Country Legend Porter Wagner Dies from Lung Cancer

By Pamela Mortimer

Most knew Porter Wagner for the outrageous rhinestone suits and the pompadour hairdo he sported throughout the duration of a career that lasted more 50 years. Country fans also knew Wagner as a fixture at the Grand Ole Opry, as well as for a string of hit songs in the 1960s, and as the man who helped to start Dolly Parton’s illustrious career.

Like many country legends of yore, Wagner had faded into the background over the years but had recently celebrated a comeback winning over scores of new fans. In May, Wagner signed with ANTI-records, an eclectic Los Angeles label best known for alternative rock performers like Nick Cave, Tom Waits, and Neko Case. Wagoner's first album in many years, "Wagonmaster", was released in June and netted him some of the best reviews of his career. During this past summer, Wagner served as the opening act for the rock duo White Stripes at a sold-out show at New York's Madison Square Garden.

"The young people I met backstage, some of them were 20 years old. They wanted to get my autograph and tell me they really liked me," Porter said with tears in his eyes the day after the New York show. "If only they knew how that made me feel - like a new breath of fresh air."

Wagoner was born in West Plains, Mo., and became known as "The Thin Man From West Plains" because of his lanky frame. He recalled that he spent hours as a child pretending to be an Opry performer, using a tree stump as a stage.

Wagner started out on radio, then became a regular on "Ozark Jubilee," one of the first televised nationwide country music shows. Wagner’s career in the music business really took off when he signed with RCA Records in 1955, He subsequently joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1957, "the greatest place in the world to have a career in country music," he said in a 1997 interview. In addition to his appearances at the Opry, Wagner had his own syndicated TV show, "The Porter Wagoner Show," for 21 years, beginning in 1960. This show was one of the first syndicated shows to be based in Nashville and set the standards for others to follow.

"Some shows are mechanical, but ours was not polished and slick," he said in 1982.

In 1967, Wagner partnered with an up and coming 21 year old singer named Dolly Parton. Parton took Wagner’s advice and switched from writing story telling songs to love songs such as "I Will Always Love You", a song which was to become a pop standard. The pair worked together until 1974 when they decided to go their separate ways.

Among Wagner’s hits, many of which he wrote or co-wrote, were "Carroll County Accident", "Misery Loves Company", "Company's Comin'", "A Satisfied Mind", "Skid Row Joe", and "Green Green Grass of Home." In 2002, he was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame.