“There’s always been a handful of people with global appeal that goes beyond the face value of the culture of Country music. Mr. Pride is absolutely one of those folks.” Marty Stuart

“Charley deserves every accolade he can get. And, we’ll make up some new ones if we need to. He’ll deserve them too!” Willie Nelson

“He’s one of America’s great country stars. He is Americana personified.” Whoopi Goldberg

In an August 2018 interview with The Meridian Star about his being inducted into the Mississippi Arts + Entertainment Experience Hall of Fame, Country musician Charley Pride spoke about his 1994 autobiography “Pride: The Charley Pride Story” being developed into a film.

The autobiography, which was written by Pride and author Jim Henderson, details his childhood, as well as his baseball and music careers. The Pride film had been in development for several years and in 2006 it was announced Terrence Howard (“Empire,” “Hustle & Flow”) would star. Several years later action and comedy star Dwayne Johnson was announced as the lead.

“I’d really like Terrence Howard to portray me; we’re born under the same (astrological) sign, our birthdays are eight days apart and he sings,” Pride said. “I think The Rock is too big; I’m not that bulky.”

Unfortunately, the film had to be put on hold. Although Pride expressed disappointment about the movie’s deal, he remained hopeful.

On Monday, Aug. 12, a special screening of the newly released documentary, “Charley Pride: I’m Just Me,” will be presented at the GRAMMY Museum® Mississippi in the Mississippi Delta city of Cleveland. The documentary traces Pride’s improbable journey — from his humble beginnings as a sharecropper’s son on a cotton farm in segregated Sledge, Mississippi, to his career as a Negro League baseball player and his meteoric rise as a trailblazing country music superstar.

Narrated by country music icon Tanya Tucker, the new documentary reveals how Pride’s love for music led him from the Delta to a larger, grander world. In the 1940s, radio transcended racial barriers, making it possible for Pride to grow up listening to and emulating Grand Ole Opry stars like Ernest Tubb and Roy Acuff. The singer arrived in Nashville in 1963 while the city roiled with sit-ins and racial violence. But with boldness, perseverance and undeniable musical talent, he managed to parlay a series of fortuitous encounters with music industry insiders into a legacy of hit singles, a Recording Academy “Lifetime Achievement Award” and a place in the Country Music Hall of Fame.

The film includes original revealing interviews with country music royalty, including Garth Brooks, Dolly Parton, Brad Paisley, Darius Rucker and Marty Stuart. It also includes several on-camera conversations between Pride and special guests, including Rozene Pride (his wife of 61 years), Willie Nelson, and other fellow musicians. The film also features many songs from his repertoire of classic country hits, along with more modern cuts like “Standing In My Way,” from his latest album Music In My Heart, released in 2017.

In January, the film made its world premiere at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. The premiere featured an appearance by Charley Pride himself, along with special guest artists featured in the film, including the film’s narrator Tanya Tucker, Jimmie Allen, Janie Fricke, and Sylvia Hutton. Members of the media, and other family and friends of Pride also attended. After the film a Q&A was hosted by the film’s director Barbara Hall, and journalist Robert K. Oermann, Country Music Hall of Fame’s Peter Cooper, and Charley Pride.

Notable talent In the film:

• Charley Pride

• Garth Brooks

• Dolly Parton

• Willie Nelson

• Tanya Tucker (narrator)

• Brad Paisley

• Darius Rucker

• Marty Stuart

• Sylvia Hutton

• Charlie Worsham

• Jimmie Allen

• Whoopi Goldberg

Buzzworthy moments:

• Charley Pride and fellow country music superstar Willie Nelson reminisce on camera about the early days of their careers.

• Charley Pride explains how he maneuvered his way through the white ranks of country music in order to gain acceptance in the industry.

• Charley Pride and his wife Rozene speak candidly about Pride’s struggles with mental illness over the years. While on tour in Germany in 1968, the singer suffered a manic attack and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

Noteworthy facts:

• Eighteen-year-old Charley Pride made his debut in the Negro American League as a pitcher-outfielder for the Memphis Red Sox in 1952.

• Charley Pride was drafted into the army in 1956 and served 14 months in Arkansas and Colorado. While in the military, he played on the Fort Carson baseball team and sang in the barracks.

• After RCA signed him to a record deal, his third single, “Just Between You and Me,” reached the top 10 on the country music charts in 1967. The singer received his first GRAMMY® nomination, for Best Country & Western Vocal Performance, Male, for the song.

• Charley Pride first appeared on the Grand Ole Opry radio show in January, 1967. When he was inducted as an Opry member in 1993, he became the first African-American Opry member since DeFord Bailey, who had been a regular member from 1927 until 1941. Pride celebrated the 25th anniversary of his induction into the Grand Ole Opry in 2018.

• Charley Pride won Entertainer of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year at the Country Music Association (CMA) Awards in 1971.

• Charley Pride committed to an extensive tour of the U.K. in 1976, including several dates in Northern Ireland during the peak of the Troubles conflict. Because of the intense political violence, international music acts were avoiding Belfast. Pride’s November 1976 appearance at Belfast’s Ritz Cinema brought the community together and he became a hero to both sides of the conflict for helping to break the informal touring ban of Northern Ireland after several other international music acts soon followed. This resulted in “Crystal Chandeliers” being considered a ‘unity song’ in Ireland and the UK when it was subsequently released as single.

• In 2000, Charley Pride was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

• The Recording Academy honored Charley Pride with a Lifetime Achievement Award during the GRAMMY® Salute to Music Legends awards ceremony and tribute concert event in 2017.

• At 84, Pride continues to play 30 to 40 concert dates a year throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. He also performs at the Grand Ole Opry several times each year and hosts an annual fan club breakfast in Nashville each June. In addition to performing, recording new music and spending spring training with the Texas Rangers, he enjoys playing golf and spending time with his family.

The film’s running time is 78 minutes. Following the special screening, the film’s director and producer Barb Hall will host a moderated conversation about the film’s production.

GRAMMY Museum Mississippi is located at 800 W. Sunflower Road in Cleveland.

Want to go?

What: Screening of “Charley Pride: I’m Just Me”

When: Monday, Aug. 12; Doors: 6:30 p.m.; show: 7 p.m.

Where: GRAMMY Museum Mississippi, Cleveland

Online: Grammymuseumms.org/events/detail/reel-to-reel-charley-pride