Grand Ole Opry Goes Celebrates Loretta Lynn's 50th Opry Anniversary Tonight

Nashville, TN -- As the Grand Ole Opry prepares to celebrate the 50th Opry Anniversary of country icon Loretta Lynn with a star-packed Opry show featuring Lynn, Miranda Lambert, Pistol Annies, Crystal Gayle, Lee Ann Womack, and more TONIGHT, fans can celebrate Lynn’s golden achievement in the hours leading up to the show online and on the radio.

Among the activities planned in honor of the Coal Miner’s Daughter:

• Twitter: Fans and fellow artists are invited to share their favorite memories of Lynn via Twitter using #Love4Loretta. Favorite tweets will be compiled into special blogs on opry.com and shared at tomorrow night’s show.
• Loretta on the Radio: Opry flagship station 650 AM-WSM (wsmonline.com) is scheduled to play a Lynn song every hour tomorrow, Tues., Sept. 25, and has invited other country artists to call in throughout the day with their congratulations for the iconic artist. Lynn’s sisters Crystal Gayle and Peggy Sue will visit the 650 AM-WSM studio for a live show in Lynn’s honor 2 – 3 p.m. tomorrow. Tomorrow night’s Opry show can be heard live on 650 AM-WSM, opry.com, wsmonline.com, and free apps available from both the Opry and 650 AM WSM.
• Press Conference Stream: opry.com will stream a press conference featuring Lynn and other artists on tomorrow night’s show live from backstage at the Opry House at 6:30 p.m. Fans can watch the stream at http://www.opry.com/loretta
• Enter To Win the Fine Print: Tomorrow only, fans can visit opry.com to enter to win a Loretta Lynn 50th Opry Anniversary Hatch Show Print to be signed tomorrow evening by the guest of honor.

Lynn joined the Opry family on Sept. 25, 1962. Among the hundreds of accolades she has received in the years since are three Grammy® Awards, eight Country Music Association Awards including the first female artist to win the coveted Entertainer of the Year (1972), induction into the Country Music and Songwriters Halls of Fame, and the Grammy® Lifetime Achievement Award (2010).

“There is no one at the Opry, in country music, or on Earth quite like Loretta Lynn,” said Pete Fisher, Grand Ole Opry vice president and general manager. “Her influence as a recording artist and songwriter reaches across musical genres, cultures, and generations. She’s earned her place among America’s musical icons, and we look forward to celebrating 50 years of Opry membership with her next month.”

Lynn’s rag-to-riches life story received the world’s attention when her autobiographical hit Coal Miner’s Daughter became a movie in 1980. The film traced Lynn’s life from her teenage marriage, early career, and the role the Grand Ole Opry played in exposing the young singer to a national audience. Sissy Spacek won an Academy Award for her role as Lynn in the motion picture.

Lynn credits Ernest Tubb and the Wilburn Brothers for her first appearance on the Opry stage at the historic Ryman Auditorium. She sang her debut single “I’m A Honky Tonk Girl” that night, but says all she can remember about that first performance is tapping her foot. As she exited the building, her husband “Doolittle” was said to have remembered her exclaiming, “I’ve sung on the Grand Ole Opry! I’ve sung on the Grand Ole Opry!”

As “I’m a Honky Tonk Girl” started to climb the charts, Lynn and her husband/manager “Doolittle” drove across the country visiting radio stations to promote the record. Later hits for the singer/songwriter included “Don’t Come Home A Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ On Your Mind),” “Fist City,” “One’s On The Way,” “You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man)” and “The Pill,” among dozens of others. Over the years, Lynn has collaborated with several performers including her longtime duet partner Conway Twitty and alt-rock artist Jack White, with whom she worked on the 2004 Grammy-winning Van Lear Rose.