Hard to believe that 64 years ago in April of 1956 Johnny Cash recorded what would become one of his most famous songs I Walk the Line. A historic day for Nashville, although no one was aware of it at the time. It was on that date that Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge opened on Lower Broadway, just steps away from the Ryman Auditorium.
The venue now known as Tootsie’s was open prior to 1960 as Mom’s, but it changed names when it changed ownership. Hattie Louise “Tootsie” Bess purchased the restaurant and gave it its now-famous name after a painter, to her surprise, painted its exterior purple.
