Country music radio show in Nashville, Tenn., U.S. Founded in 1925 by George Dewey Hay, the show was originally known as the WSM Barn Dance; it acquired its lasting name in 1926. Its music developed from Dave Macon's ballads of rural labourers in the 1920s, through the string bands, cowboy music, and western swing of the 1930s, and later back to the traditional music characterized by the career of Roy Acuff.
After World War II, the honky-tonk style of Ernest Tubb and later Hank Williams, the bluegrass of Bill Monroe, and the singing of Eddy Arnold (b. 1918) and Kitty Wells all became Opry staples, as did comedy routines, notably those by Minnie Pearl (1912–96). In 1941 the Opry became a live stage show. In 1974 it moved to the Opryland amusement park and entertainment centre. The Opry initiated and promoted the creation of Nashville as the centre of country music.
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