Opry-Star Spotlight
In 1957 WMAK (Nashville) radio fired Emery, who then applied for the late-night Opry Star Spotlight show at WSM radio. This show would prove to be Emery’s true career break. He was the third host of the Opry-Star Spotlight. His open invitation to all stars to drop in whenever they felt like it, a policy Emery kept for the rest of his career, made the show popular with the country stars and the public alike.
Within months, Emery’s successful program became an important vehicle for aspiring artists who wanted to get recognition and airplay in the Nashville market, even at 3:00 A.M. WSM would be the base of Emery’s career and reputation for the next twenty-plus years.
During his time at the Opry-Star Spotlight, Ralph Emery met country singer Skeeter Davis, whom he married in 1960. The marriage lasted for four years. In his autobiography Memories, Emery says of the union, “I am confident that Skeeter was in love with Ralph Emery the disc jockey, not the person.”
After his divorce from Davis in 1964, Emery began to descend into alcohol and drug addiction, leading him to resign from his radio show. However, after a brief hiatus, he rejoined the Opry-Star Spotlight, with his replacement, western movie star Tex Ritter, continuing on as co-host.
Emery remained with the all-night radio show until 1972.
