Barbara Ann Mandrell was born on December 25,1948 and is an American country music singer and musician.
78 Facts About Barbara Mandrell
2.
Barbara Mandrell had six number one singles and 25 top ten singles reach the Billboard country songs chart.
3.
Barbara Mandrell was born in Texas and raised mostly in California.
4.
Barbara Mandrell is from a musical family; she played several instruments by the time she was a teenager.
5.
Barbara Mandrell performed as a musician when she toured in shows featuring Johnny Cash and Patsy Cline.
6.
Barbara Mandrell's family formed a band in her late teens which traveled overseas and entertained military bases.
7.
Barbara Mandrell was inducted as a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 1972.
8.
Barbara Mandrell became a concert headliner and won several major music awards including the Entertainer of the Year accolade from the Country Music Association two years in a row.
9.
Barbara Mandrell resumed performing, touring, and began guest-starring in several television shows and numerous commercials.
10.
Barbara Mandrell appeared in several television films and shows during the late 1980s and 1990s like Burning Rage and Empty Nest.
11.
Barbara Mandrell continued recording into the 1990s, releasing several albums for the Capitol label including No Nonsense.
12.
In 1997, Barbara Mandrell announced her retirement from performing and recording.
13.
Barbara Mandrell was born in Houston, Texas on Christmas Day, 1948.
14.
Barbara Mandrell is the eldest child born to parents Mary Ellen and Irby Matthew Mandrell.
15.
Barbara Mandrell recalled having a natural ear for hearing music.
16.
Barbara Mandrell's mother taught her how to play the accordion and read music before she entered into the first grade.
17.
Barbara Mandrell was heard by country performer Joe Maphis who would help launch Mandrell's early career as a musician.
18.
Barbara Mandrell performed steel guitar for Red Foley, Little Jimmy Dickens and Tex Ritter.
19.
Shortly after high school graduation, Barbara Mandrell married Ken Dudney and chose to retire from performing to become a full-time housewife.
20.
In 1969, Barbara Mandrell signed with Sherill's label Columbia Records as a recording artist.
21.
Barbara Mandrell reached her commercial zenith in the late 1970s with songs about infidelity and cheating.
22.
Barbara Mandrell's 1979 album Just for the Record was a top ten Billboard LP.
23.
Now at her career peak, Barbara Mandrell became a headlining concert act.
24.
Barbara Mandrell appeared on national television programs and won the Country Music Association's 1979 Female Vocalist of the Year accolade.
25.
Barbara Mandrell had top ten country singles with 1980's "Crackers" and "The Best of Strangers".
26.
Barbara Mandrell's 1984 album was a top ten Billboard disc and featured the top five singles "Only a Lonely Heart Knows" and "Happy Birthday Dear Heartache".
27.
Barbara Mandrell's popularity allowed her to record an album of gospel music in 1982 titled He Set My Life to Music.
28.
Barbara Mandrell collaborated on several duets with Lee Greenwood in 1984.
29.
Barbara Mandrell suffered a broken femur, shattered ankle, injured knee and a concussion that left temporary brain damage.
30.
The crash caused Barbara Mandrell to endure numerous surgeries on her femur and ankle.
31.
Barbara Mandrell eventually returned to the recording studio in May 1985, which resulted in the 1985 top ten country single "There's No Love in Tennessee".
32.
Barbara Mandrell returned to the stage for the first time in 1986 at the Los Angeles Universal Amphitheatre, with Dolly Parton serving as her opening act.
33.
In 1987, Barbara Mandrell signed a new recording contract with EMI America.
34.
Yet, Barbara Mandrell continued touring and remained a popular concert attraction through the 1980s and 1990s.
35.
Barbara Mandrell's first Capitol single was a cover of Ray Price's "I Wish I Could Fall in Love Today", which reached the top five of the American and Canadian singles charts.
36.
Barbara Mandrell remained a popular act on the Grand Ole Opry, including their televised portion of the program.
37.
Also in 1997, Barbara Mandrell announced her retirement from touring, recording and performing.
38.
Barbara Mandrell gave her final musical performance in October 1997 at the Grand Ole Opry house.
39.
Barbara Mandrell now spends time on her family and domestic responsibilities.
40.
Barbara Mandrell was given multiple offers from the NBC network to host her own syndicated show.
41.
Barbara Mandrell learned choreography for the show and was routinely featured playing multiple musical instruments.
42.
Barbara Mandrell often had to push back against NBC executives who insisted that the show feature hay barrels and other features of traditional country-western shows.
43.
Barbara Mandrell often had to take extra naps on her tour bus parked next to the television studio.
44.
Barbara Mandrell had to take Cortisone shots before show tapings so that her vocal chords had less strain.
45.
Barbara Mandrell was urged to quit the show by physicians who warned that she would ultimately suffer from permanent vocal damage.
46.
In 1982, Barbara Mandrell announced the program would end after a two-year run on NBC.
47.
In 1984, Barbara Mandrell debuted in her first television film titled Burning Rage.
48.
Barbara Mandrell played the main role of a geologist who investigates coal mining fires underneath a town in Tennessee.
49.
Barbara Mandrell made appearances on talk shows and network programs during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
50.
Barbara Mandrell was featured in several television commercials for food products.
51.
In 1994, Barbara Mandrell played a guest role in an episode of ABC's The Commish.
52.
In 1997, Barbara Mandrell gave up her music career to focus on acting full-time.
53.
Barbara Mandrell signed with the Creative Artists Agency, which helped her acquire more television roles.
54.
Barbara Mandrell appeared as a recurring character in the soap opera Sunset Beach.
55.
In 1999, Barbara Mandrell played the mother of a deceased son who finds conflict with his "controlling girlfriend".
56.
Barbara Mandrell said that she can play the guitar and mandolin "if necessary".
57.
Writers found that Barbara Mandrell had her greatest commercial success with songs that incorporated subjects of cheating.
58.
Barbara Mandrell's singing voice has been the subject of discussion amongst writers and critics.
59.
Barbara Mandrell has been credited as an influence for Terri Clark, Reba McEntire, and Carly Pearce.
60.
Barbara Mandrell has been only one of a few women to win the Country Music Association's Entertainer of the Year award, and one of only two women to win the award twice.
61.
Barbara Mandrell was the first individual to win the accolade in back to back years.
62.
Barbara Mandrell is only one of several people to have since won the award.
63.
In 2009, Barbara Mandrell was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
64.
Barbara Mandrell was inducted that year along with Roy Clark and Charlie McCoy.
65.
Barbara Mandrell's induction was celebrated that year at the Country Music Association Awards where Mandrell gave a speech to thank the industry.
66.
Barbara Mandrell's legacy was further cemented she released her 1990 autobiography called Get to the Heart: My Story.
67.
Barbara Mandrell was portrayed in the film by television actress Maureen McCormick.
68.
Barbara Mandrell briefly made a cameo appearance at the beginning and end of the film.
69.
In July 2022, Barbara Mandrell celebrated 50 years as a member of the Grand Ole Opry.
70.
Barbara Mandrell has been married to former musician and Navy pilot Ken Dudney since 1967.
71.
In 1985 Barbara Mandrell gave birth to her third child, Nathan.
72.
Barbara Mandrell sold the home in 2002 in order to downsize.
73.
Barbara Mandrell then began a new career with a company that works to place people with addiction issues into appropriate rehabilitation facilities.
74.
Barbara Mandrell explained that she still suffers from pain in her ankle.
75.
Barbara Mandrell credited wearing a seat belt to saving her and her children's lives.
76.
Barbara Mandrell campaigned and filmed television commercials that advocated for the use of seat belts in cars.
77.
Barbara Mandrell was made the honorary chairman of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 1985.
78.
Barbara Mandrell has won many awards for her work as an entertainer.