21 December 2005
FARON FIFTY-ONE YEARS AGO: Christmas Day fell on a Saturday in 1954, and Faron appeared on the Grand Ole Opry that evening. Ernest Tubb hosted the Martha White portion, where Faron sang his latest release, “If You Ain’t Lovin’ (You Ain’t Livin’).” Faron hosted a 15-minute portion of the Opry later in the evening. There he sang “If That’s the Fashion,” the flip side of the single. Both songs were Tommy Collins compositions. Faron and Hilda found time for a quick Christmas trip to visit Faron’s family in Shreveport. They went to a nightclub one evening, and Faron convinced Hilda to join him in drinking scotch. She got sick and blamed it on the scotch. But she kept getting sick and thought she had the flu. Actually, she was pregnant with Damion.
INTERVIEW: Leonard Nimoy, best remembered from Star Trek, got drafted in 1954 and was assigned to Special Services. I contacted him through his agent, and he sent me an e-mail that said, “I only met Faron very briefly and had very little work contact with him. The Circle ‘A’ Wranglers was a self-contained unit which starred Faron and traveled through the Third Army area. My work was essentially creating variety shows which toured the bases and I occasionally did announcing for shows that were done in Atlanta.”
LETTERS:
Bill Black writes, “I present the country music shows on SAGA 105.2FM here in Glasgow, Scotland (http://www.saga1052fm.co.uk/) and saw your item in the Country Music Classics newsletter. I met and interviewed Faron when he was over here following the success of “Four in the morning” and he was quite a character! I’d be interested in doing a telephone interview with you when the book is published. Don’t know if there are plans for it to be available here also?”
Response: I look forward to the interview, and I hope the book will be available on your side of the ocean. The publisher currently reviewing the manuscript offers books worldwide.
Jim Welsh from Tasmania writes, “I found your website interesting and liked the information on Faron Young. All best wishes for the festive season.” His web site is http://www.jimwelsh.net/
Bobby Jones sends this update: “I continue to get e-mails expressing interest in a Memorial Fan Club for Faron. Thank you for listing the address again. Your newsletters really help the fans cope with the loss of Faron. I feel the fan club could offer some chances for the fans to bond. We really have nothing but a plaque in the Country Music Hall of Fame.” He can be contacted at BJones3328@aol.com.
WEB SITE: This week I’ll talk about my own site. It contains a variety of articles I’ve written, as well as information on Faron and on my two published books. “Navy Greenshirt” at http://ddiekman.tripod.com/id5.html is about my career as an aircraft maintenance officer in the Navy, and it includes the story of my acquaintance with Faron. “A Farm in the Hidewood” at http://ddiekman.tripod.com/id7.html tells about growing up on a farm in South Dakota. The opening chapters are posted on my website, as is information about purchasing the books. I’d be happy to autograph the books and mail them to your gift lists. (I waited too late to say that, didn’t I?)
Merry Christmas!!!