Loretta Lynn photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Two major icons are celebrating their 50th anniversaries in 2010: Loretta Lynn and Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge.

You certainly know Loretta, the woman whose feisty songs about contemporary womanhood made her an easy selection for the Country Music Hall of Fame.

If you don’t know about Tootsie’s, you should. The purple bar sits on Lower Broadway in Nashville, across the alley from the Ryman Auditorium, where the the Grand Ole Opry was held when Loretta made her debut in 1960. Tootsie’s is a small watering hole that still exists. During its early years, it was the gathering place for many of country’s songwriters and biggest stars, including Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Mel Tillis, Faron Young, Marty Robbins, Harlan Howard and Hank Cochran.

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Luke Bryan photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Between the Brad Paisley H2O World Tour and May’s Nashville flood, country music has been waterlogged this summer.

But the liquid is still flowing in the genre. Brad’s weekend lake show set a record, Luke Bryan rode a gusher to the top of the chart, and yes, there’s more flood-recovery news, thanks in part to Chuck Wicks and Grand Ole Opry star Jeannie Seely.

Here’s a look at the way water continues to stream into country’s current landscape:

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Mark Chesnutt photo courtesy of Lofton Creek Records.

When Mark Chesnutt welcomed his first son, he named the boy Waylon in honor of rough-and-tumble Texas musician Waylon Jennings.

Now Mark is honoring Waylon and a slew of like-minded country acts with a new album titled Outlaw, set for release June 22. Produced by Pete Anderson, best known for his work with Dwight Yoakam, Outlaw serves up new versions of songs associated with Billy Joe Shaver, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson and — of course — Waylon.

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Darryl Worley photo courtesy of Stroudavarious Records.

Darryl Worley and Mark Chesnutt will both be headed to other continents in April to play for American troops serving overseas.

Having performed last August in the Middle East, Mark begins a three-day tour of U.S. Air Force bases in South Korea April 9. He’ll play Camp Casey, Camp Humphreys and Kunsan Air Base on successive days, and he’ll visit the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea.

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Toby Keith (l) signed Trace Adkins to his label, Show Dog-Universal Music, on Jan. 12, 2010. Photo courtesy of Show Dog-Universal Music.

Thanks to his song “Courtesy Of The Red, White And Blue (The Angry American),” Toby Keith was billed in some circles as a warmonger, but it turns out that one of the moments that bonded him to his new label president was a time when Toby took a peaceful stance during the Country Radio Seminar.

Toby’s Show Dog Nashville label has merged with Universal South to create Show Dog-Universal Music, with Toby as the principle and former Universal South chief Mark Wright as the president. The two actually go back a long way. Mark started out in the business as a songwriter, penning such hits as Mark Chesnutt’s “Your Love Is A Miracle,” George Strait’s “Today My World Slipped Away” and Alabama’s “Take A Little Trip.” He heard some of Toby’s songs before Toby ever released a single, and he was completely knocked out.

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Tim McGraw photo by Danny Clinch, courtesy of Curb Records.

#10 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 |  View all »

You can count on seeing country music in certain places on television. It’s a 24/7 proposition on GAC. And the daily talk shows — including “The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien” and “The Late Show With David Letterman” — obviously need a good smattering of country acts to fill out the music slots on their programs.

But country artists did an excellent job in 2009 in grabbing a larger share of acting roles and musical moments on TV and in the movies. Led by Tim McGraw’s part as Sandra Bullock’s husband in The Blind Side, by Taylor Swift’s TV acting debut on “CSI” and by the bevy of country stars who appeared on the platinum soundtrack to Hannah Montana: The Movie, the genre was well represented in the visual media in the last 12 months.

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Photo courtesy of Tracy Byrd.

At least three years after shooting began, the independent movie that gave Lee Ann Womack and Tracy Byrd their first significant acting roles debuts this weekend in a limited number of public theaters.

It premieres Friday , KBMT-TV reported, in Beaumont, Texas, where much of the film was shot. It was featured earlier this year in the Nashville Film Festival and has also screened at the Austin Film Festival.

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