Patsy Cline: the Making of an Icon

by Douglas Gomery

Patsy Cline remains a much beloved singer, even though she died in 1963. By 1996, Patsy Cline had become such an icon that The New York Times magazine positioned her among a pantheon of women celebrities who transcended any single cultural genre. A series of essays on "Heroine Worship" included Patsy Cline with such "feminine icons" as Eleanor Roosevelt, Martha Graham, Indira Gandhi, Aretha Franklin, and Jackie Onassis.
The making of an icon is a cultural process that transcends traditional biographical analysis. One does not need to know the whole life story of the subject to understand how the subject became an icon.
This book explores how Patsy Cline transcended class and poverty to become the country music singer that non-country music fans embraced. It goes beyond a traditional biography to explore the years beyond her death.


This is the first thoroughly researched book on Patsy Cline. It is true to Patsy and her legacy.

Judy Sue Huyett-Kempf
President, Celebrating Patsy Cline
The Patsy Cline Historic House
Winchester, Virginia


Douglas Gomery taught mass media history at the University of Wisconsin, Northwestern University, New York University, the University of Utrecht the Netherlands), and the University of Maryland. He retired in 2005 to become the Official Historian for Celebrating Patsy Cline and Resident Scholar at the Library of American Broadcasting.

403 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 15, 2011

Reviews

[David Gray · Rating 2 out of 5]

Needed an editor. Skip the first chapter. Deserves stars for the amount of factual information about Winchester especially.

[Stan Baginski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would recommend this in addition to Honky Tonk Angel

I would recommend this in addition to Honky Tonk Angel. I think somewhere in the middle might be the real story.