Richard Wayne Penniman (1932 - 2020)

Born 5 Dec 1932 in Macon, Bibb County, Georgia, USA

Ancestors

Died 9 May 2020 at age 87 in Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee, USA

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Biography

Richard Penniman is Notable.

Richard Wayne Penniman, an American singer-songwriter, musician, and performer better known as "Little Richard", was one of the pioneers of the first wave of rock ’n’ roll.

He was born on 05 December 1932 in Macon, Georgia, and was the third of twelve children of parents Leva Mae (Stewart) and Charles "Bud" Penniman (1910-1952), ^[1] a church deacon. His family had deep evangelical Baptist and African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME)] Christian roots, including two uncles and a grandfather who were preachers.

During a tour of Australia in October 1957, he saw a "fireball" crossing the sky - it was actually the Sputnik 1 satellite - and took it as a sign from God that he needed to change his ways. Returning to the United States ten days earlier than expected, he read news of his original flight having crashed into the Pacific Ocean and took that as a further sign to "do as God wanted." At the height of his career, he underwent a religious conversion and declared that he was a born-again Christian. In 1958 he became a preacher, only to return to secular music in 1962. He alternated between sacred and secular music for the remainder of his career.

He influenced numerous singers and musicians across musical genres from rock to hip hop, and his music helped shape rhythm and blues for generations to come.

Richard Wayne Penniman married on 11 July 1959 in California, USA to Ernestine Harvin, a secretary from Washington, D.C. ^[2] They adopted a one year old boy from a late church associate.

The marriage ended in divorce in 1964, but Richard always remained close to his ex-wife and adopted son. Ernestine later married on 23 March 1975 in Santa Barbara, California, USA to McDonald Campbell. In adulthood, their son would often act as one of Richard's bodyguards. His son, who would be about 60 years old now, was the media informant regarding Richard's death.

Richard was ordained a minister in 1970 ^[3] and acted as an evangelist travelling about the country. At one time he married 20 couples at one event.

In 1977 he had several devastating personal experiences, including his brother Tony's death of a heart attack, the accidental shooting of his nephew that he loved like a son, and the murder of two close personal friends. The combination of these experiences convinced Richard to clean up his life and return to the ministry.

In 2020 he was living with one of his brothers in Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee, USA.

He died on 09 May 2020 ^{[4] [5]} and was buried at Oakwood University, a historically black university in Huntsville, Alabama, USA.^[6]

Lineage ^[7]

.1 Rev. Elijah Penniman, m: Nancy ???

..2 Morris Penniman, m: Patsy Billingsley/Barron (daughter of Julia)

...3 Walter Penniman, b: GA; m: Ella Middlebrooks (daughter of Emily & Jordan Middlebrooks)

....4 Charles "Bud" Penniman (1910-1952) m: 1929 Leva Mae Stewart (1912-1984).

.....5 Richard Wayne Penniman (with 1 adopted son).

Sources

1. ↑ " Ancestry of Little Richard" compiled by William Addams Reitwiesner on wargs.com
2. ↑ "The Life and Times of Little Richard" by Charles White in 2003; isbn#9781783230143
3. ↑ Wikipedia Free Encyclopedia for "Little Richard"
4. ↑ Obituary "Washington Post" newspaper on 10 May 2020
5. ↑ "Little Richard, rock'n'roll pioneer, dies aged 87" by Michael Hann & Edward Helmore & published in "The Guardian" on 09 May 2020
6. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #209903031 for Richard Wayne “Little Richard” Penniman, b: 05 Dec 1932 Macon, Bibb County, Georgia, USA; d: 09 May 2020 Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee, USA; buried: Oakwood Memorial Gardens Cemetery, Huntsville, Madison County, Alabama, USA; with personal & gravestone photos
7. ↑ EthniCelebs.com for Little Richard; citing "Genealogy of Little Richard" on Rootsweb

• 1940 USA Census of Ward#3, Macon, Militia District#1085, Bibb County, Georgia; on FamilySearch database with images; citing RG#29; NARA# T627_641; digital#5460966; image#274; ed#11-33; sheet#8B; line#68 household#151; which included (all b: GA) ...

29 Penniman Charles, b: c1911 GA race: black

28 Penniman Leva (wife)

11 Penniman Elnora (daughter)

09 Penniman Charles (son)

07 Penniman Richard, res: 1935 same place (son)

04 Penniman Marquette (son)

02 Penniman Walter (son)

<1yr Penniman Horace (son).

• https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/little-richard-1932/

• IMDB: Little Richard, accessed 23 Jan 2021

• Celebs Who Passed Away In 2020, YouTube channel of Nikki Swift on 02 Oct 2020

• Wikidata: Item Q82222, en:Wikipedia