TAMMY WYNETTE

    Born Virginia Wynette Pugh, May 5, 1942, on her grandfather's farm in Itawamba county, Mississippi, she was the daughter of a local musician who died when she was eight months old. Her love of music began in her childhood. "The only legacy he left me was his love of music," she recalled.

    Tammy Wynette was the self-styled First Lady of Country Music, a title that was as much fact as hype. Over the course of a 30-year career, Wynette has reached the peak of country achievement with such signature hits as 'Stand by Your Man," one of the top-selling singles by a woman in country history. With her sultry, sexy image, blonde hairdo, and persona history of stormy relationships (particularly with former husband and musical partner George Jones), Wynette became the symbol of the country female star.

    It would be a while, however, before Wynette pursued that career. In 1943 her mother moved to Birmingham, Alabama, to do war work, and Wynette was then raised by her grandparents. While at their farm she taught herself to play her father's instruments and was given singing lessons.

    In 1966 she moved to Nashville and her debut record, "Apartment #9", was a modest hit. just the tip of the iceberg for the success that was coming her way. "Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad," that hit number three on the country chart in 1967.

    Tammy had been married five times, creating the biggest stir with her 1969 marriage to George Jones. During their six years as husband and wife they toured together and recorded a succession of hit duets that included "Were gonna Hold On" and "Golden Ring." While their relationship - which received much attention from the press and public - didn't last, it did add to the stormy imagery that colors their careers as well as a vast number of country songs. And given the media coverage of Wynette's various relationships with others, including Rudy Gatlin of the Gatlin Brothers and actor Burt Reynolds, it sometimes seemed as if Wynette was playing out her music in her life.

    Tammy commented that it took her twenty minutes to write "Stand By Your Man" and twenty years defending the song. That lead to the best-selling autobiography that was subsequently turned into a popular 1982 film, both of which came with the fitting title Stand By Your Man.

    Later in life Wynette had complications from earlier botched stomach surgeries and was in constant pain. She took pain-killing medicine for the balance of her life and it was thought that a complications from pain killers and a suspected lung embolism caused her sudden death at her Nashville home on March 5, 1998. Her funeral and memorial service at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville became a nationally televised event.