Two of Lewis' children died as well: In 1962, his son Steve Allen drowned in a swimming pool at age three, and in 1973, his eldest son, Jerry Lee Lewis Jr., died in a car accident. He divorced his sixth wife in the summer of 2005, after over 20 years of marriage. In 2006, he scored a hit duets album with Last Man Standing. But when Lewis was just eight years old, his father (who had served time in prison for bootlegging), took out a mortgage on the family farm to buy young Jerry a piano. After I watched the movie about Jerry Lee Lewis and his 13 year old cousin, I was curious about how they were going, if he / she divorced, kids, history. The couple wed in 2012. At 81, it's not that surprising. News of his underage bride broke as Lewis started a tour of the United Kingdom in 1958, creating such an outcry that the tour was quickly cancelled. For most people, this seems like quite an accomplishment for a lifetimes love of music. Radio stations refused to play his songs, and Lewis had a hard time lining up any live performances. Possessed by the Devils music, as he called it, he writhed and howled, raked the keyboard with his right foot and tossed his wavy blond hair until it looked like a fright wig. Lewis' personal life continued to be addled, studded with trauma, and laced with massive amounts of prescription drugs and alcohol. But his subsequent records failed miserably. Internal bleeding from a tear in his stomach lining almost killed him in 1981. At 2 PM on a recent Saturday in the sleepy suburb of La Mirada, California, he sure as hell wasn't acting like it. The outlet said it got a bogus tip. The 87-year-old musician, nicknamed "The Killer," is known for hits such as. The Q&A was a shambolic mess, yet beautiful to witness. The mistake was discovered when Lewis' rep started telling everyone the musician was alive and in Memphis. A new generation music listeners got introduced to Lewis through the 1989 biopic Great Balls of Fire. She also described herself as the adult in the relationship with Lewis. Nr du anvnder vra webbplatser och appar anvnder vi, tillhandahlla vra webbplatser och appar till dig, autentisera anvndare, tillmpa skerhetstgrder och frhindra skrppost och missbruk och, mta din anvndning av vra webbplatser och appar, visa personliga annonser och innehll baserat p intresseprofiler, mta effektiviteten av anpassade annonser och innehll och, utveckla och frbttra vra produkter och tjnster. Now Im older and wiser, and [not] malleable in the hands of others. His first son, Jerry Lee Lewis Jr., died in a car accident in 1973 at 19. The two hadn't spoken for 20 years. The couple wed in 2012. He earned the nickname "The Killer" not for his music or wild life, but because that's what he called everybody else when he couldn't remember their names. In 1957, Lewis became a star with his unique piano-driven sound. Zoning out, he rested his head in his hand. While working at Sun, he and Perkins jammed with Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash. "Do you know what mixed emotions are?" After that fateful trip to England in 1958, Lewis' career fell apart. "Jeff, what the hell is going on?" It was to Judith Brown, who was the ex-wife of his cousin Rusty Brown, Myras younger brother. A pioneering pianist and singer, Lewis is the last surviving member of the Sun Records' Million Dollar Quartet recording sessions, which also included Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, and Carl Perkins. With his pounding piano, his impassioned vocals and his incendiary performing style, Mr. Lewis lived up to his nickname, the Killer. And they forgave him. After a touching performance of a song from Cinderfella (the film he had to quickly run up 64 steps for it put him in the hospital! 2 Rock 'n' roll icon Jerry Lee Lewis is still alive after TMZ reported that he passed away Credit: Getty 2 Today, Myra Williams, 78, reflects on the scandal and her late ex-husband. TMZ regrets the error.". Jerry Lee Lewis, in a photo taken during his infamous trip to London in June 1958, when it became public that he was married to his 13-year-old cousin. The revelations caused a scandal on both sides of the Atlantic. He told USA Today that Lewis is "one of the best American voices ever.". But it was Lewis' rockabilly version, released in 1957, that became a hit on the pop charts and put a piano at the center of rock 'n' roll. He refused. Lewis has never retired and performed on stage well into his 80s. my friend Jeff asked. "Mixed emotions," he explained, "are a man watching his mother-in-law drive off a cliff in his new Lincoln Continental." I figured thats the way it needed to be played., After selling sewing machines door to door, Mr. Lewis tried his luck in Nashville, without success. It was a natural fit. However, the music star recently suffered a stroke. Mr. Lewis cut his tour short and returned to the United States, where he quickly discovered that his career as a rock star was over. Lewis was played by actor Dennis Quaid. He was arrested for driving while intoxicated in Memphis in 1973, and a bleeding ulcer almost cost him his life in 1981. The tour was promptly canceled, and radio stations wouldnt play his records. In his personal life, however, Lewis seemed to be struggling. Instead, his family shared a photo of Kris Kristofferson presenting the induction medal to Lewis. Lewis made it through a just a few tour dates before succumbing to the press and public's censure, and retreated back to the U.S. That doesn't mean that he was ever publicly regretful. Later in his career, despite his success as a country singer, Mr. Lewis sometimes confessed to hankering after the old rock n roll days. He attended Bible school in Texas, where he was reportedly expelled for a bad attitude and misconduct, including playing rock n roll versions of hymns. In 1958, Lewis released High School Confidential, which ultimately became his last hit song before his career in Rock n Roll floundered. I not only survived it, Im better for it, having gone through it. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. On the radio, Lewis listened to such shows as Grand Ole Opry and The Louisiana Hayride. Rock legend Jerry Lee Lewis is still alive, despite reports earlier today to the contrary, Entertainment Weekly reports. Lewis started going out on the road alongside Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry and before long, "The Killer" was the closing act. The adulation came to a screeching halt when the 22-year-old Lewis went to England in June 1958 on tour, and British reporters asked about the pretty young girl at his side. The Lincoln Continental was discontinued in 2002. Repeat visits to hospitals and rehabilitation centers ensued. Making a splash: A deep dive into the live-action, Led Zep, Jerry Lee Lewis win lifetime Grammys, See new book from The Doors drummer John Densmore about working with Janis Joplin, Bob Marley, and more, Rihanna teases 'Lift Me Up,' new single from. Due to sickness, the great Jerry Lee was unable to attend the ceremony. The "Great Balls of Fire" singer's agent informed us on Wednesday that the news was incorrectly reported on the basis of a false anonymous tip. In September 1976, while watching television at his wifes house, Mr. Lewis accidentally shot his bass player, Norman Owens, in the chest with a .357 Magnum handgun after announcing, Im going to shoot that Coca-Cola bottle over there or my name aint Jerry Lee Lewis. Mr. Owens survived and filed a lawsuit. I guess I went through like a trial by fire. 2 on the pop charts, selling more than five million copies in the United States alone. Bragg says that in his old age, Lewis tried to set things right and was able to find redemption. This song did well locally, but it wasnt until one year later that he set the world on fire with Whole Lotta Shakin Goin On. The Great Balls of Fire singer was earlier tonight reported to have passed away at his home in Memphis,. It was an era where the first true kings of music got their start and showed us that music never has to be boring. In 2019, Jerry joined the Nashville recording studio, and many fans hope that Jerry had resurrected his musical career. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Jerry Lee Lewis, the end of a line of early rock greats, is no longer the last man standing, How Jerry Lee Lewis ruined his career when he married 13-year-old cousin, Jerry Lee Lewis wrongly reported dead still alive, rep confirms, Jerry Lee Lewis, Keith Whitley join the Country Hall of Fame. He ended up winning four Grammys, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and two Grammy Hall of Fame Awards. Im stronger and appreciate different things in life that a lot of people take for granted. But his career was nearly derailed over a scandal stemming from his marriage to his 13-year-old cousin, Myra. You know, if I could just find another like Whole Lotta Shakin, he told Mr. Guralnick in a 1971 interview. If I can survive lifes worst tragedies and my own dumb-ass decisions, you can, too.. A heartbreakingly sincere woman approached the stage. Im right here! The idea that the greatest names in rock should come to him struck him as perfectly natural. Jerry Lee Lewis, a Rock 'n' Roll Original, Dies at 87 With his pounding piano, his impassioned vocals and his incendiary performing style, Mr. Lewis lived up to his nickname, the Killer.. At 85, he stays home with his wife Judith, who he married in 2012. My 1988 book and the resulting movie, Great Balls of Fire, were just the beginning. Thats what this book basically is, this is what happened, this is how I handled it and here I am today, she said. Their informal session was later released as the album Million Dollar Quartet.. His deeply worried mother, a Pentecostal Christian, enrolled him in the Southwestern Bible Institute in Waxahachie, Texas. As the press went digging, they realized even more: not only was "Mrs. Lewis" still a child, she was his cousin. She was also only 13 when they married, and Lewis was 22. "To be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame is the highest honor in Country music," Lewis' statement read. Lewis quipped. Lewis replied. Never die. At 14, he was invited to sit in with a band performing at a local Ford dealership, which was celebrating the arrival of the 1950 models. One was named "Hose-A, the other Hose-B." UPDATE: Jerry Lee Lewis, also known as The Killer, is confirmed to be dead now, Friday, Oct. 28, 2022. Frank Ocean remains willfully elusive at his headlining Coachella show, Ahmad Jamal, innovative and influential jazz pianist, dies at 92, Rapper E-40 removed from Kings-Warriors game, cites racial bias, Blackpink and boygenius rule Day 2 at Coachella 2023. Overnight, Mr. Lewis entered into direct competition with Presley. As the crowd surrounding him burst into riotous laughter, his face remained expressionless. Jerry Lewis. In 1958, Lewis married his 13-year-old cousin causing a record boycott but Lewis continued performing and made a comeback. Lewis most recent album is one from 2010 when he released his 40th studio album Mean Old Man. At 2 PM on a recent Saturday in the sleepy suburb of La Mirada, California, he sure as. Jerry Lee Lewis is alive contrary to reports he has passed away at the age of 87. He was supposed to be living the life that he lived.". He has been married a total of seven times and fathered six children, including the two that he and Myra had, Steve Allen Lewis and a daughter named Phoebe. "Yes," I sighed. Hilarity ensued. Nobody had a more creative approach to the music or a more incendiary approach to performing it, Peter Guralnick, the author of the definitive two-volume Presley biography, said in an interview for this obituary. Lewis spends much of his time at his ranch in Nesbit, Mississippi. Once onstage, Lewis cracked mediocre, race-based jokes; again, this was to be expected. Yet another, crying, asked if Lewis would sign a book for her father's 88th birthday; after all, he was "so nice" to the two of them on the set of The Bellboy. Please?" "How can the devil save souls?" In late 1956, Lewis was signed to Sam Philips' Sun Records, the Memphis record label that became legendary and where his labelmates included Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash. A woman reminisced, "I ran into you in 1976 at the Sunset Gower Studios I'll never forget that moment. Another asked, "Why did you call me Veronica Schwartz on your Jerry Lewis Show about forty years ago?" But in order to get the laugh, sometimes we have to be a little insensitive. He continued to record music and perform in theater during that time and mounted a comeback about a decade later. She was talking in words of who he was, what he was like. Jerry Lee Lewis is a piano-playing rock 'n roll pioneer famous for his high energy stage presence and controversial life. Jerry Lee Lewis was born on Sept. 29, 1935, in Ferriday, La., to Elmo Lewis, a carpenter, and Mamie (Herron) Lewis. You were such a gentleman, as you always have been." "May I, please? Sun, which Mr. Lewis would leave in 1963, was reluctant to promote him. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Snorre Mathiesen Family (3) Trade Mark (2) His energetic tenor voice Jerry Lee Lewis is Alive and Well Despite News Reports to the Contrary. One of the most controversial and entertaining people to hit the stage was none other than rock legend, the KillerJerry Lee Lewis. Said screens, however, weren't jumping fast enough for his taste. Jerry Lee Lewis is often tagged The Last Man Standing these days, a reference to his status among the core group of musicians who helped ignite the big bang of rock n roll of the 1950s. This also marked him as being in the music industry for more than 60 years. "But then there are times when he is evangelical." Fans shared tributes when they heard he had died. The rep informed EW on Friday that the singer has since died. The couple divorced in 1970. He was a part of the rock n roll era that set the bar for music as we know it today. In poor health from too many years of too much fun, Mr. Lewis hadn't contributed much musically since country went Hollywood and rock turned tech. Jerry Lee Lewis, the hard-driving rockabilly artist whose pounding boogie-woogie piano and bluesy, country-influenced vocals helped define the sound of rock n roll on hits like Whole Lotta Shakin Goin On and Great Balls of Fire, and whose incendiary performing style expressed the essence of rock rebellion, died on Friday at his home in DeSoto County, Miss., south of Memphis. In a 1987 documentary called I Am What I Am, Lewis described the music he heard there: "Something different about it it was blues and it was kind of rock. Anyone can read what you share. On albums like Last Man Standing (2006), Mean Old Man (2010) and Rock & Roll Time (2014), he performed with the likes of Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, Willie Nelson, Jimmy Page, Neil Young and Kid Rock. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986, becoming one of the first performers to receive this honor. He is a man that devoted his entire life to music. (Couples married young in his Louisiana hometown of Ferriday, and he wed for the first time when he was 16 and had seven wives over the course of his life.). Nevertheless, in the past decade, Jerry has released music sporadically and this can be attributed to . If I didn't have, I'd be a Christian. Lewis, whose hits include "Great Balls of Fire" and "Whole Lot of Shakin' Going On," previously suffered a stroke in 2019, but he has been working toward recovery and in 2020 announced plans to record an album of gospel covers with producer T-Bone Burnett. Jerry Lee Lewis may be a lot of things, but hes not a simple cartoon., Williams again addressed their scandalous relationship in her 2016 memoir, The Spark That Survived. While promoting the book, she took to Instagram to air some of the sordid details. Best Known For: Jerry Lee Lewis is a piano-playing rock 'n roll pioneer famous for his high energy stage presence and controversial life. "Jerry sat in judgment of himself continuously," she said, "because he could never get away from the raising and the teaching that he had. Prescription drugs and alcohol songs, and laced with massive amounts of prescription and... His career in rock n Roll floundered be expected through it for it, better. Lifetime Achievement Award and two Grammy Hall of Fame in 1986, becoming one the. Pounding piano, his impassioned vocals and his incendiary performing style, Mr. Lewis would leave in 1963 was... The United States alone Great Jerry Lee Lewis Jr., died in a 1971 interview having gone through it when. 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