When Loretta Lynn recorded a passionate cover of the song Stand By Your Man, one thing became very clear: She was standing by one of the worst husbands fate could have thrown her.
1. She Loved Intensely
Country singer Loretta Lynn was not only a hugely successful singer-songwriter, but she was also in some very intense relationships. Her devotion to fellow singer Patsy Cline became the source for a TV movie, but it was her violent and volatile relationship with her husband that really made Hollywood take notice.
Coal Miner’s Daughter, the film about Lynn, became an awards season sweetheart—and it was no surprise, because her true story is just that astonishing.
2. She Was One Of Many
Loretta Lynn was born Loretta Webb in 1932 in Butcher Hollow, Kentucky. She was only the Webb’s second child, but there were lots more coming after her. In fact, by the time they were through, the Webbs had eight children. Lynn’s father managed to barely put enough food on the table by working as a coal miner.
But life for the Webbs was a constant struggle.
Les Leverett, Wikimedia Commons
3. They Had No Money
There were ten people living in the small family cabin, and winters were excessively cold. With very little money to pay to insulate the walls, Lynn’s mom came up with an imaginative way to keep warm and decorate their humble abode. She glued pages from the Sears catalog to the wall to keep the cold out.
You couldn’t blame young Loretta if she was looking for a way out of that claustrophobic cabin. And soon, a way out appeared out of nowhere.
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
4. She Started Young
When Loretta was still a teenager, she met Oliver Vanetta Lynn—also known as “Doolittle” or just “Doo”. They met at a “pie social” Loretta quickly fell for him, but according to many, he had a dark side. Everyone thought that Doo was lazy and that he was running moonshine—but for Loretta, it didn’t matter. Even though she was just 15, she married the 21-year-old Doo.
It didn’t take long for Lynn to become pregnant, and for her new husband to announce a big move.
5. She Found the Time To Sing
Loretta Lynn and her husband left Kentucky and made their way to Washington State so her husband could work in the logging industry. Their first few children came quickly. There was Betty Sue in 1948, Jack Benny in 1949, and two more—Earnest Ray and Clara Marie—born in the early 1950s. Somehow, while tending to all these children, Lynn found the time to sing.
But there was one thing stopping Lynn from performing.
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
6. He Got Her Going
Doo saw that Loretta Lynn had talent as a singer, but he also saw the major problem holding her back. She was incredibly insecure about her abilities. The first thing that Doo did was to go down to Sears and fork over $17 for a guitar. He then worked on Lynn’s confidence. He told her over and over again that she was as good or better than the popular singers of the time.
Lynn had trouble believing what her husband told her, but Doo wasn’t about to give up.
Walden S. Fabry, Wikimedia Commons
7. She Sang Her Heart Out
There was a local talent show that was televised in nearby Tacoma, Washington, and Doo convinced Lynn she could take home the top prize. Lynn nervously sang her heart out, and made a huge impression on the judges. Strangely, the prize was not a huge sum of money or a recording contract.
8. He Noticed Her
When Loretta Lynn netted the top prize at the talent competition, she was in for a huge disappointment. The prize was a wristwatch. Okay, it wasn’t something more glamorous or that useful, but something good did come out of this experience. A Canadian man named Norm Burley noticed how lovely Lynn’s voice sounded.
Burley loved her voice, but he had to come up with a way to help her get famous.
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
9. He Paid For Everything
Burley was so inspired by Lynn’s voice that he arranged for her to have a recording session down in Hollywood. He generously paid for both Lynn and Doo to travel to California. When Burley heard the recording, he was so impressed that he started a recording company just for her. But Lynn and Doo weren’t about to leave her fate solely in Burley and Zero Records’ hands.
Nope, they had a plan to make sure that Lynn’s song reached as many people as possible.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
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10. They Sent Them Out
While Burley was up in Vancouver starting Zero Records, Loretta Lynn and Doo had their boots on the ground in America. Doo used the postal service to send copies of the record and a picture of Lynn to radio stations across the country. He sent 3,500 of these mailouts—but he was in for a brutal surprise.
He heard back from exactly zero of them. It was time for plan B, and it was a doozy.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
11. They Hit The Road
Since using the mail hadn’t worked, Loretta Lynn and Doo decided to get into their car and hand-deliver copies of "I'm a Honky Tonk Girl”. They drove around America to every radio station they could find. Of course, because of their lack of money, staying in hotels was out of the question. They slept in the car and ate sandwiches in the park.
Eventually, they ended up in Nashville, Tennessee, where things started to turn around.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
12. It Hit The Charts
When they arrived in Nashville, Lynn and Doo were in for a big shock. They found out that “I’m A Honky Tonk Girl” was a hit record. The Billboard Hot Country Songs put it at the number 14 spot. Not bad for her first record. Lynn was on the radio, and once others heard her talent, they wanted her as well.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
13. She Received Invitations
The first thing that happened once Lynn’s voice was out there was that she got an invitation to tour with The Wilburn Brothers. Another invitation soon came in, and this was from Ernest Tubb, who hosted a radio show called Midnight Jamboree. The exposure on Midnight Jamboree led to a call that every country musician wants to receive.
Atlas Artist Bureau, Wikimedia Commons
14. She Got Huge Exposure
Grand Ole Opry is a radio show dedicated to country music and is now America’s longest-running broadcast. Loretta Lynn got the call to perform, and this was something huge. Grand Ole Opry gives its stars amazing exposure, and the future looked bright for Lynn. Of course, now she had the task of writing songs.
Well, she didn’t have to look very far for inspiration. You see, her marriage was no walk in the park.
Unknown author, Wikimedia Commons
15. They Fought
Doo had a temper, and he did scary things like smashing a jar against the wall in the middle of a fight. But it didn’t stop there. Doo also hit Lynn. Before you feel too sorry for her, you need to know that Lynn wasn’t the type to take this lying down. She later said she hit him back twice for every time he hit her. One time even with a skillet of creamed corn.
But there was one episode where Lynn went too far.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
16. She Thought She Was A Goner
During one of their spectacular fights, Loretta Lynn hit Doo so hard that she heard his teeth land on the floor. Lynn had an intense fear that Doo would be so angry that he’d do serious damage. Instead of getting revenge, Doo just started laughing. The one positive thing about their marriage was that it gave Lynn lots to write about.
It seemed that Lynn just needed a friend to confide in. Well, she was about to meet the best friend a woman could ask for.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
17. She Sang Her Hero’s Song
In 1961, Loretta Lynn got the opportunity of a lifetime. She was going to sing “I Fall to Pieces” on the radio. This was a song made famous by Lynn’s hero, Patsy Cline. Cline was at home recovering from a car accident, and she heard Lynn singing her song. Cline liked what she heard—a lot. She liked it so much that sent her husband to the studio to invite Lynn to her house.
When they met, they got on like a house on fire.
Decca Records, Wikimedia Commons
18. She Received An Intimate Gift
Lynn and Cline became very close, and Cline even helped pay for things like drapes for Lynn’s house. Lynn also later said that Cline gave her an odd gift. She gave her her old underwear. Obviously, they were close. Close enough to inspire a TV movie called Patsy & Loretta.
Lynn had found a kind soul in Cline, but some of the others she met in the industry were ready to take advantage of her.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
19. She Had To Fight
Loretta Lynn was now recording under The Wilburn Brothers Publishing Company, and they had even helped her move from Zero Records to the more influential Decca Records. But there was a dark side to the deal. Lynn was horrified to discover that the publishing company insisted that they now owned all of her music.
She had to spend the next 30 years fighting to be the owner of her own music. In spite of her fighting, Lynn still had time for success.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
20. She Found Success
Even though Loretta Lynn was fighting the Wilburn Brothers, it didn’t stop her from succeeding with Decca Records. In fact, her first single with the label even had “Success” as its title. This song sat on the Billboard Hot Country Western and Sides chart for an amazing 16 weeks, and she followed it up with more and more hits.
There was only one problem—Lynn wasn’t writing any of these hit songs.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
21. She Talked About Something New
It wouldn’t be until after Lynn gave birth to twins that she would have a song that she wrote become a hit. This was “Dear Uncle Sam”, and it told the story of a woman saying goodbye as her husband goes to Vietnam to fight for his country. The lyrics stunned the country and western crowd, as they’d never heard such a serious topic in a song.
Audiences loved “Dear Uncle Sam”, but there was something even bigger coming her way.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
22. She Was A Grandmother
Just two years after giving birth to her twins, something surprising happened. Lynn actually became a grandmother at the age of 34. By this time, her oldest daughter was 18 years old, and she had her first child in 1966. Lynn’s family was growing quickly, and she needed a big place to house everyone.
CBS Television, Wikimedia Commons
23. She Made A Sizable Purchase
In 1966, Loretta Lynn and Doo came across a ranch they liked and were eager to buy it. But there was a strange catch that came with the purchase. If they bought this run-down ranch, they would also be buying the entire town of Hurricane Mills, Tennessee. Lynn and Doo knew it was a big decision—but they decided to dive right in and buy up the entire town.
Lynn, the proud owner of Hurricane Mills, was ready to start handing out advice.
24. She Helped A Woman In Need
Loretta Lynn was backstage before a performance and met a woman who told her that she was afraid that she was losing her husband to his mistress. Lynn’s simple advice was, "Honey, she ain't woman enough to take your man!" The sentence stayed with Lynn, and when she had a moment, she wrote a song that would change her life.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
25. She Was the First
Lynn penned the song “You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man)” and it was so popular that it handed Lynn a first. With this song, she was “the first country female recording artist to write a Number 1 hit”. It seemed that there was no limit to what Lynn could do. Well, there was one thing.
She still couldn’t fix her own marital problems.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
26. She Got Angry
Doo was fooling around with women left, right and center, but one really got under Lynn’s skin. So, Lynn wrote a letter to this mistress. When Doo found out, he got angry and told Lynn to mind her own business. Then he went a cruel step further. He told Lynn that he didn’t love her anymore.
This was something that hurt Lynn to her core, and she took to songwriting to heal herself.
MCA Records, Wikimedia Commons
27. She Issued A Warning
Loretta Lynn had had it with her husband’s fooling around and took the matter into her own hands. In 1968, Lynn wrote a song called “Fist City”. This was a warning to all the women that her husband was fooling around with. If they wanted to mess around with her husband, they would get a sound beating.
It didn’t take long for Lynn’s unorthodox lyrics to get her into trouble.
Gene Pugh, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
28. She Was Too Much
While one critic called “Fist City” the “greatest song title of all time,” others found the subject matter controversial. Lynn was clearly speaking her truth, but it was too much for many radio stations, and this song received a ban.
Lynn’s real life was too hard for radio listeners, and it was even harder than most knew.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
29. She Didn’t Want To Go Home
Not only did Doo cheat on Lynn, but he also had a problem with the bottle. When Lynn came home from a tour, she never knew what state she would find her husband in. She later admitted that some days she didn’t even want to return home at all. Lynn put on a brave face for the sake of her children.
Next in line for Lynn was even more heartache.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
30. She Lost Her Bestie
Lynn’s friendship with Patsy Cline was epic, but it always had a sense of doom. You see, Cline had confided that she didn’t think she would live a very long life. This gruesome premonition came true in 1963 when Cline tragically passed in a plane crash. In one night, Lynn had lost her best friend and her mentor.
Luckily, Lynn had learned a great deal from Cline, and she was ready to take on America.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
31. She Owned A Decade
The 70s were the decade for Lynn, and she amassed a huge fan base. She became so popular with women that Procter & Gamble hired her to sell one of their most iconic products: Crisco shortening. By the end of the 1970s, the Academy of Country Music named her the Artist of the Decade. She was the first woman to hold this honor.
Lynn was at the top of her game and Hollywood noticed.
32. She Let The Cat Out Of The Bag
In 1980, Lynn was famous enough to have a movie made based on her life. Lynn was very excited about the project and happily announced on a talk show that Carrie star Sissy Spacek would be playing her in Coal Miner’s Daughter. There was just one problem. Spacek hadn’t agreed to be in the film.
33. She Didn’t Like The Music
Spacek had been avoiding deciding whether to appear in Coal Miner’s Daughter and had even tried to scare the producers off by insisting she would sing the songs herself. One major hurdle for Spacek was the fact that she didn’t even like country music. Lynn really wanted Spacek to say yes, so the pressure was on.
Spacek eventually came to her decision in an unorthodox way.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
34. A Miracle Changed Her Mind
Loretta Lynn had picked Spacek herself for the role, and the producers had even fired a director who didn’t want her in the lead. Spacek prayed about the decision—and then got an answer from God. When she was listening to a car radio, suddenly, “A Coal Miner’s Daughter” came through the speakers. But that’s not the weirdest part.
She was listening to a classical music station at the time. Spacek said yes and began her rather unorthodox preparation for the role.
35. She Got Followed
Once Spacek had agreed to play Lynn, her first decision was to follow Lynn around—everywhere. You see, Spacek quickly became obsessed with getting Lynn’s mannerisms down right and watched her carefully both on and off the stage. But Spacek wasn’t the only actor to nail their part in this film.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
36. She Saw A Ghost
One day when Lynn was visiting the set of Coal Miner’s Daughter, she thought she saw a ghost. But it wasn’t a ghost—it was just the man who was playing her father. As it turned out, the hair and makeup people did such a great job of turning Levon Helm into Lynn’s father that she almost fainted when she saw him.
Sadly, Doo wasn’t quite as happy with the actor playing him.
David Gans, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
37. He Didn’t Like Him
When Lynn’s husband Doo heard that Tommy Lee Jones was going to portray him in the movie, he didn’t have any intention of even meeting the actor. That’s when Jones did something outrageous. He went full method. Jones got himself some moonshine and drove a Jeep through town completely inebriated.
The local sheriff took him to the station, where they beat him up for resisting arrest. His gambit worked. This pleased Doo, and he and Jones became friends.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
38. It Was Number One
When Coal Miner's Daughter did eventually reach theaters, the reception was nothing short of astonishing. It reached number one at the box office, taking in $3.6 million on its opening weekend. The critics also loved it, and when award-season came around it got seven Oscar nominations and four Golden Globes.
Spacek won both the Oscar and Golden Globe and a slew of other awards. Lynn’s life story had taken Hollywood by storm. So, she turned around and did something completely “un-Hollywood” to follow it up.
Universal, Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)
39. She Was The Queen Of Motocross
In 1981, motocross race promoter Dave Coombs came across Lynn’s ranch and had an idea. He was looking for an out-of-the-way location for a national motocross race and asked if Lynn would have an interest in hosting the event. Lynn gave an enthusiastic thumbs-up, and the event has been held there every year since.
Sadly, the ranch is also a source of sorrow for Lynn.
Jeff Smith - Perspectives, Shutterstock
40. She Lost One
In July of 1984, Lynn’s son, Jack Benny, went for a horseback ride at his mother’s ranch. When he came to Duck River, he decided to try and cross it on horseback. What happened next was one of the worst tragedies in Lynn’s life.
Jack Benny drowned in the river that day. When this happened, Lynn wasn’t at home—she was dealing with her own catastrophe.
41. She Was Exhausted
As it turned out, Loretta Lynn was actually in the hospital when Jack Benny had his accident. Lynn had been on tour, and she was suffering from extreme exhaustion. So, while she was recovering at the hospital, she had to deal with the news of her son’s passing.
Sadly, Lynn would soon be spending even more time in hospitals.
Scott Schram, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
42. She Put Her Career On Hold
Doo’s hard-living lifestyle eventually took its toll on him. He had heart surgery in 1992. Then his fight with diabetes led to a stunning announcement from his doctor. They were going to have to remove both of his legs. Even though Lynn had a thriving—and money-making—career, she put it all on hold to take care of her husband.
Sadly, her care wasn’t enough
43. She Lost Him
Five days before he turned 70, Doo passed. Lynn’s life with Doo had been full of love and trauma. She confessed that without Doo, she would not have had a music career at all. Now she was all alone, and it was going to be really hard to adjust to her new solitary life. Lynn needed a way to deal with her sorrow, and she knew exactly what to do.
Fotos International, Getty Images
44. It Was Hard For Her
When Lynn looked back at getting married so young, she realized that she went directly from taking orders from her dad to taking them from her husband. But she missed him and for many years she said she thought she saw him everywhere. To deal with her loss, Lynn turned to songwriting. She wrote, “I Can’t Hear The Music” as a tribute to Doo.
What Lynn needed now was to try and stay young. She found it in a remarkable way.
45. She Hooked Up With A Young Guy
In 2004, when any other 72-year-old would have been contemplating retirement, Lynn was working with a young musician. This was The White Stripes’ Jack White, who produced and performed on her 42nd album, which she called Van Lear Rose. This late-in-her-life album managed to reach the number two spot on the US Billboard Top Country Albums.
Younger musicians had a great respect for Lynn, and they were ready to show it in a big way.
46. He Had Terrible Timing
Loretta Lynn’s tempestuous and occasionally violent marriage to Oliver “Doolittle” Lynn was an open secret in country music. But in her autobiography, she revealed the worst thing he’d ever done to her. In the midst of one of his (many) affairs, he told her he was leaving her...when she was giving birth to one of their sons.
47. She Got A Medal
Loretta Lynn had mostly tried to keep herself out of politics, but if you look at the presidents she supported—Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon, both Bushes and Donald Trump—they were all Republicans. It was, however, a Democrat who handed Lynn one of the country’s highest honors. In 2013, Barack Obama honored her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Lynn had accomplished so much during her rags-to-riches lifetime. Sadly, it would soon be coming to an end.
48. She Gradually Declined
Like Doo, Loretta Lynn faced more than a few health issues. She suffered from pneumonia and then had a stroke, which caused the cancellation of her 2018 tour. Then, while making her final album—Wouldn’t It Be Great—she broke her hip. On October 4, 2022, Loretta Lynn passed peacefully in her sleep. They buried her on her ranch beside her husband.
Anna Hanks, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
49. One Of Her Albums Was Recalled
Just a few years after Lynn's breakthrough album, her next release stoked so much controversy that it had to be recalled. Even though Lynn had Cherokee heritage, her 1969 album's title, Your Squaw Is on the Warpath, was definitely a product of its era. But that's not actually why the album made waves.
Rather, the Salem Cigarette Company felt that one of the songs sounded a little too close to their commercial jingle. The album was recalled and re-released without the offending ditty.
50. She Left A Double Legacy
Loretta Lynn and her only husband Doo had six children in total, and some of them followed their mother’s footsteps into show business, The two youngest, twins Peggy and Patsy formed a duo act in the 1990s, which they called The Lynns. They had been born a year after Lynn lost Patsy Cline in a horrific plane crash, and Lynn had named one of them after her beloved friend and mentor.
The twins received a nomination for a CMA award for duo vocal duo of the year in 1998 and 1999. In 2024, Patsy’s daughter—Lynn’s granddaughter—appeared on season 22 of American Idol.
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