_____________________________________________________________________________ _ _ __ __ _ ___ \\\\\___| |_| | \ \ / / / \ | __|___\"-._ /////~~~| _ | \ / / _ \ __ ~~~/.-' |_| |_| \/\/ /_/ \_\ |___| _____________________________________________________________________________ THE HANK WILLIAMS APPRECIATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL 1978 _____________________________________________________________________________ HWAS HONOURS MARTHA CARSON AND TEDDY AND FLOYD WILBURN _____________________________________________________________________________ Mr. Leslie Floyd WILBURN Obituary _____________________________________________________________________________ Brentwood, TN Age 79 January 15, 2005 Died at home January 15, 2005. Preceded in death by brothers, Doyle, Lester and Teddy. Survived by wife, Arvemia Wilburn, Brentwood, TN; sons, Jason Wilburn, Brentwood, TN and Jeremy (Madalina Ciobanu) Wilburn, Nashville, TN; sister, Geraldine Grisham, Hot Springs, AR; grandson, Leslie Wilburn, Nashville, TN; granddaughters, Ashley Wilburn, Monroe, MI, Maria Ciobanu, Nashville, TN; numerous nieces and nephews. He was a mason and member of the John B. Garrett Lodge, avid golfer and bowler. As a life-long musican, he was a member in good standing of R.O.P.E., CMA and the American Federation of Musicians. He began his performing career in 1938, as a member of the Wilburn Family, and performed on the Grand Ole Opry for the first time in 1940 at the age of 15. During WWII, he served in the Army as a member of the K Company 318th Infantry, where he received a purple heart for wounds suffered at the Battle of the Rhineland in Germany. After the war, he performed with brothers, Teddy and Doyle (The Wilburn Brothers) as well as numerous other artists on the Grand Ole Opry from 1955-1993, when he was forced to retire by a series of strokes. He was founding member of one of the oldest and longest operating Independent owned music publishing companies on Music Row, Sure Fire Music, which continues to be owned and operated by the Wilburn Family. Funeral services will be conducted 11 a.m. Wednesday, January 19, 2005 at Forrest Hills Baptist Church, Jerry Winfield officiating. Interment 1 p.m. Wednesday at Middle Tennessee Veterans Cemetery. Nephews will serve as Pallbearers. Honorary Pallbearers will be Jimmy Capps, Doug Wells, Joe Taylor, Don Helms, Charlie Walker, Bobby and Sonny Osborne. In lieu of flowers, donations are encouraged to the Opry Trust Fund, R.O.P.E. or Alive Hospice. Visitation will be one hour prior to service at the church and 4-8 p.m. Tuesday at WILLIAMSON MEMORIAL FUNERAL HOME, 615-794-2289 _____________________________________________________________________________ December 18, 2004 Martha Carson Dies, Martha Carson Passed Away _____________________________________________________________________________ Martha Carson, 83 y.o., died last December 16 in Nashville at age 83. Funeral services will be held December 20 in Nashville. From DonnaChapel.com: "Irene Amburgey (Martha Carson) was next to eldest of six children born in Neon, Kentucky on May 19, 1921. She has been called "The First lady of Gospel Music" and with good reason. Martha would be the undisputed reigning queen of gospel during the 1950's. Her song "Satisfied" would gain her many awards, place her name in the Smithsonian for her million selling album, and gain her entrance into the Grand Ole Opry family. In her early teens, Martha was a skilled guitar player in the Sunshine Sister band. Martha, Jean, and Berthy would be one of the first all female sister string bands in the country when they began in 1936. They went on to perform on the era's most popular radio stations and barn dances throughout West Virginia, Kentucky, Georgia, Virginia, and the Carolinas. In the early 1940, Martha married James Roberts while helping to form the WSB Barn Dance in Atlanta. The duo would adopt "Carson" as their stage names. Martha played the guitar, and James played the mandolin over the Atlanta airways. They were among the most popular radio personalities of the day. James and Martha would record several spiritual songs together under the Capitol Record label which gained them great notoriety and fame throughout the south. Read More: http://noted.blogs.com/westcoastmusic/2004/12/martha_carson_d.html _____________________________________________________________________________ Please visit this escellent Martha Carson Tribute Site. Simply copy and paste the following URL into your browser's location box: _____________________________________________________________________________ http://www.serge.org/marthacarson/ _____________________________________________________________________________ TEDDY WILBURN PASSED AWAY _____________________________________________________________________________ NOTE: To View photos of the Wilburn family, simply copy and paste the following URL into your Browser's Location Box: _____________________________________________________________________________ http://www.kboa830.com/wilburns_p.htm _____________________________________________________________________________ PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR RECENT UPDATES _____________________________________________________________________________ NOTE: The Wilburn family performed on KBOA Radio 830, Kennett, Missouri in the early days. _____________________________________________________________________________ UPDATE: Don Helms, the former Hank Williams steel guitar player who backed the Wilburns as an instrumentalist and business partner, said, "I spent 10 of the best years of my life with them." Helms described Mr. Wilburn as a clean-living, articulate gentleman: "I can truthfully say they were the classiest act - together and individually - that I've ever worked with." The Tennessean 25/11/03 _____________________________________________________________________________ ----- Original Message ----- From: "Doug Davis" classics@countrymusicclassics.com To: Sent: Monday, November 24, 2003 7:21 PM Subject: TEDDY WILBURN PASSED AWAY _____________________________________________________________________________ SPECIAL MEMO TO ALL SUBSCRIBERS (of "Country Classics"): _____________________________________________________________________________ Grand Ole Opry Star Teddy Wilburn Passed Away This Afternoon at 3 P.M. in Nashville, Tennessee Services will be held on Friday at 1 P.M. at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. Visitation will be 7 to 9 P.M. Tuesday Evening at the Marshall- Donnelly Funeral Home. Teddy Wilburn first started appearing regularly on the Opry with the other Wilbur Children when he was only 9 years. He came back as a duo with his brother for almost 30-years. He has been a solo performer since his brother's death in 1982. Teddy was barely six years old when he made his first public appearance - shivering on a Thayer street corner on Christmas Eve performing with his brothers Lester, Leslie and Doyle and sister Geraldine. Their father got them started early. "Pop" Wilburn ordered their musical instruments from the Sears catalog, rehearsed them for over a year, constructed two hardwood floors in the backyard between two oak trees, and then invited neighbors from miles around to come to their home for backyard square dances. Everybody danced and twirled as the young Wilburns played their guitars, fiddles and mandolin. Since their one-room schoolhouse had only a 6-month term, that left them 6 months to tour and play at local radio stations schools, churches, and movie houses - wherever their dad, who was also their manager, agent, and PR man, could book them. Roy Acuff caught their act in Birmingham, AL and told the Grand Ole Opry management about the Wilburn kids and arranged an audition. The Wilburn Children became regular members in 1940. However due to the extreme young ages of the children and the show's late hours, the pressures from a child labor organization forced them to terminate the children's stay after only six months. They returned home and played small radio stations and gatherings. Sister Geraldine got married and left the act. The four Wilburn brothers continued pickin' and singin' and became members of the "Louisiana Hayride" in Shreveport, Louisiana in 1948. They played the Hayride until the Korean War took Teddy and Doyle in 1951. After their release from the Army, Teddy and Doyle went to work with Webb Pierce and his show and were soon back on the Opry. Webb got them a recording contract with Decca Records that became a 22-year relationship. Their 1963 hit "Troubles Back in Town" was followed by other Wilburn classics, "Roll Muddy River," "It's Another World," Someone Before Me, and "Arkansas." They appeared on everything from Arthur Godfrey to Dick Clark's American Bandstand and had their own syndicated television show for more than 12 years - introducing such country greats as Loretta Lynn, the Osborne Brothers and Crystal Gayle to national audiences. The Wilburn Brothers' career ended on October 16, 1982, when Doyle died from cancer. "It was like a 45-year marriage ended," Teddy said. "There was a lot of adjusting to do." _____________________________________________________________________________ UPDATE: Wednesday December 15th, 2004 _____________________________________________________________________________ Wilburn fans turn out for singer's estate sale _____________________________________________________________________________ By EVAN MAYOR For The Tennessean Items belonging to the late country music star Teddy Wilburn, ranging from sterling silver salt and pepper shakers to a bedroom suite, were put up for auction yesterday and drew approximately 200 people. The crowd, including many of Wilburn's fans, showed up at Wilburn's Evansdale Drive home in Oak Hill, despite the wintry-like day. All of them were looking to purchase a Wilburn memento. ''It was a huge success,'' said Berenice Denton, owner of Berenice Denton Estate Sales, who helped administer yesterday's auction. ''I think all of Teddy's wishes were accomplished with the auction.'' Wilburn, whose music was popular in the 1950s, '60s and '70s, died in November 2003 from congestive heart failure. His will left most of his estate for scholarships at Tennessee State University and Vanderbilt University. At yesterday's auction, the starting price for Wilburn's items ranged from $5 to $1,000. Big sellers included a 1964 Cadillac owned by the singer, which went for approximately $1,000, Denton said. All of the money raised in the auction and estate sale will be given to the Community Foundation of Nashville, a philanthropic service organization, per Wilburn's wishes. Although Denton said all of the items were sold, the dollar amount of the donation had not been calculated yet. The Community Foundation, one of the city's largest charitable foundations, administers more than 40 scholarship programs and 89 individual scholarships, according to Robin Satyshur, an accountant for the organization who attended yesterday's auction. Five percent of Wilburn's fund will be used every year to pay for scholarships, Satyshur said. ''His legacy will live on forever,'' she said. Teddy Wilburn, along with his brother, Doyle, made up The Wilburn Brothers. They were one of the most celebrated brother duos in country music history with hits such as Hurt Her Once For Me and Let Me Be The First To Know. The brothers were savvy on the business side as well, launching Sure-Fire Music publishing and Wil-Helm Talent Agency. The Wilburn Brothers were also responsible for making Loretta Lynn a star and helped Patty Loveless in her early days. _____________________________________________________________________________ Above Articles Complimemts of: Doug Davis Owner/Publisher/Manager Editor/Writer/Gopher Email: Classics@countrymusicclassics.com _____________________________________________________________________________ Reprinted under the Fair Use http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html Doctrine of International Copyright Law ____________________________________________________________________________ Note: Join Robert Ackerman's Hank Fan Mailing list. _____________________________________________________________________________ Email: Hank1@mtaonline.net _____________________________________________________________________________