Elizabeth Waters may be entitled to an estate worth $750,000 in accumulated royalties from Lymon 1956 hit and its more modern iterations, according to Surrogate Court Judge Marie Lamberts ruling. Lymon related that he started singing publicly with his three brothers in a choral group at Gospel Church in New York City. I know its been good for me.. Paula Span revealed that if Elizabeth or Zola was found to be his widow, they agreed to share the proceeds of his estate equally. "Up to a point." 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. She met Frankie when he was 20-years-old, backstage at the Audubon Ballroom in New York City. Mays Mortuary, 1221 James Brown Blvd. November 2, 1988 NEW YORK -- The judge who last winter heard three middle-aged women testify to their heartaches with the late Frankie Lymon -- the doo-wop idol who cowrote and sang "Why Do Fools. Elizabeth's lawyers maintain her marriage is valid, which means that neither Zola's nor Emira's can be. 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. Key parts of this chronology are in dispute, of course. Opened 1940 | Named after Elizabeth Waters. Click the "All Sizes" button above to read an article or to see the image clearly. It was the hit that made him and the Teenagers famous back in 1956, and the one song that he recorded that remained both popular and valuable over the years. She let him live in her hillside house with instructions to pay bills out of an allowance forwarded to him by her attorney. This trio first meets as a group in 1985 in the offices of Morris Levy (Paul Mazursky), the shrewd operator whose company released Lymons hits. He recorded other songs, alone and with his group the Teenagers, but none has inspired the same affection. It teaches him responsibility and how to stand on his own two feet. That's why we're here today.". Frankie's particular scam, she thinks, was getting married. 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. The doo-wop classic (its earnings boosted by Diana Ross' 1981 version and by its use in a greeting card commercial) was recorded by Lymon's group the Teenagers. The opinion by Surrogate Court Judge Marie Lambert entitles Waters to an estate that may be worth $750,000 in accumulated royalties from Lymon's 1956 hit and its more recent incarnations. Emira came to New York to arrange for his funeral mass and burial, and she paid the bill -- $2,000. Zola had also been a teenage star. 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. However, it turned out she had been married to someone else at the time. First Visitation. became part of the "American Graffiti" sound track and album, was a No. The losing widows might appeal. She was 19 and sympathetic; she wanted to help him regain what he'd lost. She attempted to recover all the royalties from the date of the records release because she alleged that neither Levy nor his predecessor as co-writer, George Goldner who discovered and recorded the Teenagers, was actually a songwriter. The next morning, Feb. 27, an uncle found him unresponsive on the bathroom floor and called police. Frankie was that kind of person, Your Honor, Elizabeth said. Half adroit flatterer, half emotional infant, the films Lymon offers hardly a clue as to why his real-life counterpart was so irresistible to women. Lymon's managers tried packaging him as a solo crooner in a cravat. Years later, in the wainscoted courtroom where Lymon's love life was being retraced in painful detail, Elizabeth turned to the judge. "She was speechless, actually unable to talk," reported the attorney, Dwight Peterson. Elizabeth Waters is currently single. "Sell, sell, sell," he advises. 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.". Gender inclusive room options available. She called the work "moonlighting" and testified that she was arrested for it 15 or 20 times. Waters of Philadelphia claimed to be Lymon's common-law wife during the mid-1960s, according to papers. They fought and separated continually. The court found that "the decedent and Elizabeth {Waters} have satisfied the requirements of common law marriage in the State of Pennsylvania." Borstein, Levy's attorney, says the agreements amount to standard industry contracts. , A thief turns to prostitution to help Lymon fund his drug addiction. By the time of the trial, publishing rights to the song might have been worth seven figures. 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?" And while Fools ends with an on-screen disclaimer that it is a dramatization based upon certain historical events and the lives of real people, its inability to incorporate key elements of the real Lymon story hampers it dramatically. Back in New Jersey, Ronnie Italiano and the UGHA had adhered to Emiras aforementioned wishes and held off on moving forward with their project to acquire and place a memorial tombstone on Frankie Lymons grave until her lawsuit was settled. Elizabeth, now 46, said she had been born again, but she still strove for glamor, her skirt fashionably above the knee, her fingernails long and orange. He had the type of personality that would draw people, she said. 1 pop hit for Diana Ross in 1981 and recently turned up in a greeting card commercial. investigation of the infiltration of organized crime in the recording industry. He told Zola that the new guest was a friend from New York, Zola recalled. "She's a square," Zola decided, noticing that Emira was coming to court in sneakers. According to Paula Span, people sometimes compared Frankie with the young Michael Jackson, who also knew how to combine innocence and knowingness. She knew a soldier., Frankie was interviewed by The Augusta Chronicle while he was stationed at Ft. Gordon. Lymon was 14 years old when he began dating Zola Taylor (Berry), the lead singer of the Platters in the mid-1950s. She'd come with two girlfriends to meet her onetime idol. Elizabeth Waters may be entitled to an estate worth $750,000 in accumulated royalties from Lymon 1956 hit and it's more modern iterations, according to Surrogate Court Judge Marie Lambert's ruling. For his part, Rubin's not opposed to generating new income from old music. That don't make me a Catholic. What was there about Frankie Lymon? 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. It was also not uncommon for an agent, producer, or record label head to name himself co-writer of a groups songs, thereby entitling him to half of the authors publishing royalties. With the matter now in a confused state, the federal judge stayed Emiras lawsuit. 1, "that would draw people to him.". That wasn't his style. He left no fortune, but his name was listed as one of the songwriters of Why Do Fools Fall In Love. Keep supporting great journalism by turning off your ad blocker. 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. Zola Taylor had also been a teen-aged star. Frankie could fool you, he could fool me; Frankie could fool God. People sometimes compare him with the young Michael Jackson, who also knew how to combine innocence and knowingness. That eventually led to singing on street corners with friends and being discovered at age 12 by George Goldner of GEE Records. Elizabeth testified that she did not object. Mini Bio (1) Frankie Lymon was born on September 30, 1942 in Harlem, New York City, New York, USA. "If you have any kind of heart at all," she says, "you know that he went through hell.". Frankie's particular scam, she believed, was getting married. Army discipline, I think, teaches a man how to protect himself. None of the many tracks they made together or separately ever duplicated the jubilance of their early records. Span wrote that she was conscious of her stardom and arrived at court daily in a limousine. Though this success was short-lived, Lymon on a personal level was apparently quite the boy who couldnt say no. Cinematographer Ed Lachman. Lymon, known for being the lead vocalist of the world-wide popular rock group Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers, died less than a year later on Feb. 27, 1968, at age 25 in New York City, reportedly of a heroin overdose. 507 residents | Coed by wing | Single and double rooms. He was an actor and composer, known for American Graffiti (1973), October Sky (1999) and The Big Fix (1978). By the time Waters connected with Lymon, he had become a junkie, and she ended up ruining herself trying to pay for his drugs. * Playing in general release throughout Southern California. The female lawyer stated that the battle began shortly after Emira asked the Georgia court to declare her as the administrator of Lemmons Estate. Zola: "I perform all over the world"), she arrived at court daily in a limousine. She and Frankie were riding a tour bus together in 1956, doing 81 one-nighters with a rock 'n' roll cavalcade that included Chuck Berry, the Coasters, the Penguins and Bo Diddley, as well as the Platters and the Teenagers. 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. Also Read:David Von Drehle: Biography, Career, Education and Books. Zola and Elizabeth declined, but said they were willing to accept an equal, three-way split. Paula Span reported that neither Zola nor Elizabeth could quite figure Emira Eagle Lymon, the 48-year-old third wife from Augusta, Georgia. Last in line is Emira Eagle (Lela Rochon), a demure, well-bred Southern educator. "He had the type of personality that would draw people," she said. Though Navas soapy directing style makes Fools watchable enough in a campy way, the films unsophisticated nature undermines its better qualities. Costumes Elisabetta Beraldo. Executive producers Gregory Nava, Mark Allan, Harold Bronson. She's going to call it "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?". Similar to the stars of today, whenever the press cites "exhaustion" it's drug related. The retired Richmond County schoolteacher in her years after Lymon was married to Augustan Leroy Bryant. "Even though she had said no, she had said yes in the beginning; so Ronnie went ahead without going back and contacting Emira again. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BP6P329DMKY. The Teenagers tried recording on their own, with a new lead singer. He was staying in his grandmother's apartment on West 165th Street. "Frankie wasn't much older, either, when he met the third Mrs. Lymon, Emira Eagle. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers. "Sell, sell, sell," he advised. "She did not know the druggie described in this trial She knew a soldier.". No one could have foreseen that the people who grew up with the music would refuse to relinquish it, and the songs would be repeatedly recycled into movie soundtracks and albums, cover versions, oldies compilations, and television commercials. He followed it with Im Not a Juvenile Delinquent, I Want You to Be My Girl and other songs characterized by his trademark piercing high voice. He got on that stage, and baby he was huge! Big Seven agreed to pay Elizabeth an additional $5,000 if the federal lawsuit is dismissed because the plaintiff (Emira) is not the legal widow. Parts of the above testimony and chronology of events were disputed in court. 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. ("I thought royalties was a dessert," says Elizabeth.). He then called Elizabeth and urged her to join him. According to Span, Rubin was not opposed to generating new income from old music. ", But in 1984 (as the original copyright term of the song was expiring) Emira Eagle Lymon brought suit in U.S. District Court in New York against Levy, his attorney, his record label and his publishing company. Artists Rights helped secure a financial settlement for Richard Berry, composer of "Louie, Louie" just before the song was used in a wine cooler ad. She has been in one celebrity relationship averaging approximately 4.1 years. View contact information: phones, addresses, emails and networks. We played down certain things and fudged others to make it work as a film," said director Gregory . Not that their relationship was entirely maternal. They were there in Surrogate Court -- the three would-be widows and their teams of lawyers and witnesses -- for 10 days this past December and January, raking over the past. "He had been busted in California again for drugs." Set designers Clare Scarpulla, Michael Bernard. As a result, they fought and separated numerous times. But the case may not end there, of course. Did Ukraine use innocent civilians as human shield against Russia in the name of evacuation? The Happenings' 45. Who owns the rights to old songs matters as much or more now than it did when they were hits. He also represented several of the artists featured on the "Dirty Dancing" album. Set decorator Jackie Carr. 1200 Observatory Drive | Madison, WI 53706-1212 | Map. Levy declined direct comment on the Lymon matter. Emira came to New York to arrange for Frankies funeral mass and burial. For part of Lymons appeal to women was how uncommonly young he was; the singers first hit came before he was 14, younger than most romantic leads can play. In December 1989, the New York Supreme Court ruled that Bryant was Lymons only legal wife. She did not object when he decided to head for California in 1965. 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. Recording costs and commissions for everyone from managers to choreographers could siphon off much of a group's earnings. Zola never saw him alive again. "They wanted to impress their friends in school" by being on the radio. Producers Paul Hall, Stephen Nemeth. He was clean for a time when she became pregnant in 1963, and he was deeply saddend by the death of their infant daughter. And it stalls or kills a federal lawsuit Eagle had brought to reclaim control of the publishing rights to his song. The record company executive has other problems: He was sentenced last week to 10 years in prison for his conspiracy conviction arising from an FBI investigation of racketeering in the recording industry. Why does the rain fall from up above? Back in 1956, the hit song had first been credited to Frankie Lymon, Herman Santiago, and George Goldner - head of Gee Records. As a child star, however, I was subjected to discipline from agents, managers and lawyers, but it was a discipline that protected me from myself so to speak. Rochon portrayed Bryant, who married Lymon on June 30, 1967, at Beulah Grove Baptist Church near Paine College when Lymon was stationed that year at Fort Gordon. Unfortunately, shes also involved in the films least convincing area, the jarring sections that deal with the troubles brought on by Lymons habit. The signs were plain, she says now, that Lymon was floundering, working only intermittently, addicted to drugs and probably to alcohol as well. The Associated Press AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Funeral services have been held for the widow of '50s rock star Frankie Lymon. He can't remember what Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers sounded like that day -- the girls' shrieks all but drowned them out -- but he recalls the excitement. 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. Privacy Policy Agreement * I agree to the Terms of use and Privacy Policy. The sum, he says, "might have been $1,500. Elizabeth Waters was not yet divorced when she married Lymon, but the marriage became lawful once her first husbands divorce was finalized. Legacy.com reports daily on death announcements in local communities nationwide. Fox as three women claiming to be the legal wife of Lymon and heir to his recording royalties. The essence of their dispute was which of the marriages was legally binding, given a certain laxity in some quarters about divorce. Check places of employment, social media profiles, work history, photos and videos, resumes and CV, arrest records, publications, public records and business records . 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. Then he called Elizabeth and urged her to join him. Waters provides convenient access to libraries, the . "I'm not going to wear mink coats with {you} in jeans," she announced. ", "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. At the age of 13 little Lymon and his group of singers Teens signed a recording contract. He told Zola that the new house guest was "a friend from New York," Zola remembers. Emira Eagle Lymon Bryant, the legally declared widow of '50s teenage rock star Frankie Lymon, died Saturday at AU Medical Center. Before the case came to court, Emira changed her mind about the tombstone, despite initially agreeing to have Ronnie Italiano and the UGHA to undertake the project. "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?" Heres the glamorous Zola Taylor (Halle Berry), a member of the Platters, one of early rocks supergroups. "He was honest, completely honest," Elizabeth insisted, "Up to a point." "A lot of people say I knew him so long I became like him.". Levy was aware of all the details of Frankie Lymons love life, and he used it to his advantage by bringing in Elizabeth Waters and Zola Taylor to challenge Emiras claim to be Frankies widow and, by having the court determine her marraige to be invalid, derail her lawsuit. Published by Mobile Register and Baldwin County from Jan. 25 to Jan. 27, 2023. 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