In 1929, Charles Chaplin, a renowned English actor, director and composer of the silent film era, married his 13 year old cousin Lita Grey. At the time, Chaplin was 36 years old. Grey’s age was kept a secret prior to the marriage and was later revealed in the annulment documents.
The marriage was annulled shortly after due to her age, as the legal age of consent in California was 16 at the time.
Grey later alleged that Chaplin had forced her into marriage and then begun an affair with an actress while they were still legally married. Chaplin had to pay a hefty alimony settlement as a result of the annulment.
He expressed regret over the marriage in his later years and called it the worst mistake of his life.
In the years since, the case has been used as an example of how age of consent laws have been used to defend the interests of powerful men, such as Chaplin, while failing to protect vulnerable women, such as Grey.
Is Jerry Lee Lewis still married to his 13-year-old cousin?
No, Jerry Lee Lewis is not still married to his 13-year-old cousin. He married his cousin Myra Gale Brown in 1957 when she was 13 years old, which caused a massive scandal at the time. However, this marriage only lasted until 1970, when they divorced and he remarried another woman, Jaren Elizabeth Gunn Pate.
The marriage to his cousin was seen as highly controversial due to the age difference, and although he claimed it was fully consensual on her part, the age gap caused many to condemn the marriage and label it as inappropriate.
Lewis’s own religion, the Church of Christ, refused to acknowledge his marriage, calling it sinful. Since their divorce in 1970, Jerry Lee Lewis has gone on to marry two more times and is now currently married to his seventh wife, Judith Brown, who he married in 2012.
How long did Jerry Lee Lewis and Myra stay married?
Jerry Lee Lewis and Myra were married for 13 years. They married on December 12, 1957 and stayed together until their divorce was finalized on March 12, 1970. During their union, they had two children together.
They had a tumultuous marriage filled with rumors of their infidelities and eventual scandal. In 1958, it was uncovered that Myra was only 13 years old at the time of their marriage, while Jerry Lee was 22, causing a huge public outcry.
This scandalous relationship ended when they officially divorced in March of 1970 but, until then, they remained husband and wife for 13 years.
What happened to Jerry Lee Lewis after he married his cousin?
After Jerry Lee Lewis married his 13-year-old cousin, Myra Gale Brown, in December 1957, his career in the United States took a massive hit. Despite having a number of hits including Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On and Great Balls of Fire, his career nosedived within the US.
Because of the bad publicity that the marriage caused, Lewis was blacklisted in American entertainment, finding it hard to be booked for performances, radio and television appearances, and engagements.
Meanwhile, Myra filed for divorce in February 1959, citing her husband’s “cruelty” as the reason.
Following the divorce, Lewis was officially ostracized from the music industry in America, which resulted in him having to focus his attention on success in other countries such as Europe, the UK and Australia.
He wasn’t able to have another hit in the States until 1968 with the single What Made Milwaukee Famous.
Due to the bans and negative publicity he faced throughout the years, Lewis’ career never fully recovered from the scandal. Despite this, he rose back to prominence in 1976, becoming the recipient of several commendations and awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Recording Academy in 2009.
Throughout his life, Jerry Lee Lewis never fully shook off the controversy of his marriage to Myra; however, it eventually became more of a footnote as his successful career in music was lauded and eventually overshadowed it.
Why did Myra and Jerry divorce?
Myra and Jerry divorced for many reasons. Over the course of their marriage, the couple had grown distant, and communication between them had deteriorated. It became increasingly difficult for them to find common ground when talking or resolving disagreements.
Rather than trying to make the marriage work, they opted to part ways.
The couple had also drifted apart emotionally and physically. They felt emotionally disconnected from each other, and their physical relationship had become virtually non-existent. Without any emotional or physical intimacy, their relationship lacked the spark and connection that it had once had.
Myra and Jerry had different goals for the future as well. Myra wanted to settle down and start a family, while Jerry was more focused on his career. He wasn’t ready to commit to matrimony and fatherhood, while Myra was.
With these differences in their future plans, Myra and Jerry found that they were drifting apart.
In addition, Myra and Jerry had an unhealthy power dynamic in their marriage. Jerry had a tendency to make all the decisions in the relationship and would often take on the role of a dictator. This lack of compromise and communication ended up creating an environment of tension and unhappiness, which ultimately caused the couple to divorce.
Who was Jerry Lee Lewis last wife?
Jerry Lee Lewis’ last wife was Judith Brown. They were married on July 31, 2012, in Natchez, Mississippi, just days before Lewis’ 77th birthday. Brown is the cousin of Myra Lewis, Jerry Lee’s first wife, who passed away in 1982.
Brown is a longtime friend of Lewis’ and had helped him raise his children Myra and Phoebe, who were born during Lewis’ first marriage. Before their marriage, the couple was together for more than 20 years.
The couple appeared on the Oprah Winfrey show in 2010 to discuss their relationship, and Lewis dedicated a song to Brown on his 80th birthday in 2015.
Was Myra Lewis ever found?
No, Myra Lewis has never been found. Myra Lewis was an African American girl from Mississippi who went missing on March 1, 2014. She was last seen near her home on Pleasant Circle outside of Lexington, Mississippi, and was three years old at the time of her disappearance.
Despite extensive search efforts, Myra has yet to be found.
Myra’s father and stepmother, who were both in the house at the time of her disappearance, have been investigated by the police and found to have no connection to the case. The police have also interviewed multiple persons of interest, searched a local lake and drained a nearby pond, but still have not been able to locate her.
In the years since Myra’s disappearance, her family has worked tirelessly to bring awareness to the case and keep Myra’s memory alive. A reward of over $100,000 has been offered for any information which leads to her discovery, and billboards featuring her photograph have been placed around the Lexington area.
Although the case has since gone cold, Myra’s family continues to hold out hope that she will eventually be found.
How many wives did Jerry Lewis have?
Jerry Lewis had two wives during his lifetime. He was first married to Patti Palmer from 1944 to 1980. They had six children together and remained very close until his death in 2017. He then married SanDee Pitnick in 1983.
They remained married until his death in 2017.
How old is Myra Gale now?
Myra Gale’s age is currently unknown, as her date of birth is not publicly available.
What celebrities married their relatives?
Several celebrities have married relatives, including actor Sly Stallone, who married his half-sister, Jennifer Flavin, in 1997, and actress Angelina Jolie, who married her brother-in-law, Brad Pitt, in 2000.
Other celebrities who have married relatives include Dwayne Johnson and his cousin, Dany Garcia; Vivica A. Fox and her cousin, Christopher Harvest; and Kim Kardashian West, who married second cousin, Damon Thomas.
Additionally, athletes such as Shaquille O’Neal and tennis player Venus Williams have married their distant cousins.
Who married their cousin in the Bible?
In the Bible, several prominent figures married their cousins. The most well-known example is that of Abraham and Sarah. Sarah, his half-sister, was actually Abraham’s cousin, as they shared a father, but not a mother.
This was not a rare occurrence in that time period as it was common for people to marry within their family. Other people in the Bible who married their cousins include Esau and his wife, Jacob and his two wives Rachel and Leah (who were sisters sharing the same father, but different mothers,) and Moses who married his cousin Zipporah.
The book of Ruth also contains an account of a woman who married her cousin.
