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Chicago Tribune

From the Farm: Patsy Cline music and memories entice, both on stage and recipe of rocket stardom

Country western music icon Patsy Cline was born just one year after the birth of my own mom Peggy. Patsy was born Sept. 8, 1932, and mom Peggy, Aug. 17, 1931. Tragically, Patsy died at age 30 in March 1963 in a plane crash. She had just finished a 1962 five-week sell-out engagement in Las Vegas at The Mint Casino, which is now owned and operated as Jack Binion's Gambling Hall and touts as its splashy cash claim-to-fame that guests can stand behind a real pyramid of stacked bills amounting to $1 million as a free photo op in the hotel lobby before entering the casino. Cline ranked as the first country music female headliner act to star as a hit Las Vegas headliner. Drury Lane Theatre is now sharing Cline's short but everlasting career story with a new run of one of my favorite stage tales, and also a top pick of my parents, titled 'Always…Patsy Cline, created and originally directed by Ted Swindley. This new run, a stage love letter directed by Scott Weinstein, continues until Aug. 3 at Drury Lane Theatre, 100 Drury Lane in Oakbrook Terrace. 'Always…Patsy Cline' is based on a true story from the accounts of Houston, Texas, fan Louise Seger. The moving and memorable musical has both humor and a folksy country charm set to a fast-paced 90-minute (including one intermission) tale entwined with 27 of Patsy's unforgettable hits such as 'Crazy,' 'I Fall to Pieces,' 'Sweet Dreams' and 'Walking After Midnight.' The show's title was inspired by Patsy's letters to Louise, which were consistently signed 'Love ALWAYS… Patsy Cline.' The real-life Seger died at age 72 at her home in Texas in November 2004. The story opens with Patsy meeting 'her biggest fan' at a honky-tonk Texas stage space in 1961, and the two struck up a friendship that continued via letter-writing until the singer's sudden death years later. Aja Alcazar, who was last seen as June Carter Cash in Drury Lane's hit production of 'Ring of Fire,' harnesses the pipes of Patsy to play the title character while the always versatile Bri Sudia stars as her pen pal, fan and friend Louise. During the stage tale, the two gals gather around the kitchen table to enjoy scrambled eggs and bacon, fresh-brewed coffee, ice cream and swigs of booze. Tickets to 'Always…Patsy Cline' range from $75 to $150 by calling (630) 530-0111 or By 1961, Cline was a crossover music radio play favorite and household name, the latter thanks to her repeated appearances as a discovery of Arthur Godfrey on his daily live morning television show on CBS. On April 1, 1961, she made her first singing appearance at The Grand Ole Opry, sharing backstage dressing room moments with the late great Dottie West. But Cline never lost her hometown roots of Winchester, Virginia, including frequent nods to her mom Hilary, who sewed and designed all of her trademark bangled, tasseled and beaded country western threads for concerts and TV appearances. (Her later crossover pop music radio play appeal inspired her to transition to sequined gowns and wardrobe choices associated with nightclub attire.) Cline's nearest and dearest friend in the music industry was the wonderful Loretta Lynn, who died at age 90 at her Hurricane Mills home in October 2022. I was able to interview Lynn a few times throughout the years, including her theater appearances in Branson in the 1990s and a July 2012 concert appearance at Drury Lane Theatre. Loretta always said she shared the same love of Patsy with 'homemaker duties' such as cooking, recipes and shopping. When the Lifetime original television cable series 'Patsy & Loretta' debuted in October 2019, starring Megan Hilty as Cline and Chicago's own hometown Broadway Tony winner Jessie Mueller as Lynn, the TV project paired the singer's children, Cline's daughter Julie Fudge and Lynn's daughter Patsy Lynn Russell as the series co-producers. During interviews, the daughters admitted some of the scenes were fictionalized, such as a hospital room moment after Cline's June 1961 near-fatal car crash, when she is shown convincing Loretta to sneak her out of the hospital to a nearby diner for a cheeseburger and fries. While this incident never happened, according to Patsy Lynn Russell, she does acknowledge that her mom did sneak her favorite homemade food to hospital bed-confined Cline. As I've written before in my columns and cookbooks, Cline's mom would do the same for her favorite recipe craving, famous daughter. Cline's mother, Hilda Hensley, was a wonderful cook as well as a seamstress. She died at age 82 (she was only 16 when she gave birth to Patsy in 1932) in December 1998. After Cline's death, Hilda helped Patsy's husband Charlie Dick raise the singer's daughter Julie and son Allen, who both lived with her for several years in Winchester, Virginia. In 2012, the Winchester-Frederick County Visitor's Center and the Patsy Cline Historic House, the latter where Cline lived until 1957 and continued to visit until her death, released a cookbook filled with the favorite recipes of Patsy and her mother Hilda. Cline loved homemade fried chicken, and her mom found a more practical way to capture that same flavor but in an easier food form for transporting to her daughter, whether in a hospital bed or on tour. Fried Chicken Salad with Mustard Greens and Boiled Dill Dressing is a star-worthy recipe to tempt any taste buds. Salad: Vegetable shortening or oil for frying Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 4 pounds fresh chicken, cut up 1/2 cup flour 10 to 12 Romaine lettuce leaves and curly mustard greens, washed and dried, the larger leaves torn into 2 or 3 pieces 2 -3 radishes, washed, trimmed and cut into slivers Boiled Dill Dressing: 1 tablespoon corn oil 1 tablespoon flour 1/4 cup pan drippings, reserved from frying the chicken 1 cup whole milk 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard 2 teaspoons honey 1 teaspoon wine vinegar Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste Pinch of cayenne to taste 1 to 3 tablespoons lemon juice to taste 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill, or 1 teaspoon dried dill 1 tablespoon sour cream 1/4 cup buttermilk Directions: Place a large heavy skillet over medium heat and add the shortening or oil (there should be about 1/8 inch of fat in the pan for frying). While the pan is heating, salt and pepper both sides of the chicken. Toss the chicken in the flour mixture until all the pieces are evenly coated. When the oil is hot (a piece of chicken should begin to sizzle gently when placed in the pan), add the chicken and fry it for 20 to 25 minutes, depending on the size of the pieces and the actual temperature of the oil. Turn the chicken several times as it cooks; for very juicy white meat, remove the breasts 3 or 4 minutes before the dark meat. The chicken should be medium golden brown when it is done (if you cook it too quickly, it will be too dark). Remove the chicken from the pan to cool, pressing each piece with a pair of tongs and shaking it briefly over the skillet to remove any remaining oil. Pour off the fat from the pan, reserving 1/4 cup of the browned pan drippings at the bottom to use in the boiled dressing recipe that follows. When the chicken has cooled, pull the skin and meat off the bones and shred it into more or less bite-size morsels (do this with your fingers). Place the chicken in a large bowl with the lettuce leaves and mustard greens, To make dressing, heat the oil over medium heat in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and stir in the flour and cook it for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the reserved pan drippings, stir in the milk and whisk the dressing until it comes to the boil and has thickened slightly. Stir in the mustard, honey, vinegar, seasonings and lemon juice. Remove dressing from the heat and allow to cool to lukewarm. Add the dill, sour cream and buttermilk as needed to obtain a good consistency (dressing should not be too thick). If made in advance, set aside or refrigerate, then reheat gently just before using. Add 1/2 cup of warm dressing and toss to coat the ingredients evenly. Correct the seasoning with the salt and pepper. Arrange the salad on a platter or individual plates, and sprinkle with the slivered radishes. Serve with the remaining dressing passed on the side.