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WZTV FOX 17 - Top Stories
The Queen of Country Music, Kitty Wells, was laid to rest Friday, 60 years to the week after cutting the record that would make her a legend. She was the first woman to have a #1 country record, and Wells is being remembered as a trail blazer. Mourners flooded into Hendersonville Church of Christ to honor a woman who opened the door for all women in country music.
"She was everything that everybody says that she was," says Country Music Hall of Famer Bill Anderson. "And she had her priorities in order. I don't think she ever knew how big a star she was."
She may not have, but her friends and fans did. Wells, whose real name is Murial Wright, was remembered as a woman of faith, someone who helped launch many other careers - a star who set the standard of what it meant to be a professional.
"Unlike today's performers, Kitty Wells never canceled a show," says Eddie Stubbs. "When her mother died, Johnny chartered a plane for her to come back for the funeral, but then she was right back to work."
One of the careers Wells helped launch was Ricky Skaggs', whose family performed at the service. Skaggs says Wells and her husband brought him on stage with them in West Virginia when he was only 6.
"I don't know what they saw in me that day but I know what I saw in them," says Skaggs. "I saw a very giving and loving bunch of people that was willing to give someone a handout, you know a hand up."
A constant theme was how grounded Kitty Wells was in spite of her fame, putting faith and family first. Fellow Hall of Famer Connie Smith called Wells country music royalty.
"She was a queen," says Smith. "When you walked into her presence you felt like you wanted to bow because she just had that essence about her. That is what I aspire to be and I think all the other ladies as well."
Jan Howard, another Opry member at the service, said Kitty Wells took a gravel road and turned it into a 4-lane highway. Kitty Wells passed away Monday at the age of 92. She had 35 top 10 hits and 81 chart records. Wells toured with her family until just 5 years ago.
"She was everything that everybody says that she was," says Country Music Hall of Famer Bill Anderson. "And she had her priorities in order. I don't think she ever knew how big a star she was."
She may not have, but her friends and fans did. Wells, whose real name is Murial Wright, was remembered as a woman of faith, someone who helped launch many other careers - a star who set the standard of what it meant to be a professional.
"Unlike today's performers, Kitty Wells never canceled a show," says Eddie Stubbs. "When her mother died, Johnny chartered a plane for her to come back for the funeral, but then she was right back to work."
One of the careers Wells helped launch was Ricky Skaggs', whose family performed at the service. Skaggs says Wells and her husband brought him on stage with them in West Virginia when he was only 6.
"I don't know what they saw in me that day but I know what I saw in them," says Skaggs. "I saw a very giving and loving bunch of people that was willing to give someone a handout, you know a hand up."
A constant theme was how grounded Kitty Wells was in spite of her fame, putting faith and family first. Fellow Hall of Famer Connie Smith called Wells country music royalty.
"She was a queen," says Smith. "When you walked into her presence you felt like you wanted to bow because she just had that essence about her. That is what I aspire to be and I think all the other ladies as well."
Jan Howard, another Opry member at the service, said Kitty Wells took a gravel road and turned it into a 4-lane highway. Kitty Wells passed away Monday at the age of 92. She had 35 top 10 hits and 81 chart records. Wells toured with her family until just 5 years ago.
Saturday, July 21 2012, 02:04 AM CDT
Tennessee News
Pharmacist admits misbranding dialysis drugs
May 21, 2013 21:08 GMT
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) -- A Tennessee pharmacist has admitted distributing a misbranded Chinese-made drug that was given to kidney dialysis patients in Kansas.
The U.S. Attorney's office says 53-year-old Robert Harshbarger Jr., of Kingsport, Tenn., pleaded guilty Tuesday in Topeka to one count each of distributing a misbranded drug and health care fraud.
Harshbarger admitted that from 2004 to 2009, he substituted a cheaper Chinese import for an iron sucrose drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The drugs were given to patients of Kansas Dialysis Services. Prosecutors say there were no reports of harm, but patients were put at risk because the FDA could not assure the drugs' effectiveness and safety.
Harshbarger's plea deal calls for four years in prison, restitution of nearly $849,000 and a forfeiture of $425,000.
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