Today’s movie is a biography with a scene that happens on
April 13. I hope you will enjoy this film and watch it tonight.
BIG DREAMS AND BROKEN HEARTS: THE DOTTIE WEST STORY
Dottie Marsh was born in poverty
as the oldest of ten children. Her father physically and sexually abused her.
She goes off to study music composition at Tennessee Tech, where she met her
husband Bill West. They move to Cleveland, Ohio, where she finally gets to sing
on the Landmark Jamboree television show. She gets a record contract
with Starday records and they move to Nashville. She and her husband become
part of a group of aspiring songwriters and singers including Willie Nelson,
Kris Kristofferson and Roger Miller. She gets Jim Reeves to record her song “Is This Me” and helped get
Dottie signed with RCA records and fulfill her dream of sing on The Grand Old
Opry. At the Opry she meets Patsy Cline, the top female country singer of the
era. Dottie records “Here Comes My Baby”, which is a huge hit and she becomes the first female country artist to
win a Grammy on April 13, 1965 [30:50 to 33:35]. Resentment over her success
and over generosity with money leads to a break up with her husband. Dottie
soon married Byron Metcalfe, a drummer, twelve years her junior. She tries to
update her public image and records a series of successful duets. She is upset when her father dies in prison
and buys the mansion she always dreamed of, but she continues to spend more
than she makes. Dottie’s memories of being abused as a child causes problems
with her own kids. Her marriage to
Byron ends, but she marries Al Winters, who was 22 years younger than her.
However this marriage also ends and then she learns she owes $2 million to the
IRS for back taxes. She eventually loses her mansion to foreclosure and all her
personal possessions are auctioned off. She returns to her hometown and
confronts her past of abuse and remembers how she testified against her father
and got him sent to jail for 40 years. She was scheduled to appear on the Grand
Old Opry, but on the way she was killed in an auto accident.
An entertaining if somewhat
predictable biopic.
Producer - Michele Lee
Director - Bill D'Elia
Awards – This movie was nominated
for the Outstanding Individual Achievement in Cinematography for a Mini-series
or a Special and the Outstanding Individual Achievement in Hairstyling for a
Mini-series or a Special at the 47th Primrtime Emmy Awards
Screenplay - Theresa Rogerton
Runtime – 1 hour and 32 minutes
Released - January 22, 1995
Cast –
Michele Lee as Dottie West
William Russ as Bill West
Lisa Akey as Shelly West
Taylor Farnsworth as Tess West
David James Elliott as Byron Metcalf
Norm Woodel as Jim Reeves
Tere Myers as Patsy Cline
Cathy Worthington as Jeannie Seely
Ben Browder as Al Winters
Tony Higgins as Kris Kristofferson(younger)
Kris Kristofferson as Himself
Kenny Rogers as Himself
Stuart Greer as Owen
Chris McCarty as Willie Nelson(younger)
Dolly Parton as Herself
Willie Nelson as Himself
Larry Gatlin as Himself
Chet Atkins as Himself
Loretta Lynn as Herself
Copyright by Ivan Walters 2014
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