Norma

I bought this book at a yard sale for twenty five cents and, knowing what I know now, i gladly would've paid five hundred times the price for this gem of a little book. Norma Zimmer, best known from her many years on The Lawrence Welk Show as the "Champagne Lady" gives a very moving and sometimes very personal account of her life in this book. She tells of her early childhood, which was marked by severe poverty (even severe for The Great Depression), a father who struggled with alcohol abuse and low self-esteem, and her mother who found faith in Christ and endured to build a better life for them all. Zimmer tells about her rollercoaster ride from obscurity to her days hob-knobbing with the Hollywood elite during its Golden Age as a premiere soloist, how she met her husband, struggles she had with her own faith, and her subsequent career triumphs with Lawrence Welk and Rev. Billy Graham. Written by Norma herself with suprising candor, wit and occasional flashes of humor, its a very sincere book that gives a depth to a celebrity often chided for her "squeaky clean" image back during the 60s and 70s, proving that she's indeed a human being of true character and depth. Check it out! If a black dude from ATL can get into it, anyone can!

This was most enjoyable reading! I read lots of biographies and this one was very good. More than just being the Champagne Lady of the Lawrence Welk show, Norma had quite an interesting life and she shares it all with us, and even though this is published by a Christian publishing house, the book does not dwell on her religious life or pressure anyone. It just simply tells her life as she lived it. She had a very difficult childhood-ended up in Hollywood and went on to a satisfying career and marriage. It was really good.