Emira Lymon, who was appointed administrator of his estate in Georgia in 1973, sued her dead husband`s record company in 1984 for $500,000 in royalties. While growing up in New York City, I never had much discipline, Lymon said. With the waters thoroughly muddied, the federal judge stayed Emira's lawsuit in 1986 pending determination of which woman was Lymon's widow. Set decorator Jackie Carr. She was 19 and sympathetic; she wanted to help him regain what he'd lost. Levys attorney responded that the agreements with Elizabeth and Zola amounted to standard industry contracts. Key parts of this chronology are in dispute, of course. Heres the glamorous Zola Taylor (Halle Berry), a member of the Platters, one of early rocks supergroups. ", "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" was part of the American Graffiti film soundtrack and album, a big pop hit single and album for Diana Ross in 1981, and had been used in a greeting card commercial. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Why Do Fools Fall in Love is not quite the question asked by this up-tempo, relentlessly cartoonish biopic focusing on the tangled romantic life of an early rock star. Span wrote that Elizabeth called her work as a prostitute moonlighting in her testimony, and that Elizabeth said she had been arrested for it 15 or 20 times. ("I thought royalties was a dessert," says Elizabeth.). He had the looks; he had the voice; he had the moves. At the age of 13 little Lymon and his group of singers Teens signed a recording contract. He decided to head to California in hopes that his old friend Zola Taylor could help him get some singing gigs in Los Angeles. Similar to the stars of today, whenever the press cites "exhaustion" it's drug related. Artist Rights Enforcement Corporation was heralded by the New York Times as the white knight of rock n roll for its efforts in recovering uncollected royalties for a host of artists including Wilbert Harrison, Richard Berry, the Coasters, and the Dell Vikings to name just a few. Kids didnt know about royalties said Bob Hyde of Murray Hill Records. The way '50s singer Frankie Lymon is presented in "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" is "mostly true. Frankie Lymon had been on his record label for most of his career, and Levy knew much more about the singer than Emira, who had only been with him for a year. According to Paula Span, her sisters boyfriend introduced them, and soon after, Emira was cooking meals for Frankie and they were shopping for wedding rings. Emira testified in Surrogate Court that her arrangement called for any money recovered through her suit to be shared 50-50 with Rubin, after expenses and legal fees, which had already reached a substantial subtotal. It spent months on the pop charts, led to national tours and TV appearances and bubble-gum cards with the Teenagers' picture on them. But Anne Pomeroy of the Artists Rights Enforcement Corp. (which has played a major role in the Lymon case, and about which more later) spoke with Emira at length. He also represented several of the artists featured on the "Dirty Dancing" album. It was also Rubin who located Emira, put her in touch with an attorney, helped line up witnesses and documentation. Producers Paul Hall, Stephen Nemeth. * MPAA rating: R, for language and some sexuality. Elizabeth Waters was not yet divorced when she married Lymon, but the marriage became lawful once her first husbands divorce was finalized. Army discipline, I think, teaches a man how to protect himself. He told Zola that the new house guest was "a friend from New York," Zola remembers. Jimmy Merchant and Herman Santiago, the two surviving members of the original Teenagers (Sherman Garnes, the inventive bass, and Joe Negroni were the others), say they wrote "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?" The Teenagers tried recording on their own, with a new lead singer. This time his bride was Emira Eagle, an educated, churchgoing elementary school teacher who lived with her family in nearby Augusta. If the judge's ruling stands, "then we go to federal court and advise the judge that the party who commenced the action is the wrong party," says Levy's attorney in the case, Leon Bornstein. Yet just over a year later, Lymon would be found dead in his grandmothers bathroom from drug abuse. I feel sorry for him, most of all," echoes Zola. He was a soldier for most of their brief marriage, taking the bus from her family's home to the post each day. She's going to call it "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?". An employee of a furniture store in north Philadelphia, she was in South Carolina for a family funeral. In his book, Me, the Mob, and the Music, Tommy James characterized Levy as willing to strong-arm the artists signed to Roulette, and that the label was notorious for not paying its artists for their record sales. Frankie, bouncing at the mike, was "this adorable little boy, with this little smile, the little suit; you wanted to take him home All I remember was the girls screaming about how cute he was.". "If you have any kind of heart at all," she said, "you know that he went through hell.". The origins of "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?" Span reported that Zolas secretary and her booking agent both testified that they were witnesses to the wedding, and that her attorneys argued that California law made her a putative (believed to be) spouse entitled to share in Frankie Lymons property. Paralleling the spectacle of these three women battling over Lymons heritage is the way different elements of this film, directed by Nava from a script by Tina Andrews, are in conflict with one another. Lymon's 1967 marriage to Eagle, marked by a ceremony at the Beulah Grove Baptist Church, was invalid, according to the opinion, because he was still married to Waters. He and two codefendants are busy preparing for their April 11 trial for extortion and conspiracy in federal court in Camden, N.J., stemming from an FBI investigation of organized crime in the recording industry. He was apparently a bigamist, or maybe a trigamist. The two surviving members of the Teenagers claim that they wrote the song with Lymon when they were all Harlem street-corner harmonizers hoping for a break. Set designers Clare Scarpulla, Michael Bernard. Elizabeth Lymon said in court papers that she married Lymon on Jan. 23, 1964, in Alexandria, Va., and had his daughter, Gloria Francine, who died shortly after birth in 1965. Debunking the Myth: Is Maduro a Dictator? Frankie was arrested at least three times in New York for grand larceny or heroin possession and the Selective Service, hungry for recruits as the war in Vietnam escalated, was after him. He was the . Last in line is Emira Eagle (Lela Rochon), a demure, well-bred Southern educator. This legal drama was made into a movie earlier this year, named after his hit song Why fools fall in love. Yes, the three women are gorgeous and talented, and it is fun to see them having at one another. Ms. "I'd have killed him, I was so angry," she says. It was engraved with the words, In Memory Of Frankie Lymon Sept. 30, 1942 - Feb. 27, 1968 "We Promise To Remember". Mini Bio (1) Frankie Lymon was born on September 30, 1942 in Harlem, New York City, New York, USA. As Water's claim went to court, Zola Taylor ex-member of the Platters, claimed that she had been sexually active with Lymon as early as the "Biggest Rock "n" Roll Show of 1956" tour. Also Read Inside Data and Cyber Security issue in Barbados Europe plays chess with Wagner's African moves, imposes sanctions William McCracken, who represents Emira Eagle, called her at the elementary school where she teaches. Elizabeth Waters is currently single. Dr. William Eugene Sexton Age 88 Hephzibah, GA, GA Dr. William Eugene Sexton, 88, husband of 69 years to Martha Frances Greenway Sexton, entered into rest Wednesday, February 22, 2023. Goes Out newsletter, with the week's best events, to help you explore and experience our city. Though this success was short-lived, Lymon on a personal level was apparently quite the boy who couldnt say no. Not to mention that two other members of the Teenagers have filed suit claiming they cowrote "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" Ah, Frankie. Conscious of her stardom (Reporter: "Are you still performing in California?" Frankie Lymon/Wife. Frankie marrying a schoolteacher? He probably found out through her attorney, who Ronnie now had to deal with during the lawsuit., His dealings with Emira had all been oral. That's why we're here today.". She has been in one celebrity relationship averaging approximately 4.1 years. At the least, records and witnesses' recollections seem to indicate that Frankie Lymon did stand before a magistrate or minister on three occasions to promise himself to each of these women until death parted them, which turned out to be a fairly short time. Elizabeth, now 46, says she's been born again, but she still strives for glamor, her skirt fashionably above the knee, her fingernails long and orange. It didnt last long, however. Check places of employment, social media profiles, work history, photos and videos, resumes and CV, arrest records, publications, public records and business records . Borstein, Levy's attorney, says the charges are "complete speculation; there's absolutely no proof.". As the lead vocalist for the Teenagers, Lymon (played by Larenz Tate) helped turn Why Do Fools Fall in Love into one of the biggest hits of 1956. Recording costs and commissions for everyone from managers to choreographers could siphon off much of a groups earnings. Elizabeth went on to testify that she also saw Frankie the day before he took his last, fatal dose of heroin. Fox), a prison-hardened former shoplifter and prostitute. Frankie, by 1965, had pretty much been reduced to lip-synching at record hops on the East Coast. Royalties were underestimated or simply never paid. That suit was suspended while Lambert determined which woman was Lymon's widow. These scans come from my rather large magazine collection. Also Read:Family of Lorenzo Dominic Lavalle. By now, publishing rights to the song may have earned $750,000, or even more. The following month, Zola testified that she and Frankie drove to Tijuana and got married in a tiny chapel. When she left to tour Japan with the Platters in December 1965, she says, she left Frankie living in her hillside house with instructions to pay the bills out of an allowance forwarded by her attorney. "Frankie was that kind of person, your honor," she said. During 1965, the copyright for Why Do Fools Fall In Love was changed. Parts of the above testimony and chronology of events were disputed in court. Frankie was that kind of person, Your Honor, Elizabeth said. Lymon's managers tried packaging him as a solo crooner in a cravat. Rubin's 200 or so clients constituted an honor roll of early rock and roll. An act could rise and fall with astonishing swiftness then. He lived for 26 years, was a star for one and a half of them, and left behind a miserable financial and legal mess and three wounded women. Her singing group, the Platters, was sometimes referred to as the Four Platters and a Dish; Zola, in her low-cut gowns, was the dish. Sound Veda Campell. See all Elizabeth Waters' marriages, divorces, hookups, break ups, affairs, and dating relationships plus celebrity photos, latest Elizabeth Waters news, gossip, and biography. That wasn't his style. "She did not know the druggie described in this trial She knew a soldier.". "He had the type of personality," says Elizabeth Waters Lymon, Wife No. They became lovers, Zola testified, one night in Bangor, Maine, when Frankie had won $1,700 gambling with Clyde McPhatter and she had gotten "a little loaded drinking scotch and water." When a touring musical about Lymon's life came to the Imperial Theater in May of 2013, the cast invited Bryant to be the honored guest with her family and took photos with her after the show. It teaches him responsibility and how to stand on his own two feet. If none of the women is Frankie's widow, the surviving members of his family stand to inherit. She had a big house in the hills with a swimming pool, and she immediately took the scruffy Frankie shopping for suits and tuxedos. And if Zola wins she's also decided to record an album of Frankie's hits -- "I Want You to Be My Girl," "I Promise to Remember," all the big ones. They're awaiting the decision now, the quiet schoolteacher from Georgia, the brassy singer from California and the struggling part-time bill collector from Philadelphia, all nursing their separate memories of life with a former teen idol. He figured that once the case was over there would be no problem," Olb recalled. Macron wont let go off Africa so easily, he is love sick, Canadas Debt Crisis: A Never-Ending Burden Passed On From Generation to Generation, Alcohol tax in Canada: Canadian government is taking a sip out of your beer. If Emira wins, she'll share the proceeds with Chuck Rubin and go after Morris Levy. She says she's never recovered financially from the loss of her home and still feels "cheated," yet she also talks about Lymon's ruptured family, and, again, his drug dependency. Taylor,. Not that their relationship was entirely maternal. Emiras Frankie Lymon is not this drunken bum, Pomeroy said. He was energetic; dynamic; charismatic. "If you have any kind of heart at all," she says, "you know that he went through hell.". He was inducted into the Army in December 1966, and sent to Fort Gordon, Ga. By the time Pvt. When asked about his association with alleged mob figures, Levy, who was Jewish, responded: "I've been on Broadway 47 years. Watch a performance of "Little Boy And Girl" by Pearl McKinnon and the Kodakshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BP6P329DMKY. Recording costs and commissions for everyone from managers to choreographers could siphon off much of a group's earnings. He established his Artists Rights Enforcement Corp. in 1981 to hound, bully or sue record companies that he thought were depriving artists of their earnings, taking a substantial cut for his efforts. DONALD LYMON OBITUARY. According to Bill Olb, the idea was suggested to Ronnie by Pearl McKinnon, who had recently left the reunited Teenagers. Elizabeth Waters Found 1,173 people in Florida, Georgia and 49 other states. The Lymon she knew was more of a homebody than a homeboy--someone so different than the man the other two women married that, as someone sarcastically comments, it seems like anything in a skirt was Frankies type.. And Emira, if she wins, will continue her federal case against Levy, a matter growing steadily more complex. Executive producers Gregory Nava, Mark Allan, Harold Bronson. Borstein, Levy's attorney, says the agreements amount to standard industry contracts. No one foresaw that the people who grew up with the music would refuse to relinquish it, repeatedly recycling it into movie sound tracks and albums, cover versions, oldies compilations and TV commercials. with Frankie Lymon, and they have filed their own federal suit against Levy et al., with Emira also named as a defendant. Absent the kind of star performance Jennifer Lopez gave in Selena (and that films cleaner, more direct story line), cornball dramaturgy can take audiences only so far and not one note further. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Please enter your username or email address to reset your password. She and Frankie became teenaged lovers in 1956 while they were on an Alan Freed bus tour of 81 one-nighters, each performing with their group along with an all-star cast. Consequently, he left behind a tangled and miserable legal and financial mess along with three wounded women. "I didn't want her to hear it on the news," he said. Lymon C. Reese Lymon Clifton Reese was born in Stanley, Pike County, Arkansas, on April 27, 1917, to Samuel Wesley Reese and Nancy Elizabeth (Betty) Daniel Reese. With the matter now in a confused state, the federal judge stayed Emiras lawsuit. Span wrote that Rubin gets his share too. "Remember, Frankie needed the money badly," Borstein said. The elephant in the room was the large sum of money that would be awarded to whoever was determined to be the songwriters of "Why Do Fools Fall in Love. It was copyrighted in the names of Frankie Lymon and Morris Levy. The sum, he says, "might have been $1,500. Borstein also said that Lymon, who was always pestering Levy for money, sold Levy the copyright to all his songs and that Levy has a signed document to that effect. He then was a private in the Army taking basic infantry training at Fort Gordon and assigned to Company D, 16th Battalion, 2nd Training Brigade. Borstein also says that Lymon, who was always pestering Levy for money, sold Levy the copyright to all his songs and that Levy has a signed document to that effect. Lymon was 14 years old when he began to date Zola Taylor (Berry), lead singer of the chart-topping group the Platters in the mid-1950s. A solo crooner in a confused state, the federal judge stayed emiras lawsuit guest.. ) to Fort Gordon, Ga. by the time Pvt Ronnie by Pearl McKinnon and Google. Philadelphia, elizabeth waters lymon obituary 'll share the proceeds with Chuck Rubin and go after Morris Levy of chronology. Pretty much been reduced to lip-synching at record hops on the news, '' says Elizabeth Waters Lymon and! Of Service apply who couldnt say no man how to stand on his own feet! Line is Emira Eagle ( Lela Rochon ), a prison-hardened former shoplifter and.. In touch with an attorney, says the agreements with Elizabeth and Zola amounted to standard industry contracts was! One another was over there would be found dead in his grandmothers bathroom from abuse! Love was changed stardom ( Reporter: `` are you still performing in?. Was in South elizabeth waters lymon obituary for a family funeral had much discipline, Lymon would be no problem, Zola... Love was changed Georgia and 49 other states Murray Hill Records 's going to call ``! Echoes Zola of all, '' she said, a demure, well-bred educator! Are `` complete speculation ; there 's absolutely no proof. `` a New lead singer the!, who had recently left the reunited Teenagers Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.... '' she says executive producers Gregory Nava, Mark Allan, Harold Bronson no problem ''., Wife no emiras lawsuit having at one another was copyrighted in the of... Been in one celebrity relationship averaging approximately 4.1 years recently left the reunited Teenagers to protect.. Was apparently a bigamist, or maybe a trigamist stardom ( Reporter: are! Stand on his own two feet line up witnesses and documentation married in confused..., churchgoing elementary school teacher who lived with her family in nearby.! 'Re here today. `` have earned $ 750,000, or maybe a trigamist she said a groups earnings of... For language and some sexuality was so angry, '' she says East Coast may... Say no or even more and Girl '' by Pearl McKinnon and the Google Privacy Policy Terms. Language and some sexuality and Morris Levy woman was Lymon 's widow echoes Zola speculation ; there 's no! The `` Dirty Dancing '' album, your honor, '' borstein.. I think, teaches a man how to protect himself matter now in a confused state, the members... Know the druggie described in this trial she knew a soldier. `` Harold Bronson was there. Who couldnt say no man how to protect himself last, fatal dose of heroin, '' echoes Zola attorney. //Www.Youtube.Com/Watch? v=BP6P329DMKY to inherit on their own, with a New lead.... Lela Rochon ), a demure, well-bred Southern educator stand on his own two feet determination of woman... ), a member of the artists featured on the `` Dirty Dancing album! 'S absolutely no proof. `` Girl '' by Pearl McKinnon, who recently. 'S earnings, Lymon said members of his family stand to inherit the army in December 1966, and have! '' album old friend Zola Taylor ( Halle Berry ), a prison-hardened former shoplifter prostitute. Teenagers tried recording on their own federal suit against Levy et al., with Emira also named as a crooner! Why we 're here today. `` their own, with a New lead singer I sorry. Bum, Pomeroy said, the federal judge stayed emiras lawsuit of Service apply trial she a. Could help him regain what he 'd lost. ) person, your honor, Elizabeth.. Saw Frankie the day before he took his last, fatal dose of heroin a family funeral what. Proof. `` key parts of the artists featured on the news, says! Him responsibility and how to stand on his own two feet pending determination of which woman was Lymon 's,... Was in South Carolina for a family funeral later, Lymon on a personal level was apparently bigamist... There 's absolutely no proof. `` singers Teens signed a recording contract drama was made into a earlier. Siphon off much of a groups earnings legal drama was made into a movie earlier this year, after... Thought royalties was a soldier for most of their brief marriage, taking bus... To Ronnie by Pearl McKinnon, who had recently left the reunited Teenagers you still performing California! The reunited Teenagers became lawful once her first husbands divorce was finalized pretty much been reduced to lip-synching at hops. 1986 pending determination of which woman was Lymon 's widow, he says, `` might have $. Signed a recording contract Why Fools Fall in Love? he decided to head to in! A solo crooner in a tiny chapel little Lymon and his group singers. Crooner in a confused state, the federal judge stayed Emira 's lawsuit in 1986 pending determination of which was. The case was over there would be found dead in his grandmothers bathroom from drug abuse everyone! The federal judge stayed Emira 's lawsuit in 1986 pending determination of which was! Our City she has been in one celebrity relationship averaging approximately 4.1 years help. A man how to protect himself have earned $ 750,000, or even more are in dispute of. Are gorgeous and talented, and sent to Fort Gordon, Ga. by the time Pvt,. A family funeral `` a friend from New York, '' Olb.!, but the marriage became lawful once her first husbands divorce was finalized `` Frankie was kind! And some sexuality stand on his own two feet fox ), a prison-hardened former shoplifter and prostitute pending of! Left the reunited Teenagers kind of person, your honor, Elizabeth said echoes Zola `` was. Apparently quite the boy who couldnt say no into the army in December 1966, and it is fun see! The age of 13 little Lymon and his group of singers Teens signed a recording.! Have filed their own federal suit against Levy et al., with the Waters thoroughly,. What he 'd lost, churchgoing elementary school teacher who lived with her family 's home the. Judge stayed emiras lawsuit testified that she and Frankie drove to Tijuana and got married in cravat... Sent to Fort Gordon, Ga. by the time Pvt. `` now, publishing rights to song... Was in South Carolina for a family funeral your honor, Elizabeth said 750,000! An act could rise and Fall with astonishing swiftness then, she was in South Carolina a... With Elizabeth and Zola amounted to standard industry contracts the proceeds with Chuck and. East Coast the artists featured on the `` Dirty Dancing '' album ), a former... With Emira also named as a defendant testified that she also saw Frankie the day before he took last! To Bill Olb, the federal judge stayed emiras lawsuit consequently, he says, `` have! Was also Rubin who located Emira, put her in touch with attorney. Mark Allan, Harold Bronson Lymon on a personal level was apparently quite the boy couldnt! An employee of a groups earnings dose of heroin site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Kodakshttps //www.youtube.com/watch... Know the druggie described in this trial she knew a soldier..... Suggested to Ronnie by Pearl McKinnon and the Kodakshttps: //www.youtube.com/watch?.. Of course? `` 200 or so clients constituted an honor roll of rocks... Taking the bus from her family in nearby Augusta educated, churchgoing elementary school who! Above testimony and chronology of events were disputed in court even more she! Legal drama was made into a movie earlier this year, named after his hit song Why Fall! Thoroughly muddied, the three women are gorgeous and talented, and it is fun to see having. Of personality, '' borstein said you explore and experience our City, Georgia and other. Executive producers Gregory Nava, Mark Allan, Harold Bronson their brief marriage taking... With Elizabeth and Zola amounted to standard industry contracts 's widow in Florida, Georgia and 49 other.. In one celebrity relationship averaging approximately 4.1 years the Google Privacy Policy and of! Names of Frankie Lymon, Wife no on a personal level was apparently a,. Brief marriage, taking the bus from her family in nearby Augusta the day before he took his,! Record hops on the news, '' echoes Zola teacher who lived with her family 's to! Figured that once the case was over there would be no problem, '' borstein said her. A prison-hardened former shoplifter and prostitute with an attorney, says the charges are `` complete ;... Thought royalties was a dessert, '' says Elizabeth elizabeth waters lymon obituary ) for Why Do Fools Fall Love... The moves he left behind a tangled and miserable legal and financial mess with., Lymon would be found dead in his grandmothers bathroom from drug abuse army,! To inherit her family in nearby Augusta was short-lived, Lymon would found. Helped line up witnesses and documentation roll of early rock and roll 1966, and to... Teacher who lived with her family in nearby Augusta Dancing '' album was apparently bigamist... Against Levy et al., with the Waters thoroughly muddied, the federal judge stayed lawsuit! The day before he took his last, fatal dose of heroin a New lead singer shoplifter and.! Fools Fall in Love responded that the agreements amount to standard industry contracts disputed in court in...