Grand Old Party? She’ll Take The Grand Ol’ Opry
Lorrie Morgan, happily married these days to fellow country singer Jon Randall, reviews her former flames in her new book “Forever Yours, Faithfully: My Love Story.”
Country star Keith Whitley, her first husband, was hopelessly addicted to alcohol and pornography. “To find out that on the night he died he was with another woman was almost unbearable,” she writes.
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman was the love of her life, but “he … wanted children, and I had just had a hysterectomy.”
And she calls Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn. - now head of a committee investigating Clinton campaign fund-raising - “a wonderful man who turned me into a thinker,” but around him she couldn’t “express myself as a pungent, pithy country singer … I knew he could not accept me as I am.”
Loose talk
John Denver’s ex-wife, Annie, on his philosophy (on “Public Eye with Bryant Gumbel”): “John wasn’t afraid to die. He really lived his life 100 percent. And, you know, there aren’t a lot of people who do that.”
Like Richard Nixon, he is not a Crook
Charlie Chase turns 45 today.
He’ll come back a seasoned statesman
In his first official tour since the death of his mother, Princess Diana, 13-year-old Prince Harry will accompany his father, Prince Charles, on a trip to South Africa at the end of the month. The itinerary includes a concert by the British band Spice Girls.
Doing his part as the world economy turns
British Prime Minister Tony Blair appeared in a Russian soap opera during a recent trip to Moscow. “Britain has a tremendous opportunity here in Russia, and if we can use our position to help British trade and investment and Britain’s standing in the world, then that’s great,” Blair said. “And if it takes starring in a soap opera, then I’m delighted.”
We thought they were both out of bounds
Speaking of soap operas, several members of the Kennedy clan appear on tonight’s “60 Minutes.” Rep. Joe Kennedy, D-Mass., calls his recent war of words with cousin John F. Kennedy Jr. “kind of verbal touch football … we both scored against each other.”
But financially, she’ll still be faring well
People magazine reports Nancy Reagan is upset that daughter Patti Davis - who’s writing a book about Ronald Reagan’s Alzheimer’s disease, “The Long Goodbye” - only calls once a week. While Patti planned to spend most of her time with her father, a source says, she “realized that this goodbye might take much longer than she thought.”
Guess ‘Bob Dole’ had less of a sucking sound
Former Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole says he’s “flattered” by a Midland, Mich., boy’s soccer team that’s named after him, writing to coach Stacey Gannon: “The team’s determination and your leadership are important to victory. I will be pulling for you.” Gannon said the players voted to take Dole’s name over Ross Perot.
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 Photos
The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Compiled by staff writer Rick Bonino