Tammy Faye Bakker Messner, the former wife of disgraced televangelist Jim Bakker, died on Friday of colon cancer at sixty-five years of age. During their heyday, we Minnesotans were acutely embarrassed by having to admit that the bizarre, mascara-smeared woman was one of us. It is rare that a public figure can start as the object of ridicule and scorn and end up as the beneficiary of public sympathy, but Tammy Faye Messner and her public fight with cancer was that exception.

Fox News Report On Tammy Faye Bakker Messner

CNN’s Larry King Interviews Tammy Faye Messner

This interview as conducted on Wednesday and was aired Thursday, the day before she died:

Another Tammy Faye Messner Interview

This interview was conducted about a year ago:

The Eyes Of Tammy Faye

This is an excerpt from the documentary, The Eyes Of Tammy Faye:

Frank Zappa – Jesus Thinks You’re A Jerk

This Frank Zappa song from the 80s ridicules the televangelism of the era in general and PTL and the Bakkers in particular: