I had the most interesting interviews yesterday and today with a woman who worked for Johnny Cash for seven years, from 1968 to 1975. That was a time when Johnny was just starting to reach superstar status, and after he had won his battle with pills.
The woman, Barbara "Bobbie" John is 81 now and has a lot of memorabilia and newspaper articles about her and Cash. She's quite a character, too. Funny, feisty, energetic. I'll bet she was really something back in the days when she worked with Johnny. She said he called her "Miss Bobbie."
Anyway, she said Cash was genuine in his faith, a man who sought to walk in the footsteps of Jesus. It wasn't a show for him, it was his life story. She said Johnny had a photographic memory and when he said something about the Bible or quoted Scripture, "you didn't have to look it up because he was always right," she said.
I'm working on an article about Johnny Cash's "Gospel Road" film, a movie about Jesus' life that he narrates. It was his and June Carter Cash's lifelong dream to make the movie and Bobbie served as a producer. My story will run on Saturday, March 31, so check it out then online at www.toledoblade.com.

Meanwhile, she told me a great anecdote about Johnny. When he did his first Billy Graham crusade, Cash was a smoker. Graham met with him backstage and said Johnny looked a little nervous. Cash said it wasn't that, it's just that he smoked cigarettes and wanted to quit. Graham said he would pray for him, and put his hand on Cash's shoulder.
According to Bobbie, Cash never smoked again. He told her it was because "He didn't want to tell Dr. Graham that his prayer didn't work."
Was it a divine healing, or a matter of will power? Either way, it worked!

Sylvania, Ohio, March 22, 2007