Georgia Holt

Actress, model, and sometime-singer/songwriter Georgia Holt's life reads like a Hollywood movie script. The mother of iconic singer and actress Cher and the actress Georganne LaPiere, Holt endured abandonment, poverty, and even a murder attempt by her father (although he did teach her to play guitar) as she was growing up, taking refuge in singing, dancing, and performing. She performed on-stage with Bob Wills when she was ten; won several talent and beauty competitions; and eventually made it to Hollywood, where she appeared on television shows including I Love Lucy and Ozzie and Harriet. Holt recorded an album, Honky Tonk Woman, in 1980, which included a duet with Cher and featured members of Elvis Presley's band, but the master tapes were abandoned in Holt's garage. Rediscovered years later, Honky Tonk Woman was finally officially released through CD Baby in 2013. Holt died in 2022 at the age of 96.