Norma jean beasler biography graphic organizer

Norma Jean Beasler, often known to her fans as "Pretty Miss Norma Jean," ranks as one the leading female country performers of the 1960's. She was born to a struggling farm family in depression-wracked Oklahoma near the town of Wellston.

When her father entered military service during World War II, the rest of the family moved to Oklahoma City. Norma grew up there listening to the Grand Ole Opry and becoming a big fan of Kitty Wells from 1952.

Norma jean beasler biography graphic organizer

She was also influenced by the western swing bands that worked out of Oklahoma City, such as those of Hank Thompson, Leon McAuliffe, Merle Lindsay, and Billy Gray. She toured with the latter two during summers in high school.

She also began a close friendship with another aspiring teen-star, Wanda Jackson, and each had a quarter-hour morning radio on KLPR on alternate weekdays.

Norma Jean told Country Song Roundup readers in 1965 that she ...entered show business at the age of 12.

I began on the radio in Oklahoma City, playing the