“I Walk The Line” was one of the most popular songs ever sung by legendary American musician Johnny Cash. The song was basically a pledge of fidelity and responsibility to his wife Vivian Liberto. Before he met Cash, Liberto was a quiet, low-key girl from San Antonio, Texas. Her life was changed forever after her husband found fame and with it drugs, alcohol and other women. Would you like to know more about Liberto? We have all the details here including her bio and ethnicity as well as other interesting facts about her.
Vivian Liberto – Bio (Age and Ethnicity)
Vivian Dorraine Liberto was born on the 23rd of April 1934 in San Antonio, Texas. Her father’s name was Thomas Peter while her mother’s name was Irene Robinson. She also had a brother named Raymond Alvin Liberto and a sister named Susan Flye. Regarding her ethnicity, Vivian Liberto is Italian-American. However, many people mistakenly believed that she was African American. This was due to a particular October 1965 newspaper photograph of her and her husband appearing African American at a time when segregation was still alive in the American South.
The photo sparked an outcry among white supremacists, who accused Cash of spending his fortune on drugs and black women. It also led to a targeted campaign against Liberto, with some even sending out their death threats. Some others boycotted her husband’s concert and his manager had to clarify that Liberto was not black. This clarification does not mean that Cash was sympathetic to the white supremacist. The musician was known for emphasizing issues affecting African Americans and Native Americans in his songs.
Vivian Liberto met her future husband on the 18th of July 1951 at a roller rink in SanAntonio . At the time, Cash was working as a radio announcer for the Air Force while making music on a small scale. He asked Liberto for a skate and she happily signed him with one. They chatted and he amazed her with his singing skills. The two instantly fell in love and were together for just three weeks before the Air Force shipped cash overseas for training. Johnny Cash spent the next three years abroad, but the lovebirds didn’t let the distance between them. Instead, they kept their romance alive by exchanging hundreds of love letters. Cash returned to America in July 1954 and the couple married.
They tied the knot at a Catholic church in San Antonio on the 7th of August 1954. After the wedding, Liberto and her husband started a family in Memphis . At the time, Cash was both a salesman and a struggling musician. All his hard work paid off in 1955 when he burst into the limelight with his single Cry Cry Cry. He would become a legendary singer in both country and rock ‘n’ roll. However, his newfound fame brought with it drugs, alcohol and women, which strained the couple’s marriage. Another factor that hastened their union’s demise was Cash’s friendship with country musician June Carter. All this prompted Vivian Liberto to file for divorce in 1966, which was finalized in 1967.
daughters
Vivian Liberto’s marriage to Johnny Cash produced four daughters, namely Roseanne, Kathy, Cindy and Tara. After the divorce, Liberto lived in Ventura, California, where she raised her four daughters. She also remarried a police officer named Dick Distin in 1968. Liberto did not allow her failed marriage to weigh on her. She worked quite hard and was an active member of her community. She volunteered at Ventura County Medical Center and a home for unmarried mothers. The selfless lady also served as President of the Garden Club of San Buenaventura. Vivian Liberto died on the 24th of May 2005. Her death was the result of complications resulting from lung cancer.
More facts about Vivian Liberto
In 2007, she co-wrote the memoir I Walked the Line: My Life with Johnny Cash. The book detailed both her life and her marriage to Cash.
Despite the way their marriage ended, she didn’t speak badly of her ex-husband. Rather, she described him as a wonderful, caring and protective husband.
The legendary love triangle between Liberto, her ex-husband and singer-June Carter was the subject of the 2008 Hollywood film I’m In.
Her marriage to Cash was presided over by her uncle, who was a priest and whose name was Vincent Liberto.
Liberto’s eldest daughter, Roseanne, is an accomplished country singer and has released several albums. She has also won many awards including the 1985 Grammy for Best Country Song.
