Highlights
- Elvis Presley played a significant role in Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash's relationship by introducing June to Johnny's music, which sparked their eventual love story.
- The first meeting between Johnny and June was memorable, with June feeling like she already knew Johnny thanks to Elvis's introduction to his music.
- June Carter Cash's son, John Carter Cash, acknowledged his mother's close relationship with Elvis, though it is unclear whether she cheated on her first husband with him.
Looking back at music history, there are very few figures that left behind the kind of legacy Elvis Presley did. Such a big deal that even mistreating members of his band was quickly forgotten, fans want to know everything about Presley including what his relationship with Dolly Parton was like.
At the height of Presley's career, one of the few people who was one of his peers was Johnny Cash. With that in mind, it is fascinating that they had a complicated relationship between Presley introducing Cash to his wife and possibly having an affair with her.
Was Elvis Presley Responsible For Johnny Cash And June Carter Cash's Relationship?
When most people get divorced for the first time, they aren't in a rush to walk down the aisle anytime soon. With that in mind and the fact that Johnny Cash infamously led a fast lifestyle, it seems like there should have been a long gap between the singer's first and second marriages.
As it turns out, one of the biggest legends in music history played a pivotal role in Cash marrying his second wife in 1968 after his first divorce was finalized only months earlier The reason for that is it appears that Cash and June Carter Cash may have never fallen in love without the influence of Elvis Presley.
According to Country Living, Carter Cash first became aware of her future husband because of Presley. As Carter Cash once reportedly said, while she was touring with Presley, he introduced her to Cash's music.
"I first heard of [Johnny Cash] through Elvis Presley. Elvis would make me go into these little cafés and listen to John [on the jukebox] when we played in the South–in the Carolinas and all down through Florida and Georgia."
While Presley introducing Carter Cash to her future husband's music may not seem like a big deal, it definitely was. In 2019, Town and Country published an article about Cash and Carter Cash's relationship. In that piece, they described the future couple's first meeting.
In 1956 when both Carter Cash and Cash were married, they met at The Grand Ole Opry. When Cash first introduced himself to Carter Cash, he revealed that he'd been a longtime fan of the music she recorded with her family.
After walking up to Carter Cash backstage, Cash reportedly told her, “I’ve always wanted to meet you”. According to Town and Country's article, Carter Cash's response reveals how meaningful Presley introducing her to Cash's music was. “I feel like I know you already."
Town and Country's aforementioned article quotes Carter Cash's impression of the future couple's first meeting and seeing Cash play live. Based on Carter Cash's quote, the night she met Cash had a gigantic impact on her.
“I can’t remember anything else we talked about, except his eyes. Those black eyes that shone like agates… He had a command of his performance that I had never before. Just a guitar and a bass and a gentle kind of presence that made not only me, but whole audiences become his followers.”
Of course, there is no way to know for sure if Carter Cash would have been blown away by Cash that night if she'd never heard his music before. However, considering that Carter Cash said she felt like she already knew Cash before they met, Presley certainly seems to have played a role in the early days of their relationship.
Unfortunately for Cash and Carter Cash, they met at a time in both of their lives that was very inconvenient. With both of them married to other people for many years after they first met, they still became a part of each other's lives by touring together.
Once their marriages ended, and they tied the knot, Cash and Carter Cash had a relationship that has gone down in music history. After all, Carter Cash has long been credited with getting Cash through the darkest period of his life.
Did June Carter Cash Cheat With Elvis Presley?
When Johnny Cash released the music video for his song "Hurt" not long before his passing, watching it was very emotional for long-time fans. While the entire music video was affecting, the moments when Cash appeared alongside June Carter Cash got to most viewers the most. The reason for that Carter Cash and Cash still together after everything they'd been through was powerful.
Given how celebrated Carter Cash and Cash's relationship has been, it would be wrong for random people to make damaging accusations about her online. However, when it comes to the conjecture that Carter Cash once cheated with Elvis Presley, her son John Carter Cash is the one who suggested that happened.
In 2008, John Carter Cash released a biography of his mom titled "Anchored In Love: An Intimate Portrait of June Carter Cash". According to that book, Johnny Cash was very jealous of June Carter Cash's relationship with Presley.
"Throughout my life, I would see Mom get a mischievous twinkle in her eye whenever she mentioned Elvis Presley. Her eyes would flash merrily, and she would say, 'You know, son, your father was always jealous of Elvis.' She even told me once that she sometimes wondered what would have happened if she had fallen in love with Elvis."
Also in his book, John Carter Cash revealed that his mom denied ever cheating with Presley. However, John Carter Cash went on to write why he believes Carter Cash may have cheated with Presley, but it was her first husband she may have been unfaithful to.
"Though Mom always maintained that she never had an affair with Elvis, Carl (her first husband) believed differently and perhaps for good reason. After Carl moved out of their Madison home, Mom would sometimes let Elvis stay at the house to 'rest' after a tour."
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