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In 1984, recording star Marvin Gaye was shot to death the day before his 45th birthday by his father, Marvin Gay Sr., in Los Angeles. (The elder Gay pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, and received probation.)
Police said the argument between the father and son began when Gaye was unable to find an insurance company letter that had nothing to do with the singer.
Probation investigators said Gaye had apparently beaten his father shortly before the shooting. Shortly after the arrest, it was discovered that Gaye Sr. had a brain tumor.
The two men reportedly had a troubled relationship, with the son never believing that the father appreciated his success. “I’m sorry…. I loved him,” Gaye Sr. said at his sentencing.
“If I could bring him back, I would. I was afraid of him. I thought I was going to get hurt. I didn’t know what was going to happen. I’m really sorry for everything that happened. I loved him. I wish he could step through this door right now. I’m paying the price now.”
The father died in 1998 at age 83.
Marvin Gaye Jr. had 13 records in the top 10 from 1963 to 1977. Among his best-known hits were “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” “Sexual Healing,” “Let’s Get It On” and “What’s Going On.”
Agencies/Canadajournal
