{"id":43948,"date":"2017-09-22T07:16:09","date_gmt":"2017-09-22T07:16:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=43948"},"modified":"2017-09-22T07:16:09","modified_gmt":"2017-09-22T07:16:09","slug":"johnny-cashs-former-manager-tackled-singers-drug-battles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/celebrities\/johnny-cashs-former-manager-tackled-singers-drug-battles.html","title":{"rendered":"Johnny Cash’s Former Manager Tackled Singer’s Drug Battles"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Julie Chadwick received an email marked \u201cconfidential\u201d in 2005, the local Canadian reporter had no idea she would uncover a forgotten chapter in Johnny Cash\u2019s life.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The message was from Jonathan Holiff, whose late father Saul managed the Man in Black for 13 years before quitting in 1973 at the height of the singer\u2019s career.<\/span><\/p>\n

The patriarch oversaw the country music legend\u2019s career, introduced him to June Carter and even handled his divorce from first wife Vivian. But six months before the critically-acclaimed Cash biopic \u201cWalk the Line\u201d hit theaters in 2005, the elder Holiff committed suicide at age 80, leaving no note.<\/span><\/p>\n

His son, who was struggling with the sudden death of his estranged father, unearthed a storage locker that was filled with hours of audio diaries, hundreds of letters and photos, taped phone calls and long-forgotten newspaper clippings that explored Holiff\u2019s role as a rock \u2019n\u2019 roll promoter during the 1960s in Canada.<\/span><\/p>\n

While working on a documentary called \u201cMy Father and the Man in Black,\u201d he gave Chadwick, who was working on a story about the upcoming film, full access to the archives.<\/span><\/p>\n

Chadwick\u2019s understanding of Saul Holiff and his complicated relationship with Cash led to a book called \u201cThe Man Who Carried Cash.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSaul initially stressed through Cash\u2019s drug addiction,\u201d Chadwick told Fox News. \u201cThere is one incident when they were doing a tour and Saul had organized an incredible show in Paris.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Johnny<\/p>\n

“He really tried to develop high-level performances for Johnny to do. And he had this idea to get Johnny out of the niche country music labeling and become a big crossover pop star. And part of that was getting him in venues where western artists had never played before\u2026 He organized this show, but Johnny doesn\u2019t show up. He [instead] ran off to London and was partying with Bob Dylan.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

When Cash was famously arrested in El Paso, Texas, in 1965 for smuggling amphetamines from Mexico, it was Holiff who had to clean up the mess. News reports claimed at the time Cash was found with 668 Dexedrine and 475 Equanil tablets in his luggage. Later in an interview, Cash said he routinely took about 100 pills a day and washed them down with beer.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a memo from 1965 where they\u2019re about to go on this tour and Saul said, \u2018Johnny is having some sort of throat problem. He\u2019s not going to be able to make the first day of the tour,’\u201d said Chadwick. \u201cSaul was panicking, so I think he started dictating a memo to his wife Barbara to keep a hold of everything that was happening, which I\u2019m guessing it\u2019s to prepare for a lawsuit. Later they\u2019re trying to find Johnny all over Nashville.<\/span><\/p>\n

“He eventually misses the entire tour. And the promoter was threatening a lawsuit\u2026 In that memo, two days later, Johnny was driving June\u2019s Cadillac in Nashville and ends up crashing into a telephone pole. It was one incident after the other.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Cash\u2019s addiction may not have surprised everyone involved with his career.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was pretty common back then for performers and musicians to take various types of speed while on the road,\u201d said Chadwick. \u201cHis addiction, along with many others, started while on the road. They often had to drive huge distances from place to place. So in order to stay up at night, they would have to take these amphetamines to stay awake\u2026 But he built a huge tolerance.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

But even while Cash struggled personally, Holiff was determined to give his life purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was Saul that put Johnny and June together first professionally in December 1961,\u201d explained Chadwick. \u201cHe was also the driving force behind the San Quentin Prison show and album, which really pushed Johnny to be this international superstar\u2026 He also was the driving force behind getting Johnny on TV.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

“I saw from his own letters to CBS and various networks that as early as 1964 he was really trying to push for him to have his own show and was developing pilots. But it became different for him in the mid-’60s because when you have someone who clearly has the physical signs of addiction, it doesn\u2019t make for great television.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Chadwick pointed to one appearance at Peter Seeger\u2019s \u201cRainbow Quest\u201d where a thin and hollow-eyed Cash couldn\u2019t stop twitching and even takes off his shoes on set.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAs he became more famous, Johnny realized he had this platform through which he can talk about his relationship with God,\u201d said Chadwick. That\u2019s where he wanted to take his career. That caused a lot of conflict with Saul on multiple fronts.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

While Christianity may have helped Cash cope with his demons, Holiff didn\u2019t think it made good business.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cJohnny wanted to do a film about the life of Jesus and spend his own money on it\u2026 Saul was trying to gently tell him he wasn\u2019t sure this was the greatest idea because there\u2019s a lot of people out there who aren\u2019t Christian,\u201d she said. \u201cHe wasn\u2019t sure how well it would have done with Johnny\u2019s audience. And Johnny basically said, \u2018If you don\u2019t want to do this, I\u2019ll find someone else who does.\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

“And also, I think Saul personally just found it difficult because he wasn\u2019t religious. He was Jewish, but was personally [an] atheist\u2026 It was strange. You would think he went through all the chaos of the \u201860s, so why would he quit? But it comes down to religious conflict essentially.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The two would later reconnect before Cash died in 2003 at age 71 from complications of diabetes. Chadwick is hoping Holiff\u2019s legacy in managing one of the most iconic voices in country music won\u2019t be forgotten.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI really do credit Saul for pushing on the idea of putting [Johnny] in living rooms all across America, which helped cement his status as a superstar,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m not really sure why, but he was sidelined out of the story [over the years]. I\u2019m surprised in earlier books about Cash, they don\u2019t even mention Saul\u2026 But he played such a crucial role.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Source<\/strong>:\u00a0http:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/entertainment\/2017\/09\/21\/johnny-cashs-former-manager-tackled-singers-drug-battles-but-quit-over-religious-differences-book-claims.html<\/span><\/p>\n

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