Johnny Cash's Biography: From Arkansas Cotton Fields to Country Music Legend
Born on February 26, 1932, in Dyess, Arkansas, John R. Cash was raised in a cotton-farming environment. His early life was shaped by music and the tragic loss of his brother Jack in May 1944. After graduating high school in 1950, he took a job in Pontiac, Michigan, and spent four years in the Air Force stationed in West Germany, where he learned about Stalin's passing. Upon his discharge in 1954, he moved to Memphis and formed Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two. Their audition with Sun Records resulted in hits such as "Folsom Prison Blues." Cash's lengthy career led to his induction into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1980. He battled addiction, married June Carter in 1968, and died in September 2003.
Key facts
- Johnny Cash was born February 26, 1932, in Dyess, Arkansas.
- His brother Jack died in May 1944 from a table saw accident.
- Cash served in the Air Force from 1950 to 1954 in Landsberg, West Germany.
- He formed Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two with Luther Perkins and Marshall Grant.
- His first recordings with Sun Records were released in 1955.
- Cash was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1980.
- He married June Carter in 1968 after divorcing Vivian Liberto in 1966.
- Cash died in September 2003 from complications of diabetes.
Entities
Artists
- Johnny Cash
- Bob Dylan
- Waylon Jennings
- Willie Nelson
- Kris Kristofferson
- Luther Perkins
- Marshall Grant
- June Carter
- Vivian Liberto
- Merle Kilgore
- Rick Rubin
- Kirk Douglas
- Sam Phillips
- Ray Cash
- Carrie Cash
- Jack Cash
- John Carter Cash
- Rosanne Cash
- Kathy Cash
- Cindy Cash
- Taraborn Cash
Institutions
- Sun Records
- Columbia
- American Recordings
- Country Music Hall of Fame
- Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
- Ku Klux Klan
- Air Force
- Johnny Cash Heritage Festival
- The Johnny Cash Show
Locations
- Dyess
- Arkansas
- United States
- Pontiac
- Michigan
- Landsberg
- West Germany
- Germany
- Memphis
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Folsom Prison
- California
- San Quentin
- Huntsville State Prison