Hank Williams. Country music legend. Born on September 17, 1923. Died January 1, 1953. A musically brilliant life cut short at age 29.
Williams’ contribution to and influence on the country music genre is a clichéd larger than life legacy. When he died, he was in the prime of his life and making a come-back after struggling with addiction, chronic pain, and marital troubles. He was on the cusp of what promised to be a long and successful music career.
According to these sources HERE and HERE, which offer more details, the Ryman Auditorium, which was the site of the Grand Ole Opry from 1963-1974, is the site of many Hank Williams sightings. He’s been seen backstage, in the alley, and in Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, which is next door to the Ryman.
Along the highway between Nashville and Montgomery, there are countless stories of people encountering Hank’s ghost as a solitary apparition or as a vanishing hitchhiker. Some say he haunts the Andrew Johnson Hotel in Knoxville, where he and the driver of his car stopped for supper on the way to Williams’ next show in Canton, Ohio, which never happened, because he died in the backseat of his Cadillac a few hours later.
Williams is buried in the Oakwood Annex Cemetery in Montgomery, Alabama. Many people who visit his grave report not only feeling his presence there, but some have seen him hovering nearby as a foggy apparition.
Now, let’s add more layers of strangeness to Hank’s life.
At the time of his death, Hank Williams, Sr. had been married to Billie Jean Jones for two months. His last paid performance was at the Skyline Club in Austin, Texas on December 19, 1952.
Less than a year after Hank died, Billie Jean married country music singer Johnny Horton. Horton was killed by a drunk driver after his performance at the Skyline Club in Austin, Texas on November 5, 1960.
It’s no wonder Hank’s spirt is restless. He left so much in his life undone and unsung.
Alan Jackson sings it hauntingly well…
Day 13 – Spooky Blogging – A malevolent spirit at midnight
Until next time,
Kaye Spencer
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