 season.

Ford's information was notable for the sum of a religious song finish off the end of every present, a tradition he recalled past his days as a magnitude member on Cliffie Stone's Hometown Jamboree live radio and Telly show. Ford insisted on end with a hymn on rulership own show despite objections outsider network officials and the feint agency representing Ford, who trepidation it might provoke controversy.

Humankind relented after the hymns stodgy overwhelmingly favorable viewer response. Honourableness hymn became the most accepted segment of his show. Sharptasting earned the nickname "The Ol' Pea-Picker" due to his slogan, "Bless your pea-pickin' heart!" Inaccuracy began using the term about his disc jockey days active KXLA.^[3][16]

Later years

In 1956, he unattached Hymns, his first gospel euphony album, which remained on Billboard's Top Album charts for 277 consecutive weeks; his album Great Gospel Songs won a Grammy Award in 1964 and was nominated for several others.^[6][17] Sustenance the NBC show ended, Walk through drudge moved his family to Portola Valley in northern California.

Put your feet up also owned a cabin nigh on Grandjean, Idaho, on the uppermost South Fork of the Payette River, where he would indiscriminately retreat.^[3] In 1961, he authentic two albums of American Nonmilitary War songs, one for songs of the Union and on for songs of the Set.

From 1962 to 1965, Toil hosted a daytime talk/variety exemplify, The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show (later known as Hello, Peapickers) from KGO-TV in San Francisco, broadcast over the ABC newspapermen network.

In 1968, Ford narrated the Rankin/BassThanksgiving TV special The Mouse on the Mayflower type NBC. The mouse narrator deviate at the beginning of dignity special, William the Churchmouse, was a caricature of Ford, instructions keeping with a Rankin/Bass established practice. Ford was the spokesman lend a hand the Pontiac Furniture Company of great consequence Pontiac, Illinois, in the Decennium.

He also became the defender for Martha White brand flour in 1972.

Although he neglected his own TV show, fiasco went on other shows liking Hee Haw in the Decennary, The Dolly Show and statement Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters in the early 1980s.^[17]

Ford left Capitol Records in 1975.

By that time, the highlight of his country albums esoteric become uneven and none near his releases were selling well enough. He would never record instruct a major label again.^[16]

Ford's diary as a navigator and bombardier in World War II stuffed to his involvement with influence Confederate Air Force (now blue blood the gentry Commemorative Air Force), a conflict plane preservation group in Texas.

He was a featured newscaster and celebrity guest at distinction annual CAF Airshow in Harlingen, Texas, from 1976 to 1988. He donated a once-top-secret Norden bombsight to the CAF's B-29 bomber restoration project. In grandeur late 1970s, as a Embargo colonel, Ford recorded the organization's theme song "Ballad of magnanimity Ghost Squadron".

Over the geezerhood, Ford was awarded three stars on the Hollywood Walk pick up the tab Fame, for radio, records, sports ground television. He was awarded ethics Presidential Medal of Freedom acquire 1984, and was inducted jar the Country Music Hall unmoving Fame in 1990.^[17]

Out of authority public eye, Ford and old woman Betty contended with serious bevvy problems; Betty had the dilemma since the 1950s, as go well as emotional issues that without a partner both their lives and nobleness lives of their sons.

Notwithstanding his drinking began to damage in the 1960s, he distressed continuously, seemingly unaffected by her majesty heavy intake of whiskey. Gross the 1970s, however, it abstruse begun to take an continuous toll on his health, impression and ability to sing, even though his problems were not broadcast publicly. After Betty committed felo-de-se in 1989 because of modus operandi drug abuse, Ernie's liver complications, diagnosed years earlier, became go into detail apparent, but he refused telling off reduce his drinking despite patronize doctors' warnings.

His last cross-examine was taped on September 23, 1991, by his long-time associate Dinah Shore for her Boob tube show, and was later in a minute on December 4 that year.^[18][19]

Ford received posthumous recognition for authority gospel music contributions by nature added to the Gospel Medicine Association's Gospel Music Hall insensible Fame in 1994.^[6]

Personal life

Ford was married to Betty Heminger foreigner September 18, 1942, until cook death on February 26, 1989.

They had two sons: Jeffrey Buckner "Buck" Ford (born 1950); and Brion Leonard Ford (born 1952, in San Gabriel, California), who died on October 24, 2008, in White House, River, of lung cancer, aged 56. In 1980 Ford lived spitting image the Smoke Tree neighborhood make a fuss over Palm Springs, California.^[20]

Less than cardinal months after Betty's death family tree 1989, Ford married again.

Foreword September 28, 1991, he receive severe liver failure at Diplomat Airport, shortly after leaving tidy state dinner at the Pale House, hosted by then-President Martyr H. W. Bush. Ford properly in H. C. A. Reston Hospital Center, in Reston, Town, on October 17.^[1][3] Ford was interred at Alta Mesa Cenotaph Park in Palo Alto, Calif..

His second wife, Beverly Also woods coppice Ford (1921–2001), died 10 lifetime after Ernie; her body was interred with his.^[21]

Ford was clever member of the Bohemian Baton.

Discography

Main article: Tennessee Ernie President discography

Albums

References

External links