When Myra Williams looks back on her life her marriage to her cousin, singer Jerry Lee Lewis, in 1957 when she was just 13 years old, their good and bad times together, the two children they. (She filed for divorce in 1970, citing allegations of abuse and adultery.). "They were looking for a place to stick the knife into rock & roll. Browns daughter'," Brown later said when reflecting on the day. Myra Lewis Williams (ne Gale Brown, July 11, 1944) is an American author, best known for her controversial marriage at the age of 13 to rock and roll musician Jerry Lee Lewis, who is her first cousin once removed and was 22 at the time. In 1977 he said, Look, weve only got one life to live. There were so many stories told that were not necessarily the truth, or else it was the truth wearing a mask. In 1957 Lewis recorded two titanic rock & roll hits, Whole Lot of Shakin Going On and Great Balls of Fire. At the session for the latter, Lewis told Sam Phillips who owned and operated Memphis Sun Records, where Lewis was recording that the music he was playing, worldly music rock & roll, meant he was broken off from God. And . It wasnt anybodys businessOK, it was somebodys business, but it wasnt everybodys business. Fellow singer, Kris Kristofferson, who was also in the UK at the time,remembered the way Lewis was treated. However, it was discovered that she was only 13, and that they had been married for five months. He re-married soon after, also in 1953. Apparently it wasn't uncommon at the time. Brown was Lewis' first cousin once-removed. CREATIVE. She was controversial in the news due to her marriage to Jerry Lewis. Elvis had been drafted into the military, and Lewis was poised to take his place as rocks biggest name. They told him he had a 50 percent chance of survival. The "Great Balls of Fire" rocker's career took a hit following his marriage to Myra Gale Brown, his first cousin once removed and the daughter of Lewis' bassist. A neighbor found Steven facedown in the Lewises swimming pool. Trending "He told her, in his final days, that he welcomed the hereafter,and that he was not afraid.". The British press reacted with outrage. You cant go through a life like that and come out and be OK. Learn How rich is She in this year and how She spends money? In turn, he accused her of being the unfaithful one. Trump Melts Down Over Murdoch Admitting Fox Lied About Election Fraud Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. "I was the one who let the big ol' cat out of the bag," she told Cuepoint. Now a news-agency reporter, Ray Berry, raised questions about Jerry's third wife, Myra Gale Brown. [5] She married her third husband, Richard Williams, in 1984, and joined his Century 21 Real Estate office. Still, somehow, Jerry Lee got second chances, albeit in unexpected ways. Those who would have him saw somebody matchless. Lewis was shunned . 8 Myra Gale Brown Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images CREATIVE Collections Project #ShowUs Creative Insights Custom Content EDITORIAL VIDEO BBC Motion Gallery NBC News Archives MUSIC BLOG BROWSE PRICING VisualGPS INSIGHTS BOARDS CART SIGN IN Images Images Creative Editorial Video Creative Editorial FILTERS CREATIVE EDITORIAL VIDEO They were looking for a place to stick the knife into rock & roll. Myra was only 13 when she married Jerry Lewis. It was crude and rude and ridiculous what it was doing to the teenagers. When towing a car with his Jeep, the hitch came loose, causing the Jeep to flip, breaking Jr.s neck. But they didnt, and I didnt, and the rest is history, I guess.". Priscilla lived with his grandmother for, what, seven or eight years? Little did they know what it was going to turn into.. However, the validity of the marriage was questionable, as he wed Jane Mitchum 23 days before his divorce from Barton was finalised. [5] The scandal over the marriage destroyed Lewis' promising rock and roll career,[8] although he subsequently found success in country music. Brown. He didn't understand that at the very least, marrying someone when you're already married is illegal? A mean sonofabitch. 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. Arriving for a tour of England, a journalist asked her who she was when the couple arrived to London's Heathrow Airport. Myra Gale Brown : I don't know how to be a wife. Im here to see Elvis, he announced. The album of the same name proved not only among his best, but also among the best country albums of the period. But they didnt, and I didnt, and the rest is history, I guess. Lewis and Brown fell in love. Maybe during what Miles called the wilderness years, Lewis played with this much ferocity on God knows how many nights. Im still the 13-year-old child bride. 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. He was a coward, Jerry Lee told Bragg He hurt me. If Myra doesnt go, he told them, Im not going.. I think this book will warm your heart, tickle your funny bone, and touch your soul. His bride, Myra Gale Brown, was also thrust into the spotlight, and years later discussed how she "never lost the first name '13-year-old-child-bride-Myra.'". What Happened To Her? Before Kurt and Courtney, Sid and Nancy, or John and Yoko, there was Jerry Lee Lewis and his thirteen-year-old bride, Myra Gale Brown. Indeed, it was. And how old is Myra? he asked Lewis. After my divorce, she told the L.A. Times in 1989, I had to go to a psychiatrist because I thought Ive got to have lost it. He said to their seven-year-old daughter, Phoebe, who was witnessing all this, Look, Phoebe, your mamas gone crazy. Although there was some controversy surrounding their involvement because Lewis and Mitchum's divorce was not yet finalised, it was mostly scrutinised given Brown's young age. It was something that marked Jerry for life. Lewis had been married twice before. What kind of redneck hell was he raised in that it was apparently fine, in his mind, to marry a thirteen year old child? Her second book chronicled her experiences becoming a mother at age 14 and then again at 17 and losing their son Steve by accidental drowning in 1962. She refused and soon grabbed her housecoat and got in her car, but Jerry was right after her, throwing rocks as she drove away. 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. He tried marrying Myra a second time to make things right in the publics eye, and he wrote an open letter in Billboard. Nardine Saad covers breaking entertainment news, trending culture topics, celebrities and their kin for the Los Angeles Times. 1954). 108 Following. Myra Gale Brown (known today as Myra Lewis William) is an American author. His third marriage was to his 13-year-old cousin, Myra Gale Brown, which lasted from 1958 to 1970. On Nov. 23, 1976, Lewis had another gun with him, at 3 a.m., as he was driving down Elvis Presley Boulevard in Memphis, on his way to Graceland. My little brother was born because I begged my parents for a baby at ten years old.. The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time Winona Ryder: Myra Gale Brown Showing all 12 items Jump to: Photos (8) Quotes (4) Photos Quotes Myra Gale Brown : All I ever wanted was a little pink house with a blue door. Seemed like I was always on my way to the graveyard, Jerry Lee said. The coroner ruled that her death was an accident, writes Bragg. Though Lewis has been married five other times, it seems that Myra remained close to his heart. However, things became strained between the pair when Lewis began a relationship with his final wife, Judith Brown. Lewis who died Oct. 28 at his home in DeSoto County, Mississippi did terrible things, repeatedly, across the decades. He thought the age was mature enough to put to rest any concerns the reporter might have, but it did not. Longtime Gwinnett resident Myra Lewis Williams has penned a new memoir sharing her life story, including her teenage marriage with her second cousin rock n' roll star . After their divorce in 1970, Williams said she had been "subject to every type of physical and mental abuse imaginable," but the two seemingly made peace later. Jerry Lee Lewis knew how to inhabit that role. He kept marrying: In 1984, the year after Shawn Stephens death, he wed Kerrie McCarver; the couple divorced in 2005. The radio stations that didnt play it hated it. Katie Serena is a New York City-based writer and a staff writer at All That's Interesting. As of Friday afternoon, Williams had not released a public statement about Lewis death. The fallout began immediately after Lewis told the reporters that his wife was 15. Today the world remembers Jerry Lee Lewis as one of the greatest rock 'n' roll artists of all time. Lewis went on to marry four more times. Before Jerry Lee Lewis and Myra Gale Brown divorced in 1970, the couple had two children, one of whom died as a child and the other who manages his career today. But it didnt delve deep enough into exploring Lewis indomitable character. Lewis lived out rock & rolls sexual and impulsive audacity in extreme fashion. He said, If Myra doesnt go, Im not going. Everyone underestimated me being aware and possibly knowing what to do. Judith was married to Brown's brother, Rusty, who was just a small child when Brown and Lewis tied the knot. I'm only 13. Youre the only one I know as evil as he is, Good said. Back at home, he told Myra, If you ever leave me, Ill throw acid in your face, and then kissed her. At 15, Myra was younger than Britains age of consent. Into a brand, even: the Killer. His England tour was canceled and by the time he returned to the United States, the press had learned Williams was the daughter of Lewis' cousin and bass player, J.W. Hulton Arcive / Getty Images Jerry Lee Lewis og Myra Gale Brown kort efter deres bryllup i 1957. Myra had him by her side one moment, then he wasnt there. He told his guards to call the police. The 100 Best Albums of 2022. V roce 1949 se rodina pesthovala do Memphisu v Tennessee, kdy J.W. But a great sonofabitch. That Doesnt Justify What He Did Offstage, Charlie Watts Is a Jazz Drummer: The Lost Rolling Stone Interview. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. I find living is nice and calm this way.. Myra Gale Brown was born on July 11, 1944, in Vicksburg, Mississippi, the daughter of Lois (ne Neal) and J.W. In September 1976, Lewis was celebrating his 41st birthday at his home when Butch Owens, his bass player, showed up with a friend. Presley was watching it all on closed-circuit television upstairs. He went immediately from being a guy who made $10,000 a night to a guy who didnt make $100 a night.. We were like a little camp that had been attacked by the enemy, and we held strong to each other and said, regardless of what they do, were going to keep fighting. The two of them were playful and affectionate during the shootjoking and giggling, poking and swatting each other, Jerry Lee even sneaking a kiss at one pointbut when the photos came back, the editors fell in love with a shot of him sitting alone at his childhood piano, and the piece was recast as a straight profile. She is most popular for her union with rock 'n' move performer Jerry Lee Lewis who is her subsequent cousin. "So when a reporter asked me, 'Who are you?' We kept thinking every year, every six months, that it was going to go away, theyre going to stop talking about it, and it just didnt happen. Everything changed. He kept playing shows, from 1956 to 2020. Owens survived and successfully sued Jerry Lee for $50,000. He and Myra flew back to the United States, where he expected more sympathetic treatment. Everything just came together and a major explosion happened.. The marriage lasted a year and a half. a little baby sittin' in a high chair. He headed out to a nightclub, then called home at 3 a.m. Myra said she pulled a pistol from a nightstand and put it to her head and told Jerry Lee what she was prepared to do. It was to Judith Brown, who was the ex-wife of his cousin Rusty Brown, Myras younger brother. This is a video of Jerry . Lewis was 22 and Williams was 13, and the press came down hard on him when it was revealed that she was also his second cousin and that Lewis was still married to his second wife, Jane Mitchum, when they wed. 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). They did have one tiff. Jerry Lee Lewis married his second cousin Myra Gale Brown when she was just 13. Myra Gale Brown var bare 13 og troede stadig p julemanden, da hun blev gift med Jerry Lee Lewis. I didnt question God., He was supposed to travel to England in a few days his first trip there since the country had shamed him. 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