NEW PATSY CLINE RECORDINGS UNEARTHED

Detective work locates dozens of recorded live performances, including 15 songs the late country icon never released.

As improbable as the news may seem, it's true: More than six decades after her much-too-soon death, new music by country legend Patsy Cline is being released!

On Saturday, a limited-edition two-LP set of brand-new recordings will go on sale nationwide in celebration of Record Store Day. The full collection, entitled Imagine That: The Lost Recordings (1954-1963), is also set to be released as a two-CD set next Friday, which is the same day that the digital download will be available.The 48 tracks, all retrieved from live performances, feature 15 never-released songs, as well as new renditions of such iconic Cline classics as “Crazy,” “I Fall to Pieces” and “Walkin’ After Midnight.”

This is no historical footnote, assures Cline discographer George Hewitt. “It’s a dream come true,” says the lifelong collector, who co-produced the project for the Elemental Music/Deep Digs label. Cline’s fans worldwide will be rejoicing over the news, but no one is happier than Julie Fudge, Cline’s daughter, who was just 4 years old when she lost her mother in a private plane crash in 1963.

“It’s just so real,” Fudge, 66, says of the new music. “A lot of people — when you lose someone — you don’t have all these different avenues to remember them. The fact that it’s been more than 60 years and to still have her in our lives every day is quite an accomplishment. It’s been such a blessing."

The older of Cline’s two children, Fudge has been the family’s keeper of the Cline flame for many years. But it’s really been the singer’s enormous fan base who’s done the heaviest lifting to carry forward her musical legacy. Key among them is Hewitt, who oversees the authoritative website dedicated to the Cline catalogue. He also provided the spark for the new record project after a Washington, D.C.-area man reached out to him a couple of years ago seeking more information about a Cline acetate disc he’d found in his parents’ vinyl collection. Each side of the 78-rpm record featured song titles that Hewitt had never heard on any other Cline recording, and as he writes in the album notes, “I nearly jumped out of my skin.”

The discovery quickly inspired him to enlist sound engineer Dylan Utz and producer Zev Feldman in the hunt for more treasure, and their meticulous search dug up far more riches than they had ever anticipated. The three men, joined by Fudge, told their story on Wednesday during a panel discussion held at Grimey’s record store in Nashville. The sources for the album, they explained, were varied: Several derived from the collections of hobbyists, who snagged amateur recordings off original broadcasts. Others were found in the deep recesses of archives and storage vaults. The Grand Ole Opry, for instance, was able to provide four new performances from its collection. All told, the songs span Cline’s entire career and sonically track her rise to fame.

“It really demonstrates how Patsy adapted as an artist and refined her artistry over time and almost reinvented herself in the short period of time she had on this planet,” Hewitt said during the panel discussion.

Among the album’s many highlights are the contents of that original acetate 78, two demos that are now believed to be Cline’s earliest recordings, likely made in September 1954. Though Cline wanted to release Christmas music, she never did, and the new album remedies that. Among its tracks are two holiday favorites, “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow” and “Winter Wonderland,” both duets. Cline never released a duet or other collaboration, and the new album features nine, including one with Cowboy Copas, who perished in the plane crash with Cline (along with fellow Opry star Hawkshaw Hawkins and Cline’s manager, Randy Hughes).

Cline was only 30 years old when the single-engine plane went down in bad weather in a forest outside of Camden, Tennessee, on March 5, 1963. The four, all killed instantly, were on their way home to Nashville from a benefit concert in Kansas City, Kansas; Hughes was at the controls...

WHAT A CHARACTER: LAWANDA PAGE

LaWanda Page, was born Alberta Peal, was born on  October 19, 1920.. Best known for her role as Aunt Esther in the popular 1970s television sitcom Sanford and Son. She later reprised this role in the television shows Sanford Arms and Sanford.

 
LaWanda Page and Redd Foxx, who portrayed Fred Sanford, were very close friends from the time they were pre-teens, having attended school and growing up together in St. Louis. Eventually, both entered the field of comedy separately and performed their own stage acts. During her tenure as a stand-up comic, a career she continued into the 1990s, she often was billed as "The Queen of Comedy" or "The Black Queen of Comedy".

Page recorded several live comedy albums for the Laff Records label in the late 1960s and early 1970s under her LaWanda Page stage name. Other than the relatively clean Sane Advice album, released two years after the run of Sanford and Son, Page's albums and stand-up material was raunchy blue comedy in nature. She was one of the few women who performed extended spoken word pieces in the black signifying or toasting tradition.

One release, a gold-selling album called Watch It, Sucker!, was titled after one of her Aunt Esther character's catchphrases in order to capitalize on her newfound television fame.

On Sanford and Son, Aunt Esther was the sister of Fred Sanford's late wife Elizabeth. Page had been performing her comedy routine in nightclubs in St. Louis and then Los Angeles for several years, but had planned to leave show business to move back to St. Louis to take care of her ailing mother. When Redd Foxx was offered a sitcom in Los Angeles, he brought his childhood friend Page to the attention to one of the show's producers, who was already familiar with Page and her act. Foxx subsequently asked Page to read for the role of Aunt Esther; she auditioned and was offered the role. However, prior to taping, producers became concerned when Page, whose experience was limited primarily to nightclub stages, seemed to have difficulty working in a sitcom format. Eventually, one of Sanford and Son's producers told Foxx that Page would need to be fired and that another actor would need to be cast before the show could begin taping. Foxx responded by insisting that Page keep the part, even threatening to walk away from the show if Page were fired. The producers relented, and Page's Aunt Esther went on to become one of the most popular TV sitcom characters of the 1970s.

Page's Aunt Esther was a combination of devout churchgoer and tough-as-nails realist, unafraid to state whatever was on her mind. While her relationship with Foxx's character Fred Sanford was usually confrontational, she betrayed a tender side through her love of her nephew Lamont. Common issues between brother- and sister-in-law were his lack of business success and his lukewarm religious faith. Sometimes, primarily because of their shared love for Lamont and the late Elizabeth, the two adversaries managed to find common ground. Although "Sanford and Son" was clearly Foxx's vehicle, Page's Aunt Esther could hold her own against the show's star. (Ironically, the church-going Esther was a great contrast to the raunchy, expletive-filled material of Page's live act and records.)

In the early 1990s she appeared on several tracks of the debut album by RuPaul entitled Supermodel of the World, most notably the hit song "Supermodel (You Better Work)." She also appeared in several music videos from the album. Shortly before her death she appeared in a series of comical Church's Chicken television commercials featuring the catchphrase "Gotta love it!"

Page died of complications from diabetes on September 14, 2002. She is interred in an outdoor crypt at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.Her daughter, the evangelist Clara Estella Roberta Johnson, died on June 4, 2006, in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 69...

STORY BEHIND THE PHOTO: RED SKELTON

 April 10, 1958 – "The Day Red Skelton’s World Shattered" was the headlines in the paper. This sad photo I almost didn't publish. More than 65 years after it was taken you can still feel the pain and heart ache.For a man who made the world laugh, this was the day that brought him to his knees. On this day, Red Skelton lost his beloved son, Richard, to leukemia. He was just 10 years old.

Red had searched the world for a cure, hoping that his fame and fortune could save the life of his little boy. But even the greatest love a father could give wasn’t enough to stop the inevitable. The same man who brought joy to millions now faced a sorrow no words or stage could ever heal.

From that day forward, his laughter carried a quiet pain, his performances masking a grief that never left him. Though the world remembers Red Skelton as a legendary comedian, those who truly knew his story remember him as a father whose heart broke on April 10, 1958. A man who, despite unimaginable loss, continued to bring light to others—even hile carrying darkness within.

SCANDAL AT STEEL CITY CON

This past weekend from April 4 - April 6 was the annual Steel City Comic Book convention in Pittsburgh. I have been to the event before, and the convention in Pittsburgh brings all walks of people to get rare merchandise, dress up in their favorite costumes, and meet and greet some of their favorite celebrities. Most of the celebrities that appear are at the end of their career, but some big stars to appear from time to time.

A surpise announcement was made on Friday that actor Kevin Spacey would be appearing. For a long time Spacey was one of the most celebrated actors until scandal rocked his career. In 2017, Spacey faced several allegations of sexual assault and sexual harassment. On October 29, 2017, actor Anthony Rapp was the first to accuse Spacey of sexual misconduct. In the following weeks, other accusers came forward, including actor Roberto Cavazos, filmmaker Tony Montana, Richard Dreyfuss's son Harry, and at least eight people who worked on House of Cards.

In the wake of these claims, Netflix cut ties with Spacey, shelving his biopic of Gore Vidal and removing him from the last season of House of Cards. His completed role as J. Paul Getty in Ridley Scott's film All the Money in the World (2017) was reshot with Christopher Plummer. Spacey has denied the accusations and was found not liable in a 2022 civil lawsuit filed by Rapp in New York. In a separate criminal case in London, he was acquitted by a jury of sexual assault charges in 2023.

Spacey is now unable to find regular film work, and his home recently was foreclosed on. Steel City Con made the announcement quickly and abruptly. Some vendors backed out of their appearance, and according to the vendors Steel City Con officials said those vendors will not be allowed back. My concern is there are a lot of children that go to the convention. Personally, I would not let anyone younger than a teenager go, and even though Kevin Spacey has only been accused of the misconduct, I don't feel he is a person that should be making an appearance at a convention like this.

I wrote to Steel City Con requesting an interview. I received no reply to the interview, but I told them this would make me not want to go to their convention in the future. Their reply back to me was "We looked you up and can not see that you have bought a ticket to the convention in the past". So it looks like the convention does not care about it's vendors and customers, they just look at the potential money they will make from having a controversial star like Kevin Spacey appear. Who is next - Bill Cosby or Harvey Weinstein?

DAVID DUNCAN'S HOLLYWOOD: SHOW BOAT

RECENTLY VIEWED: BACK IN ACTION

 The kids for a change did not need anything on a Saturday after dinner so my wife and I sat down to check out the Netflix film Back In Action. The movie is a 2025 American action-comedy film directed by Seth Gordon from a script he co-wrote with Brendan O'Brien. The film stars Jamie Foxx, Cameron Diaz, Andrew Scott, Jamie Demetriou, Kyle Chandler, and Glenn Close. The film was released by Netflix on January 17, 2025. 

CIA NOC operatives Matt (Jamie Foxx) and his pregnant fiance Emily (Cameron Diaz) are tasked by their superior and friend, Chuck (Kyle Chandler), to obtain the key called the Industrial Control Systems (ICS) - a device that can control any electronic system. They must get it from the Polish KGB agent-turned terrorist Balthazzar Gor (Robert Besta during his children's grandiose birthday party. Gor is the head of the terrorist organization named Volka. Chuck says that Gor could the key to trigger another catastrophe like the Chernobyl nuclear accident. Before embarking on the mission Emily had taken a pregnancy test and found that she was expecting a baby. Observing them through remote cameras, Chuck finds that Emily and Matt are now together.

Matt and Emily manage to steal the device and escape to a rendezvous point. However, on their flight home, the crew ambushes them for the Key as they are on Gor's payroll. Just before the ambush, Emily had told Matt that she is pregnant and that he is the dad. The duo manages to neutralize the flight crew, and the pilot is accidentally shot by a stray bullet. The plane hurtles to the ground and the duo barely escapes the plane crash. The plane crash lands on a mountain slope and slides towards a cliff, triggering an avalanche. There was only a single parachute in the plane and Matt wanted Emily to save herself, but Emily grab onto Matt as she deploys the parachute, saving them both. Realizing someone must have fed the flight crew information of their Key, the two decide to go off the grid. They give up their careers and their secret identities for a life together as a family.

Fifteen years later, the now married Matt and Emily reside in Atlanta under new identities while trying to care for their children Leo (Rylan Jackson) and Alice (McKenna Roberts). Emily has a side business selling custom puzzles on Etsy. Alice and Leo are now teenagers and don't really listen to their parents. Alice has doubts about her parents being truthful as she had heard Matt speaking to the AC repair guy in Russian, which Emily explains to their stint in the peace corps. Emily tries hard to connect with Alice, but she needs her own space and keeps pushing back.

Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz are sucked back into the CIA, so as you can guess they not only have to deal with getting killed but have normal family problems with teenagers. The movie really hit home with my wife and I as we try to figure out how to raise teenagers. Jamie Foxx was ill during the film, and he looked tired in some parts, but Cameron Diaz really shined. She has not appeared in a movie since 2014's Annie. The action is amazing, and there are some really good laughs. Critics were not kind to the film, but anyone that has teenagers will find a lot of good humor and lessons in this film. I highly recommend this film...

MY RATING: 9 OUT OF 10

RIP: VAL KILMER

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Val Kilmer, the brooding, versatile actor who played fan favorite Iceman in “Top Gun,” donned a voluminous cape as Batman in “Batman Forever” and portrayed Jim Morrison in “The Doors,” has died. He was 65.

Kilmer died Tuesday night in Los Angeles, surrounded by family and friends, his daughter, Mercedes Kilmer, said in an email to The Associated Press. The New York Times was the first to report his death on Tuesday.

Val Kilmer died from pneumonia. He had recovered after a 2014 throat cancer diagnosis that required two tracheotomies.

“I have behaved poorly. I have behaved bravely. I have behaved bizarrely to some. I deny none of this and have no regrets because I have lost and found parts of myself that I never knew existed,” he says toward the end of “Val,” the 2021 documentary on his career. “And I am blessed.”

Kilmer, the youngest actor ever accepted to the prestigious Juilliard School at the time he attended, experienced the ups and downs of fame more dramatically than most. His break came in 1984’s spy spoof “Top Secret!” followed by the comedy “Real Genius” in 1985. Kilmer would later show his comedy chops again in films including “MacGruber” and “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.”

His movie career hit its zenith in the early 1990s as he made a name for himself as a dashing leading man, starring alongside Kurt Russell and Bill Paxton in 1993’s “Tombstone,” as Elvis’ ghost in “True Romance” and as a bank-robbing demolition expert in Michael Mann’s 1995 film “Heat” with Al Pacino and Robert De Niro.

“While working with Val on ‘Heat’ I always marvelled at the range, the brilliant variability within the powerful current of Val’s possessing and expressing character,” director Michael Mann said in a statement Tuesday night.

One of his more iconic roles — hotshot pilot Tom “Iceman” Kazansky opposite Tom Cruise — almost didn’t happen. Kilmer was courted by director Tony Scott for “Top Gun” but initially balked. “I didn’t want the part. I didn’t care about the film. The story didn’t interest me,” he wrote in his memoir. He agreed after being promised that his role would improve from the initial script. He would reprise the role in the film’s 2022 sequel, “Top Gun: Maverick.”

One career nadir was playing Batman in Joel Schumacher’s goofy, garish “Batman Forever” with Nicole Kidman and opposite Chris O’Donnell‘s Robin — before George Clooney took up the mantle for 1997’s “Batman & Robin” and after Michael Keaton played the Dark Knight in 1989’s “Batman” and 1992’s “Batman Returns.”

Janet Maslin in the Times said Kilmer was “hamstrung by the straight-man aspects of the role,” while Roger Ebert deadpanned that he was a “completely acceptable” substitute for Keaton. Kilmer, who was one and done as Batman, blamed much of his performance on the suit.

“When you’re in it, you can barely move and people have to help you stand up and sit down,” Kilmer said in “Val,” in lines spoken by his son Jack, who voiced the part of his father in the film because of his inability to speak. “You also can’t hear anything and after a while people stop talking to you, it’s very isolating. It was a struggle for me to get a performance past the suit, and it was frustrating until I realized that my role in the film was just to show up and stand where I was told to.”

Kilmer published two books of poetry (including “My Edens After Burns”) and was nominated for a Grammy in 2012 for spoken word album for “The Mark of Zorro.” He was also a visual artist and a lifelong Christian Scientist.

He dated Cher, married and divorced actor Joanne Whalley. He is survived by their two children, Mercedes and Jack.

“I have no regrets,” Kilmer told the AP in 2021. “I’ve witnessed and experienced miracles.”