October 25: Birthday of Sarah Cannon (1912)
Prayer Idea
Pray for comedians to use laughter to bring refreshment and hope.
History Note
Sarah Ophelia Colley was born in Centerville, Tennessee, in 1912. She was the youngest of five daughters.
After graduating from college, Colley taught dance and worked as a play director, producing plays in small Southern towns. She met an elderly woman in Alabama whose mannerisms and speech patterns inspired her to develop a persona for the stage.
Sarah Colley debuted as Minnie Pearl in 1939. After performing at a banker’s convention in Centerville, she came to the attention of executives at WSM radio and debuted on the Grand Ole Opry program in 1940. WSM received hundreds of cards, telegrams, and letters addressed to Minnie Pearl, and Colley became a regular on the show.
Colley married Henry Cannon in 1947. He had served as a pilot in WWII and soon started his own company providing charter airplane service for entertainers, including his wife. He also became his wife’s business manager.
Sarah Cannon appeared on many television programs as Minnie Pearl, including the long-running program Hee-Haw. She continued as a regular on the Grand Ole Opry for 50 years.
After going through treatment for breast cancer in the 1980s, Cannon used her fame to draw attention to and provide support for cancer research and treatment.
Sarah Cannon died in 1996 at the age of 93. Her funeral was held at Brentwood Methodist Church, where she was a regular attendee. In a 1977 article in Guideposts, Cannon reflected on her life. As a young woman, she was frustrated that her dream of becoming a professional actor had not been fulfilled. Then her character Minnie Pearl gave her an opportunity.
I saw at last that I had become a failure only because I wouldn’t accept what I truly was. I had been trying to become something I couldn’t be. I would never be a great dramatic actress: I was a Minnie Pearl, a plain, comic country girl, poking fun at herself and sharing that fun with others.
When I learned to accept that role, the one God had given me, He turned my failure into success.
Members of the Grand Ole Opry performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City in 1947. This photo shows Minnie Pearl with two of her fellow entertainers. Photo courtesy the William P. Gottlieb/Ira and Leonore S. Gershwin Fund Collection, Music Division, Library of Congress.
Learn More
Watch a brief Minnie Pearl routine.
Find more resources at Homeschool History.
