I Walked the Line: My Life with Johnny

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Simon and Schuster, Sep 4, 2007 - Biography & Autobiography - 336 pages
I Walked the Line is a chronicle of first love, long-kept secrets, betrayal, forgiveness, and the truth--told at last by Johnny Cash's first wife, the mother of his four daughters.

It is a book that had the full support of Johnny Cash, who insisted it was time for their story to be told, despite any painful revelations that might come to light as a result.

Many myths and contradictions regarding the life of Johnny and his family have been perpetuated for decades in film and literature. Vivian exposes previously untold stories involving Johnny's drug addiction, his fraught family life, and their divorce in 1968, as well as the truth behind the writing of two of Johnny's most famous songs, "I Walk the Line" and "Ring of Fire."

Supplemented by a never-before-published archive of love letters and family photos, I Walked the Line offers a deeper look at one of the most significant artists in music history. Here, fans and readers can experience the extraordinary account of love and heartbreak between Johnny and Vivian, and come to understand Vivian's dignified silence over the years. Through this elegant, revealing, and powerful memoir, Vivian Cash's voice is finally heard.
 

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Contents

Foreword
1
Part One
15
Part Two
269
Afterword
321
Copyright

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Page ix - Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all, And sweetest in the gale is heard; And sore must be the storm That could abash the little bird That kept so many warm. I've heard it in the chillest land, And on the strangest sea; Yet, never, in extremity, It asked a crumb of me.
Page 17 - With his legs stretched out in front of him, crossed at the ankles, he looked more relaxed than last week.

About the author (2007)

Vivian Cash was Johnny Cash's first wife and the mother of his four daughters. She met Johnny at the age of seventeen at a roller rink in San Antonio, Texas. They married three years later, after Johnny was discharged from the Air Force. Vivian accompanied Johnny throughout his early career in Memphis and Nashville. As Johnny's star soared, the family moved to California where the marriage dissolved after twelve years. After their divorce, Vivian married Dick Distin and lived in Ventura, California, where she was an active and beloved member of the community until she passed away in May 2005.

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