Johnny Cash Informative Speech

The Man In Black, singer, songwriter, actor, host. Johnny cash went by many names, and did many great things in his lifetime. He went from working in the fields with his family to being one of the best country music stars in history! Johnny Cash started out like any other human being but, i’m going to tell you about how he became the legend he is today, i'm going to tell you about his early life,his career’s, and about all the little bumps he hit in the road on his rise to fame.

To begin, Johnny cash’s early life was full of hardships but he stayed strong and with his music carried on. Johnny Cash was born February 26th, 1932 in Kingsland, Arkansas, at birth he was given the name J.R.Cash. Fourth of seven children born to

Ray and Carrie Rivers Cash. When he was three he and his family moved to Dyess,Arkansas so that his father could take advantage of the new deal. He spent the next 15 years working the fields alongside his parents and siblings. Music was how he escaped these hardships and made it through. Johnny cash started writing songs at age 12. His mother,recognizing his love for music scraped up enough money for him to take music lessons. But after a few days of lessons his instructor told him not to come back because he already had a great voice and shouldn't change it. Cash was also very close to his older brother Jack who at age 15, got into a whirling head saw accident at the mill he worked at and was almost cut in half. “ He suffered for more than a week before dying on May 20, 1944,.Cash often spoke of the horrible guilt he felt over this incident. According to Cash: The Autobiography, his father was away that morning, but Johnny and his mother, and Jack himself, all had premonitions or a sense of foreboding about that day. His mother urged Jack to skip work and go fishing with his brother. Jack insisted on working since the family needed the money. On his deathbed, Jack said he had visions of Heaven and angels. Decades later, Cash spoke of looking forward to meeting his brother in Heaven.” (“Johnny Cash” Wiki)
Also, Johnny cash had a few different careers before he became a country music star. He enlisted into the air force in 1950, since you weren’t permitted to use initials as a first name he put down the name John.R. Cash. He was sent to Lackland AirForce base in San Antonio,Texas for training, were he met future wife Vivian Liberto. He Spent the bulk of those four years stationed in Landsberg, West Germany were he was a radio intercept officer eavesdropping on Soviet radio tracing. With a few of his airforce buddies he made a band called “The Landsberg Barbarians.” After he was discharged in 1954 he married vivian and lived in memphis, Tennessee where he worked as best as he could as an appliance salesman pursuing music on the side. Cash and two of his friends that he played with showed up unannounced at the office of Sam Phillips the owner of Sun Records and asked for an addition. He liked their sound but thought their choice in genre wouldn't sell so he told them to come back with an original song. So they did with their new song “ Cry,Cry,Cry” Sam Phillips liked it so they started recording for him calling themselves Johnny Cash And The Tennessee Two. And this was just the beginning of his career he did many more thing as a country music artist.
Finally, Cash’s music career was one to remember.

It was full of ups and downs in which, with the help of friends he overcame all the downs. In the 1960’s he relocated his family to California, where he started working for Columbia Records. He normally traveled with June Carter who co-wrote his signature song “Ring of Fire”. Drugs and alcohol were also constant touring companions while Vivian stayed home and took care of their daughters Rosanne, Kathy, Cindy, and Tara. She grew more and more angry with his absence, drug and alcohol use, and his “Sleeping around with other women.” (“Johnny Cash” Wiki) And in 1966, she filed for divorce. After that his life spiraled out of control. He started using drugs and alcohol more even once being found by police on the brink of death due to a drug overdose. But his old touring companion June carter helped him refocus his christian faith and get the drug addiction treatment he needed. And in 1967 he won a grammy for best country and western performance. Then in 1968 a year later, he and June got married and together turned his life around. Years later on May 15, 2003 june died after complications following a heart surgery. But even with the death of his beloved wife he carried on dieing later that year on September 12, from

diabetes.
Johnny Cash’s life was one to remember, it was one full of hardships but also one full of good times. Cash’s career was a rollercoaster ride full of ups, downs, twists and turns, but it was a great one and now he’s known as one of the greatest country music artist ever known.

Works Cited Page

Source #1. “ Johnny Cash” Biography.com A&E Television Networks, LLC, ND, Web. April 27, 2017

Source #2. “Johnny Cash” https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?