Cash, Vivian, 1934-2005

Vivian Distin (née Liberto, formerly Cash; April 23, 1934 – May 24, 2005) was an American homemaker and author. She is notable as the first wife of singer Johnny Cash and mother of their four daughters. She inspired his first hit single "I Walk the Line". Born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, she grew up in a Sicilian-American household and was raised Catholic. She married Cash in San Antonio, but they separated after several years. In 1965, Cash, who was already well known, was arrested for drug possession. She stood by him during this time, and photographs of her were widely publicized. Between 1965 and 1966, she faced discrimination due to her racial identity after white supremacists classified her as Black based on her appearance in the photos. At the time, interracial marriage was illegal in many places, and white supremacists claimed her marriage to Cash was unlawful. As a result, both she and her husband experienced harassment, and he was boycotted in the South for a year until his manager provided documentation confirming her classification as White. After the couple divorced in 1966, they each married again. She had chief responsibility for raising their daughters. They typically spent time in the summer with their father and stepmother, June Carter Cash, both singer/songwriters. In 2007 Distin published a memoir, prepared with Ann Sharpsteen, under her former married name of 'Vivian Cash'. Entitled I Walk the Line, it was based on her years with Johnny Cash. She drew from the many letters they exchanged for three years before their marriage, when he was stationed in Europe.