Don Cornelius
| Don Cornelius | |
|---|---|
 Don Cornelius at the 40th anniversary event for Soul Train. |
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| Born | Donald Cortez Cornelius September 27, 1936 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | February 1, 2012 (aged 75) Sherman Oaks, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Television host/Producer |
| Years active | 1966–2010 |
| Known for | Creator of Soul Train |
| Spouse | Delores Harrison (? - ?) Viktoria Chapman (also known as Victoria Avila-Cornelius; 13 December 2001 - ?) (divorced) |
| Children | Anthony and Raymond (from first marriage) |
Donald Cortez "Don" Cornelius (September 27, 1936 – February 1, 2012) was an American television show host and producer who was best known as the creator of the nationally syndicated dance/music franchise Soul Train, which he hosted from 1971 to 1993. Cornelius sold the show to MadVision Entertainment in 2008.
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[edit] Career
Cornelius was born in Chicago's South Side on September 27, 1936,[1] and raised in the Bronzeville neighborhood. Following his graduation from DuSable High School in 1954, he joined the United States Marine Corps and served 18 months in Korea. He worked at various jobs following his stint in the military, including selling tires, automobiles and insurance and as an officer with the Chicago Police Department.[2] He quit his day job to take a three-month broadcasting course in 1966 despite being married with two sons and only US $400 in his bank account.[1] In 1966, he landed a job as an announcer, news reporter and disc jockey on Chicago radio station WVON.
Prior to moving the show to Los Angeles where it went into national syndication, Cornelius began SOUL TRAIN as a local show on WCIU-TV in Chicago in the mid 1960s.[3][4][5]
Originally a journalist inspired by the civil rights movement, Cornelius recognized that in the late 1960s there was no television venue in the United States for soul music, and introduced many African-American musicians to a larger audience as a result of their appearances on Soul Train, a program that was both influential among African-Americans and popular with a wider audience.[6] As writer, producer, and host of Soul Train, Cornelius was instrumental in offering wider exposure to black musicians such as James Brown, Aretha Franklin, and Michael Jackson, as well as creating opportunities for talented dancers that would presage subsequent television dance programs.[7] Cornelius said "We had a show that kids gravitated to," and Spike Lee described the program as an "urban music time capsule."[7]
Besides his smooth and deep voice, Cornelius was best known for the catchphrase that he used to close the show: "... and you can bet your last money, it's all gonna be a stone gas, honey! I'm Don Cornelius, and as always in parting, we wish you love, peace and soul!" After Cornelius's departure, it was shortened to "...and as always, we wish you love, peace and soul!" and was used through the most recent new episodes in 2006. Another introductory phrase he often used was: "We got another sound comin' out of Philly that's a sure 'nough dilly".
He had a small number of film roles, most notably as record producer Moe Fuzz in 1988's Tapeheads.
The 2008 Soul Train Music Awards ceremony was not held due to the WGA strike and the end of Tribune Entertainment complicating the process of finding a new distributor to air the ceremony and line up the stations to air it. The awards show was moved in 2009 to Viacom's Centric cable channel (formerly BET J), which now airs Soul Train in reruns.
Cornelius last appeared at the 2009 BET Awards to present The O'Jays with the 2009 BET Lifetime Achievement Award.
[edit] Arrest
On October 17, 2008, Cornelius was arrested at his Los Angeles home on Mulholland Drive on a felony domestic violence charge.[8] He was released on bail. Cornelius appeared in court on November 14, 2008 and was charged with spousal abuse and dissuading a witness from filing a police report. Cornelius appeared in court again on December 4, 2008, and pleaded not guilty to spousal abuse and was banned from going anywhere near his estranged wife, Russian model Victoria Avila-Cornelius (Viktoria Chapman), who had filed two restraining orders against him. On March 19, 2009 he changed his plea to no contest and was placed on 36 months probation.[9]
[edit] Death
Officers responding to a report of a shooting found Cornelius at his Mulholland Drive home about 4 a.m. on February 1, 2012, police said. Cornelius is reported to have suffered a self-inflicted gunshot to the head. He was pronounced dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, said Los Angeles County Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter.[1][10] Shemar Moore, one of the former hosts of Soul Train, said prior to his former boss's death, Cornelius might have suffered from dementia: "I don't know what his health was like. I had heard rumors that it was early [onset] dementia, Alzheimer's, things like that." Moore added, "I'd heard that he was sick."[11]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c McKinley Jr., James C. (February 1, 2012). "Don Cornelius, ‘Soul Train’ Creator, Is Dead". The New York Times.
- ^ O'Donnell, Maureen. "'Soul Train' creator, South Side native Cornelius dead in suicide," Chicago Sun-Times, Thursday, February 2, 2012.
- ^ Press, Associated (1936-09-27). "'Soul Train' host Don Cornelius dead of suicide | wwltv.com New Orleans". Wwltv.com. http://www.wwltv.com/news/138478844.html. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
- ^ "Full Text of HR0190". Illinois General Assembly. 2003. http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?GAID=3&SessionID=3&GA=93&DocTypeID=HR&DocNum=190&LegID=6529&SpecSess=&Session=. Retrieved 2008-10-23.
- ^ "WVON History". WVON.com. Midway Broadcasting Company. 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-04-30. http://web.archive.org/web/20080430090433/http://www.wvon.com/aboutus/history.php. Retrieved 2008-10-23.
- ^ 'Soul Train: The Hippest Trip in America' New York Daily News Feb. 5, 2010
- ^ a b After 38 Years, ‘Soul Train’ Gets New Owner, The New York Times, June 17, 2008
- ^ "Viktoria Chapman Cornelius | 'Soul Train' creator arrested - Los Angeles Times". Articles.latimes.com. 2008-10-19. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/oct/19/local/me-briefs19.S2. Retrieved 2012-02-02.
- ^ Don Pleads No Contest to Conducting Pain Train TMZ, March 19, 2009
- ^ Kot, Greg; Metz, Nina (2012), Arts & Entertainment - Music, "'Soul Train' creator Don Cornelius found dead", Chicago Tribune, http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/music/, retrieved 2/1/2012
- ^ http://www.etonline.com/news/118642_Shemar_Moore_Don_Cornelius_May_Have_Had_Dementia/index.html
[edit] External links
- Cornelius memorial at the Soul Train website
- Don Cornelius at the Internet Movie Database
- "Factbox: Key facts about Don Cornelius and 'Soul Train,'" Reuters, Wednesday, February 1, 2012.
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- 1936 births
- 2012 deaths
- African American police officers
- African American television personalities
- American television personalities
- American television producers
- Chicago Police Department officers
- United States Marines
- People from Chicago, Illinois
- Producers who committed suicide
- Suicides by firearm in California
- Television personalities who committed suicide
