June Carter Cash's Real Name: Valerie June Carter

Quick answer: She was known as June Carter Cash. AllMusic says she was born Valerie June Carter on June 23, 1929, in Maces Springs, Virginia. Encyclopaedia Britannica independently lists Valerie June Carter Cash as another form of her name and gives the same birth date, spelling the community Maces Spring. Both sources record her death on May 15, 2003.

Real name and early life

AllMusic's biography, by Zac Johnson, says she was born Valerie June Carter in Maces Springs, Virginia, on June 23, 1929. Britannica gives the same date and spells the birthplace Maces Spring, Virginia. Both say her mother was Maybelle Carter of the Carter Family, and Britannica says she was introduced to Appalachian folk songs very young.

AllMusic says her mother taught her the autoharp and that she began singing with her sisters Helen and Anita in 1937. Britannica says that after the original Carter Family disbanded in 1943, June toured with her mother and sisters as the Carter Sisters and Mother Maybelle, an act that became a regular at the Grand Ole Opry. AllMusic adds that her comic skits led to a 1949 novelty recording of "Baby, It's Cold Outside" with Homer and Jethro.

Career highlights

Britannica says she made her solo Opry debut in 1950, later toured with Elvis Presley, studied acting with Lee Strasberg, and appeared on television shows such as Gunsmoke. Both sources record her 1952 marriage to singer Carl Smith, the birth of their daughter, who later performed as Carlene Carter, and a later marriage to Edwin "Rip" Nix, with whom she had a daughter, Rosie.

Both sources say she joined Johnny Cash's road show in 1961 and co-wrote "Ring of Fire" in 1963; AllMusic names Merle Kilgore as co-writer and says Cash's version reached number one. Both record a Grammy for their duet "Jackson" and their marriage in 1968, and both note the birth of their son, John Carter Cash, in 1970. Britannica says she encouraged Cash to seek treatment for addiction.

She published two autobiographies, Among My Klediments (1979) and a 1987 book that Britannica titles From the Heart and AllMusic titles From My Heart. AllMusic notes later acting in Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman and The Apostle. Both sources say her 1999 album Press On won a Grammy; AllMusic specifies best traditional folk album.

Death

Britannica records her death on May 15, 2003, in Nashville, Tennessee. AllMusic gives the same date and says she died suddenly following complications from heart surgery.

Name notes for searchers

People looking up June Carter Cash, June Carter, or Valerie June Carter are looking for the same singer. Carlene Carter and Rosie Nix were her daughters.