26 October 2005

To fans and friends and family of Faron Young:

This is the first edition of a periodic newsletter on the status of publication of “Tell It Like It Is: A Biography of Faron Young.” Please let me know if you prefer not to be on my mailing list.

I started researching Faron’s life six years ago and finally finished writing the book last month. The manuscript is currently under review by a publisher. My goal is to publish the book in 2007, the 75th anniversary of Faron’s birth. Articles I have written about Faron can be read on my web site at http://ddiekman.tripod.com/id8.html.

FARON FIFTY YEARS AGO: During a show at the Municipal Auditorium in Albany, Georgia, on October 12, 1955, Faron collapsed on stage. First thought to be suffering from food poisoning, he was diagnosed with a severe case of hepatitis, which he’d contracted while filming the movie “Daniel Boone Trailblazer” in Mexico in September. Hilda left baby Damion with Virginia Terry, wife of Gordon Terry (fiddle player in Faron’s band), and flew down to stay in the hospital with Faron. After ten days, the doctors decided Faron had improved enough to be transferred to Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville. During his Vanderbilt stay, he received word from “Country & Western Jamboree” that the magazine’s fans had voted him Favorite Male Singer for 1955. Faron, still weak and pale, resumed touring on New Year’s Eve as part of the A.V. Bamford Grand Ole Opry package show in St. Paul/Minneapolis.

Please send me your questions and comments about Faron, for publication in future newsletters.

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