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In 1990 Barbara Mandrell wrote her autobiography, Get to the Heart: My Story, which was on the New York Times Best Seller List for six months. She is the recipient of over 75 major awards including Grammy's and Peoples Choice. She has starred in her own specials for HBO, CBS, and TNN and has made countless appearances on television from The Tonight Show to Oprah. Barbara Mandrell is truly a remarkable lady, an undeniable star, a pet lover and a new friend.
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KT: How many pets do you have? BM: I Have two Diamond doves, named "Tutti Frutti" and "Old Rutti," five cats, "Peaches," "Love," "Tink," "Vanderbilt," and "Kumate." Two dogs, "Dandy Lion" and "Choutteloun" and a cockatoo named "Koko."
BM: Just a puppy dog. My parents have three dogs; my sister Louise has a dog at her theater in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. KT: Do you have a particular type of animal you like best? BM: Dogs and cats. You can love them and they love you back although my cockatoo is very jealous. KT: Are you afraid of any animals? BM: Yes! Snakes. I was on a TV show with Betty White and she made me touch one. KT: You are an accomplished singer with many number one hits. What is your favorite song? BM: Well I have many songs that are close to my heart. Of my own songs I like "I Loved Country When Country Wasn't Cool," "If Loving You is Wrong I Don't Want to Be Right." My favorite song is not one of my own although I have sung it before; it's "The Battle Hymn of the Republic." KT: Once you are gone, how would you like people to remember you? BM: I'd like to be remembered as a good person, a good Christian, and a pleasure to be around. KT: Is there any room in the Mandrell home for other pets? KT: Well, my husband will be reading this so I guess I'll say no. KT: Is it true that animal people are the best people? BM: I think that being an animal lover is a great judge of character. I think the greatest animal lover is Gunther Gables Williams, former lion tamer at Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus. He and his family have been friends of ours for over 20 years. When his big cats die, he has them taxydermied and he keeps them in his home. The only one he ever gave to anyone he gave to us. It was a Bengal tiger that died named Zeebra. We keep her in our home and we had a plaque made that said given to The Mandrell Family by Gunther Gable Williams. It is very dear to our hearts. KT: Do you spoil your pets? BM: I spoil them extremely. I have a friend who is a choreographer Joseph Malone. He told me that if he had to be reincarnated, one morning he wants to come back as one of my dogs. KT: I know you love your pets. What do they mean to you? BM: They are a part of my family. Outside of my bathroom window is a big window to look out and watch the birds and nature in that area. There are some of the tombstones from the kitty cats that have died. All of my pets have a special part of my heart. KT: If you were an animal which one would you be and why? BM: I would be an American Bald Eagle. They are magnificent, and they represent the greatness of our nation. I think I'd want to be one because they are loved, admired, and protected by our people. KT: All of your songs carry a special message in them to the listener. What message would you like the person who reads this interview to get? BM: Spay and neuter! Our Bouvier is a champion and her father was ninth in the nation. Six days after she championed we spayed her. Twenty years ago Purina gave me a St. Bernard so my husband drove her to Chicago to be bred. My vet of over twenty years, Dr. Bill Shannon, was very upset with me. He told me that for every puppy we gave a home, another puppy loses its home and it is not fair that so many animals must die. KT: What are you most proud of? BM: I am very proud of my family and my friends and certainly of my animals. KT: Around this time last year, you finally left singing to pursue a career in acting. Was that a hard choice to make? BM: It was a huge decision to quit singing, but I closed the book on that. I have done some acting before but that's what I want to focus on now. I just finished a movie for NBC filmed in Canada. KT: What can we next expect from Ms. Barbara Mandrell? BM: Well Lifetime network is doing intimate portraits on me, and NBC is broadcasting the movie in the fall. I also sell fashion jewelry on QVC periodically, so I stay very busy. KT: What have you learned from your pets? BM: They make me feel good and happy, they are sweet and wonderful. We kept our tour bus because it was made for us, but when we did tour, the two dogs, and the kitten were with us. Everyone would say they are the most obedient and amazing dogs. They are a responsibility. On Sunday morning I have to add 40 minutes to my getting ready time to feed all my pets. KT: If the world is divided into two kinds of people, dog lovers and cat lovers, who are you? BM: I'd be standing with one foot on either side. KT: What would a life without pets be? BM: I don't want to imagine. God built us a perfect world and we are the ones to mess it up. The animals that he gave us are amazing and we must care for them and protect them. | |
