Brown played electric bass, and Lewis played piano and sang. He was in the first class inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in 1986, along with Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly, the Everly Brothers, Little Richard, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, Fats Domino, and James Brown. While fellow musicians from across the world, such as Elton John and Ringo Starr, share their condolences, others are remembering the incredible life Lewis lived. Though he had gotten married again before his divorce was final, it also came out that his new wife was also his third cousin a 13-year-old named Myra Gale Brown. (She filed for divorce in 1970, citing allegations of abuse and adultery.). Lewis had told everyone that Brown was his wife but failed to mention her actual age, instead, telling them she was 15. Myra Brown, first cousin once removed and third wife of American rock and roll star, Jerry Lee Lewis, in London at the beginning of Lewis's planned British tour, 26th May 1958. Maybe during what Miles called the wilderness years, Lewis played with this much ferocity on God knows how many nights. He followed her in his car and forced her off the road. The press also learned that Myra was Jerry Lees cousin. Took your son away from you., In 1970, Myra filed for divorce on the grounds of adultery and abuse. In 2016 she published her memoir, The Spark That Survived. But Lewis had a storied private life, and his career took a nosedive in the late 1950s, when he married Myra Gale Brown. Jerrys fame and money went down to almost nothing, it was very turbulent for ten years, but it was the happiest years of our marriage. Those who would have him saw somebody matchless. "They were looking for a place to stick the knife into rock & roll. Reporters discovered that the young girl traveling with him, Myra Gale Brown, was his 13-year-old bride and his cousin and that Mr. Lewis had still been married to his second wife when he . Brown, 62, is no stranger to the family as she was previously married to the star's cousin Rusty. After a long buildup, when he gets to his final declarations of You know what I want/You know what I got to have, his voice turns into a taunting laugh that is prurient and menacing. It wasnt anybodys businessOK, it was somebodys business, but it wasnt everybodys business. Behind the Graceland Gates at Lisa Marie's Memorial: We Watched Her Go Through Her Struggles, Two days after the tour started, Lewis called it off. They might go back to their fucked-up-ness after those moments, and though they perhaps transcend themselves by what they create for us, they also might not overcome the pain or anger or depression that gave them something to overcome in the first place. I was the one who let the big ol' cat out of the bag. They were looking for a place to stick the knife into rock & roll. a little baby sittin' in a high chair. [5] The scandal over the marriage destroyed Lewis' promising rock and roll career,[8] although he subsequently found success in country music. Cramer didnt accuse the performer of murder, but he argued persuasively that the matter merited a more careful inquiry. People didn't know it at the time that they wed, but although she was listed as a 20-year-old, legally Brown was actually only 13 (via Biography). Surprisingly, the Country Music Hall of Fame which has been around since 1961 took a long time to induct him: He wasnt admitted until October 2022, the month of his death. I could so easily have said, Im J.W. Despite re-marrying Brown, this time in a legal ceremony during which he was not already married, and moving in with her parents afterward, the public remained firmly anti-Lewis. In 1981, Lewis entered a Memphis hospital in enfeebled shape the result of years of steady consumption of liquor and drugs. He kept playing shows, from 1956 to 2020. Some artists can only be the person they dreamed of being in those moments when they are onstage or before a camera or singing a song or writing a page. Im a rompin, stompin, piano-playin sonofabitch. "Judith, his seventh wife, was by his side when he passed away at his home in DeSoto County, Mississippi, south of Memphis," the statement read, per BBC. Later, he pulled the new car up to Gracelands gates and hit the gates head on. After just a few shows, Lewis' tour was cancelled, with the British press calling him a 'cradle robber' and a 'baby snatcher'. Myra Lewis Williams has no hard feelings over the relationship and still blames the press for turning it into something wicked. Hes no longer part of my life. She joined The Times in 2010 as a MetPro trainee and has reported from homicide scenes, flooded canyons, red carpet premieres and award shows. The trouble was, it couldnt be heard: It wasnt available in the U.S. until a 1994 release by Rhino. Woody Harrelson Spreads Anti-Vax Conspiracies During SNL Monologue There was trouble from the start of Shawns marriage to the rock & roll legend, wrote Cramer. They called it the devils music. We dont have the promise of the next breath. You indeed know what he wants, and it isnt money. J By then Lewis was yelling, threatening the police. Learn How rich is She in this year and how She spends money? Maybe that was unintentional retribution on her part. Newsweek attempted to reach Williams for comment. I find living is nice and calm this way.. Because that was the truth! We took a lot of hits for the music itself. Her Instagram account has been dormant since early 2016. The other chance that came his way was a thoroughly unlikely one. Despite the end of their marriage, the pair remained close as they co-parented Phoebe. I guess I went through like a trial by fire. Elvis never talked about the incident. He kept recording, releasing more than 40 albums from 1958 to 2014. In 1977 he said, Look, weve only got one life to live. Jerry Lee Lewis: 'I worry about. She became a licensed broker in 1984, and is a recipient of the Million Dollar Life Time Award 2003. The officers asked Presley what he wanted them to do. Williams, 78, said in 2016 that shes been right here the whole time but she apparently no longer had a relationship with her notorious ex-husband after 2015. Lock him up, said Elvis. The marriage lasted a year and a half. The Rolls was totaled, so he went out and bought a new white Lincoln Continental. Around the same time, Elvis Presley was involved with Priscilla Beaulieu, who was 14 when she met him. She is most popular for her union with rock 'n' move performer Jerry Lee Lewis who is her subsequent cousin. American actor Dennis Quaid as Jerry Lee Lewis and Winona Ryder as his underage wife Myra Gale Brown in the film 'Great Balls of Fire!', a biopic of. He said to their seven-year-old daughter, Phoebe, who was witnessing all this, Look, Phoebe, your mamas gone crazy. {RP18+MovieBasedGreat Balls Of Fire} Joined February 2012. To the mainstream educators, it was evil and wicked. Listen to Mamamia's daily entertainment podcast, The Spill. It turned out that she was a first-cousin once-removed and - shockingly - just 13 years old. About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features NFL Sunday Ticket Press Copyright . This is the book I wanted to write then. In 1958, when Elvis Presley was drafted into the military, Lewis was perfectly poised to become rocks biggest star. Jerry Lee held a defiant press conference at the London airport, boasting about his houses and cars and accusing the British of being just plain jealous, and the Lewises returned home to Memphis. Jerry Lee Lewis wasnt just complicated; he was fucked up. What can you do but accept it? The book was adapted into the 1989 film Great Balls of Fire!, starring Dennis Quaid and Winona Ryder. Shes hittin herself in the face., Another night, when shed flushed his pills down the toilet for fear hed kill himself, he went into a rage and bashed her to the floor. Elvis Presley, the biggest rock star in the world, was dating a 14-year-old Priscilla Beaulieu, who would later become his wife. Hulton Arcive / Getty Images Jerry Lee Lewis og Myra Gale Brown kort efter deres bryllup i 1957. He tried marrying Myra a second time to make things right in the publics eye, and he wrote an open letter in Billboard. In her 1982 book about her marriage to Lewis, Great Balls of Fire, she wrote about her husband tormenting her, saying to her, God punished you. In turn, he accused her of being the unfaithful one. It was crude and rude and ridiculous what it was doing to the teenagers. Trump Melts Down Over Murdoch Admitting Fox Lied About Election Fraud In May 1958 at the peak of a career some thought could overtake Presleys he left for a 37-date tour of the U.K. According to Rick Bragg in Jerry Lee: His Own Story, Owens handed it over to the singer and said, Careful. Though Lewis has been married five other times, it seems that Myra remained close to his heart. Remember, gossip is not gospel," Lewis wrote on Instagram in 2015. All Rights reserved. At one of the lowest points of his career, Jerry Lee Lewis performed some of the most astonishing music of his life. Priscilla Presley Disputes Invalid Amendment to Lisa Maries Trust It was a perfect stormit couldnt have happened at a worse time, at a worse place. When Lewis didnt show for his hearing the next day, a Memphis judge ordered him arrested again, but changed his mind when he learned the piano player was in the hospital with a peptic ulcer. He married a 13-year-old, Myra Gale Brown, who later said she was subject to every type of physical and mental abuse imaginable. He shot his bass player, was a serial adulterer, abused drugs and alcohol and several other of his seven wives and thats just a partial list of transgressions. That was a fairly romantic conception, but it raised another, equally troubling question: Did Lewis fans and chroniclers really care much about whether he married a 13-year-old, whether he brutalized his wives, or, in fact, whether he played a part in Shawn Stephens death? When she tried to ward him off, he grabbed her hands and beat her black and blue with her own fists. Myra Lewis Williams At Lees McRae WJHL 58K views 5 years ago Hank Williams. Not only were they criticizing her age, they were also pointing out the fact that Jerry Lee Lewis had once again married before his divorce was finalized. How she spends money and sang nice and calm this way.. Because that was the truth in 1977 said! 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