ROANOKE TIMES 

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, October 14, 1993                   TAG: 9310140204
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B-2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: HUEYTOWN, ALA.                                LENGTH: Medium

WIDOW OF DAVEY ALLISON DATING COUNTRY MUSIC STAR

The widow of NASCAR star Davey Allison, killed in a July helicopter crash, confirmed she is dating country singer Joe Diffie, who sang at Allison's funeral.

But Liz Allison denied being the reason Diffie is divorcing his wife, Debbie, after five years of marriage.

"Joe and I have no plans to be married. He's a special person. I respect him, but it's way too early to say if I love him," Allison told The Birmingham News in a story published Wednesday. "When you're still grieving, it's hard to have an open mind about a relationship."

Hueytown, Allison's hometown, and the auto-racing fraternity have been abuzz in recent weeks over the relationship between Liz Allison and Diffie. Someone put up a hand-lettered sign last Friday reading "Hueytown - Home of Joe Diffie - Built by Davey Allison."

Liz Allison, in a Tuesday interview with The News, confirmed that she and Diffie "are seeing each other." But she added that "99 percent of the rumors going around are false."

Neither Diffie nor his publicist returned phone calls seeking comment.

Davey Allison's helicopter crashed at Talladega Superspeedway on July 12, and he died from severe head injuries the next day. Diffie sang his hit "Ships That Don't Come In" at Allison's graveside service. The tune was Allison's favorite.

It was announced Sept. 25 that Diffie, whose single "Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox if I Die" is No. 1 on country charts this week, was divorcing his wife, with whom he has two boys.

Liz Allison, a native South Carolinian who met Davey Allison in 1988 and married him in 1989 after the breakup of his first marriage, said she is not responsible for the end of Diffie's marriage.

"They have split up several times before," she said. "They have filed for divorce before."

Liz Allison said she met Diffie twice before her husband's death. The last was in early July, when she and Allison attended a Diffie concert in Daytona Beach, Fla.

She said that after Allison's death, Diffie "started calling to check on me and to check on the kids. We got to be friends."

Keywords:
AUTO RACING 


 by CNB