Coal Miner’s Daughter (1980)
Coal Miner’s Daughter is offered here in tribute to Loretta Lynn, who passed this week. This film, like the song and book after which it was titled, is autobiographical. Loretta Lynn was a woman of exceptional talent, who wrote and composed her own songs without any formal education to do so. She came from abject poverty, and married at 15 (maybe 16), with 4 young children by the time she was 20. (Unimaginable to the adherents of victim virtue and white privilege, that such a person could have lived in their own lifetime.) Before her country career, she would work gathering crops with the little-ins at her side. Her husband was the instigator for the crossroad change in her life, he believed in her talent, invested in a guitar for her and then dragged her around to honky-tonks and radio stations to get her heard and discovered.
Best Actress awards
Sissy Spacek won best actress from the Academy and Golden Globe Awards for her portrayal of Loretta Lynn . The star hand picked Sissy Spacek, based on a photograph. Spacek in turn, spent time with the country singer learning her mannerisms. But for the film, Spacek sang all performances. She is also credited as the artist on the Coal Miner’s Daughter soundtrack album that reached number 2 on the country muisic billboards. Tommy Lee Jones played her husband, Oliver ” Doolittle” Lynn. Beverly D’Angelo protrayed Patsy Cline, who helped Loretta negotiate the tides of stardom, until her untimely death just a couple of years after they met.
The Library of Congress archived Coal Miner’s Daughter
Coal Miner’s Daughter has been archived by the library of congress for it’s cultural significance. The first part of the movie shows Loretta Lynn’s struggles with poverty, through childhood and the first years of her marriage. It’s a beautiful testament to the strength of character of her whole family. (Maybe Niche was right about strength). The second part of the movie follows Loretta’s climb to stardom and breakdown when she is stretched too thin. (Hallmarking that having it all, isn’t always what it seems). finally the movie ends with her return to the stage, singing Coal Miner’s Daughter, an testament to her humble roots and commitment to herself to stay grounded. Adieu to the Queen of Country.
