Johnny Cash, singer and songwriter, and his late wife, Vivian Liberto, homemaker and author, had been together for almost fifteen years since they married in 1954.
Vivian Liberto identified herself as a white Sicilian-American as she was born to a Sicilian heritage father, Thomas Liberto, and German and Irish descent mother, Irene Robinson.
Vivian was always there for Johnny Cash and supported his career from the start as he paved his way in the American music industry.
Johnny Cash also shared that his single I Walk the Line, which became his first hit on the Billboard charts, eventually reaching 17 on the US pop charts, was inspired by his wife, Vivian.
After his single became famous, he sat for an interview and revealed, “I wrote the song backstage one night in 1956 in Gladewater, Texas. I was newly married at the time, and I suppose I was laying out my pledge of devotion.”
Johnny Cash met his wife Vivian for the first time on July 18, 1951, during the summer at a roller rink in San Antonio. After dating for three years, they tied the knot in 1954.
Key Takeaways
- The billboard hit song of Johnny Cash I Walk the Line was inspired by his first wife, who wrote the memoir with the same title.
- Johnny Cash shared four daughters with his first wife, Vivian, and a son with his second wife, June.
- After becoming popular in the music industry, Johnny started his relationships with other women, which led to his divorce from his first wife.
Find Johnny Cash’s most hist songs here:
The first wife of Johnny Cash published a memoir where she shares life experience with her husband
In 2007, Vivian Liberto published a memoir using her former name Vivian Cash, even after becoming Vivian Distin as she was married to her second husband, Dick Distin, at that time.
Her memoir, I Walked the Line: My Life With Johnny, has the same title as the first billboard hit single of Johnny Cash, which he wrote for his wife Vivan.
Similalry, the memoir I Walk The Line features Vivan’s life as the wife of Johnny Cash, where she describes her good memories before and after her marriage with him.
She also claimed that before her marriage, she and Johnny exchanged hundreds of letters during their separation when the Air Force deployed Johnny for a three-year tour of Germany.
After he returned from the tour, they held a wedding ceremony at St. Ann’s Roman Catholic Church in San Antonio, planned by her uncle, Father Vincent Liberto.
Throughout their fifteen years of marriage, they welcomed four daughters, Rosanne, Kathy, Cindy, and Tara, and moved to the US.
Johnny’s music career started blooming after he moved to us as he became one of the top rising country music stars.
Due to his popularity, he kept busy in his career, going on different tours, while his wife had to live alone, taking care of four young daughters.
Further, as in her memoir, Johnny Cash started seeing other women, including singer June Carter, with whom he later shared the vows after divorcing his first wife, Vivian.
Later in 1968, Vivian also went on to marry Dick Distin, a Polish officer in Ventura, California. She and Distin were together until the end of her life on May 24, 2005.
FAQs
Johnny Cash’s first wife, Vivian Liberto, was African American but always identified herself as white Sicilian-American.
Johnny Cash used to live in Nashville, Tennessee, until he passed away in 12, 2003.
Yes, Johnny Cash and his second wife, June Carter, had a son named John Carter Cash. Like his father, he is a singer and songwriter.
Johnny Cash’s two daughters, Rosanne and Cindy, are both singer-songwriters, following in their father’s footsteps.
