Both Zola and Elizabeth think their agreements with Levy fair, and neither plans to take legal action against him if she is found to be Lymon's widow. Zola: "I perform all over the world"), she arrived at court daily in a limousine. Fox), a prison-hardened former shoplifter and prostitute. The court found that "the decedent and Elizabeth {Waters} have satisfied the requirements of common law marriage in the State of Pennsylvania." Its a mark of how shallow Fools is that even as gifted an actor as Tate (excellent in Menace II Society and Dead Presidents) cant turn Lymon into anything more than a cipher. However, it turned out she had been married to someone else at the time. He was apparently a bigamist, or maybe a trigamist. Span wrote that Frankies relationship with Zola was not entirely maternal. "Remember, Frankie needed the money badly," Borstein said. Waters provides convenient access to libraries, the . "He sort of changed my life for me," Elizabeth says. 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. One of his records with the Teenagers was called "I'm Not a Juvenile Delinquent," but for all the conviction in his sweet young voice, he probably was one. 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. 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. Frankie's particular scam, she believed, was getting married. She called the work "moonlighting" and testified that she was arrested for it 15 or 20 times. Emira Eagle Lymon Bryant, the legally declared widow of '50s teenage rock star Frankie Lymon, died Saturday at AU Medical Center. Emira refused. became part of the "American Graffiti" sound track and album, was a No. 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. At the trial, Elizabeth testified that she saw Frankie on that visit, as she had a number of times both before and after his wedding to Emira, which she said she knew nothing of. He died on February 28, 1968 in New York City, New York, USA. The Platters. They also pointed to the absence of documentation from Mexico as evidence that Zola and Frankie never married at all. The way '50s singer Frankie Lymon is presented in "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" is "mostly true. Kenneth Turan is the former film critic for the Los Angeles Times. A decision was reached in November, but the case would not end there. 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. "A lot of people say I knew him so long I became like him.". Despite hearing that Emira had changed her mind, Ronnie maintained faith in their original agreement and ordered a headstone from a company in North Arlington, New Jersey. Emira's attorneys have advised her not to talk to reporters until after the Surrogate Court decision. Waters Residence Hall is centrally located in the heart of campus along the shore of Lake Mendota. Unfortunately, shes also involved in the films least convincing area, the jarring sections that deal with the troubles brought on by Lymons habit. But the case may not end there, of course. The flyer advertised performances by Pearl McKinnon and the Kodaks, Earl Lewis and the Channels, the Cleveland Still Dubs, and the Impalas. Frankie told Elizabeth that Zola and I arent doing anything; its just a motherly relationship, Elizabeth testified in court. It was not, for long, a happy one. Lymon was only 12 when he hooked up with the foursome that became the Teenagers, but there was an aura about him that the city's doo-wop entrepreneurs recognized. Executive producers Gregory Nava, Mark Allan, Harold Bronson. Emiras Frankie Lymon is not this drunken bum, Pomeroy said. 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. "Just make sure the artist or writer gets his share." If Emira wins, she'll share the proceeds with Chuck Rubin and go after Morris Levy. Emiras case was just beginning when Elizabeth Waters Lymon petitioned the Surrogate Court claiming that she was Frankie Lymons widow, and Zola Taylor also objected claiming that she was Lymons rightful widow. By now, publishing rights to the song may have earned $750,000, or even more. Span wrote that Frankie was a soldier for most of his brief marriage to Emira. Zola, the older woman, was 17. Her troubles with drugs and the law continued long after Frankie's death. Nava, whose credits besides Selena include My Family and El Norte, is given to pitching things as broadly as the law allows, and what Fools is most reminiscent of is love story comics from the 1950s with titles like Realistic Romances and Teen-Age Temptations.. She and Frankie began living together in 1962, she testified. Elizabeth Waters is currently single. Her divorce didn't come through until 1965. A memorial service. Army discipline, I think, teaches a man how to protect himself. -- those he abused and betrayed seem loath to condemn him. LYMON REESE OBITUARY. She testified that she and Frankie had started living together shortly after they met. Her sister's boyfriend introduced them; soon, Emira was cooking meals for Frankie and they were shopping for wedding rings. Elizabeth may have had the hardest time of it. 2010-02-12 00:06:12. According to Paula Span, people sometimes compared Frankie with the young Michael Jackson, who also knew how to combine innocence and knowingness. 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. Elizabeths lawyers, on the other hand, maintained her marriage was valid, which meant that neither Zolas nor Emiras could have been. She also turned to prostitution to support her daughter from her first marriage, to one Charles Phillips, when she was just 16. with Frankie Lymon, and they have filed their own federal suit against Levy et al., with Emira also named as a defendant. She is attempting to recover all the royalties from the date of the record's release because -- she alleges -- neither Levy nor his predecessor as cowriter (George Goldner, who discovered and recorded the Teenagers) is actually an author. "Some drug users, they rob, they steal, and they do everything to sustain that habit." He left no fortune, but his name was listed as one of the songwriters of Why Do Fools Fall In Love. Though Waters was not yet divorced from her first husband when she and Frankie Lymon married in a civil ceremony in Alexandria in 1964, their union became valid when that divorce became final in 1965, the judge found. Zola Taylor Lymon, now 50, one of the original Platters, had flown in from Los Angeles. Back in Los Angeles, the club where Zola was performing tossed a celebration, with a cake and champagne. All rights reserved. Levy ruled his empire with an iron hand, using both fear and intimidation as part of his business model. See all Elizabeth Waters' marriages, divorces, hookups, break ups, affairs, and dating relationships plus celebrity photos, latest Elizabeth Waters news, gossip, and biography. The sum, he said, "might have been $1,500. I feel sorry for him, most of all," echoed Zola. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers. The following month, Zola testified that she and Frankie drove to Tijuana and got married in a tiny chapel. Her attorneys advised her that it might look bad for her in court if she allowed an outside organization to place a headstone on Frankies grave. Taylor, of Los Angeles, a singer with the Platters, contends she married Lymon in 1965 in Tijuana, Mexico. Ms. Owning the rights to 1950s rock and roll songs meant more in the 1980s than it did when they were hits. Zola, the second supposed wife, got to be pretty friendly with the first. The Associated Press AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Funeral services have been held for the widow of '50s rock star Frankie Lymon. Click the "All Sizes" button above to read an article or to see the image clearly. "And he was still just a kid when he started on the next wife, Elizabeth Waters," said Nava. -- a classic bit of doo-wop doggerel with Lymon credited as coauthor -- are murky. Franklin Joseph Lymon (September 30, 1942 - February 27, 1968) was an American rock and roll/rhythm and blues singer and songwriter, best known as the boy soprano lead singer of the New York City-based early rock and roll doo-wop group The Teenagers.The group was composed of five boys, all in their early to mid-teens. As a result, they fought and separated numerous times. Pearl, who emulated Frankie Lymon with a distinctive sound all her own, sealed the deal for Robinson, and the Kodaks were signed to the Fury label. He had a bad year in 1966. Parts of the above testimony and chronology of events were disputed in court. And it stalls or kills a federal lawsuit Eagle had brought to reclaim control of the publishing rights to his song. 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. Whie serving at Ft. Gordon in Georgia, Frankie married again. Leon Borstein, Levy's attorney, said that Levy "assisted in the writing of the song; you have to remember, if he added one word, that's sufficient" to justify co-authorship. Goes Out newsletter, with the week's best events, to help you explore and experience our city. "Frankie Lymon just transcended all the other doo-wop groups," says Bob Hyde, whose Murray Hill label reissued the Teenagers' recordings last year. Zola and Elizabeth declined, but said they were willing to accept an equal, three-way split. According to Bill Olb, the idea was suggested to Ronnie by Pearl McKinnon, who had recently left the reunited Teenagers. The Teenagers, too, have filed a federal suit saying they're entitled to their share of the proceeds regardless of who Lymon's widow is. (All three women used the surname Lymon in court documents at least part of the time.) Gender inclusive room options available. In one disturbing incident, James wrote that Levy arranged a 1967 attack on former Roulette artist Jimmie Rodgers by an off-duty police officer in response to Rodgers repeated demands for unpaid royalties he was owed by the label. What seemed pretty clear from all the filings is the reason why, 20 years afterward, it had become so important to be Frankie Lymon's legal widow. 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. 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. The signs were plain, she says now, that Lymon was floundering, working only intermittently, addicted to drugs and probably to alcohol as well. DONALD LYMON OBITUARY. He was an actor and composer, known for American Graffiti (1973), October Sky (1999) and The Big Fix (1978). I cant just sit here and tell the court anything different. He had the looks; he had the voice; he had the moves. Producers Paul Hall, Stephen Nemeth. Span wrote that back in Los Angeles, the club where Zola was performing tossed a celebration with a cake and champagne. Elizabeths claim to be Frankies wife and heir was weakened by the fact that she was still legally married when she wed Frankie in 1964. Heres the glamorous Zola Taylor (Halle Berry), a member of the Platters, one of early rocks supergroups. "Emira's Frankie Lymon is not this drunken bum," Pomeroy says. It is Frankie Lymon's only real legacy, that two minutes and 15 seconds of doo-wop. Family and friends said goodbye Friday to Emira Eagle Lymon Bryant, who. When she returned in April, the house was in foreclosure and Frankie was gone with the money. Frankie could fool you, he could fool me; Frankie could fool God. She did not know the druggie described in this trial. The marriage to Eagle is valid, so she is entitled to a fief. "Even though she had said no, she had said yes in the beginning; so Ronnie went ahead without going back and contacting Emira again. Frankie marrying a schoolteacher? 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. The stone was dedicated by his fans and friends on February 27, 1988, the 20th anniversary of Frankie's death and one month before the opening arguments in the case that would determine his legal wife and rightful heir. In fact, Elizabeth says she saw him the day before he took his last, fatal dose of heroin. I loved him like a brother.". NEW YORK -- It's been 32 years, but the song still shimmers and bops: first that calliope-like bass ("ehhh toom ah-ta toom ah-ta toom ah doe doe"), then a wash of "ooh-wahs," followed by the swooping soprano of 13-year-old Frankie Lymon, asking his immortal musical questions: Why do birds sing so gay? Times guidelines: a bloody beating and some genteel scenes of lovemaking. 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." "She's a square," Zola decided, noticing that Emira was coming to court in sneakers. She turned to heroin and cocaine herself, she acknowledged on the stand, and to support her daughter from her first marriage, she became a prostitute. Instead of filling my house with old moldy magazines, I scanned them (in most cases, photographed them) and filled a storage area with moldy magazines. The first decision was made in Waterss favor; Eagle appealed, and in 1989 the New York State Supreme Court Appeals Division overturned the original decision and transferred ownership of Lymon to Eagle. 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. 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. Elizabeth, 43, of Philadelphia, claims she married Lymon in Alexandria, Va., in 1964, and that the couple had a child who died. "He had such presence, he'd just take over a stage and wipe an audience out. probe. They had been married for 4.1 years. Consequently, he left behind a tangled and miserable legal and financial mess along with three wounded women. During the trial, the judge even raised the disquieting possibility that none of his three supposed marriages was legally contracted, that Lymon has no widow. Frankie was that kind of person, Your Honor, Elizabeth said. At her insistence he checked into a Manhattan hospital to cure his drug habit, and maybe he succeeded for a time. We played down certain things and fudged others to make it work as a film," said director Gregory . Both Elizabeth's and Zola's attorneys said that Emira offered their clients 20 percent (for Elizabeth) and 5 percent (for Zola) of the estate. 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. It is copyrighted in the names of Frankie Lymon and Morris Levy, head of Roulette Records, an independent label that bought out the Gee label, which originally released the record. "He had always regarded Zola as his stage mother," Elizabeth explained during the trial. He was a charmer, they all agree on that much. He was inducted into the Army in December 1966, and sent to Fort Gordon, Ga. By the time Pvt. She let him live in her hillside house with instructions to pay bills out of an allowance forwarded to him by her attorney. He had the type of personality that would draw people, she said. Paula Span reported that Frankie and Elizabeth got married in Alexandria, Virginia, in early 1964. Screenplay by Tina Andrews. The Surrogate Court judge hearing the widowhood case pushed for a settlement. As soon as the hearing began, Emiras attorneys alleged that the other two widows acted in concert with Morris Levy. 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. Legacy.com reports daily on death announcements in local communities nationwide. Elizabeth Waters Found 1,173 people in Florida, Georgia and 49 other states. Last in line is Emira Eagle (Lela Rochon), a demure, well-bred Southern educator. When she returned in April, the house was in foreclosure and Frankie was gone; she never saw him alive again. The fact came to notice from a judge during a trial where three middle-aged women (Ash Taylor, Elizabeth Waters, and Amira Eagle) spoke about their miseries. Frankie Lymon/Wife. Maybe it was the afterglow from her Tijuana marriage that induced Zola to trust a junkie like Frankie to take care of her financial affairs when she left to tour Japan with the Platters in December 1965. William McCracken, who represents Emira Eagle, called her at the elementary school where she teaches. It was put on hold until the completion of a new trial to determine which of three women Frankie Lymon was said to have married, but none of whom he ever divorced, was his rightful widow and heir. But her secretary and her booking agent both testified that they were witnesses to the wedding. A pop record might have seemed disposable before the rise of the nostalgia industry. Elizabeth testified that she did not object. 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. By the time I met Frankie, he was a record deal-needing, broke ass, scam-on-his-momma-for-a-fix druggie! His in the end was a wasted life ruined by drugs. The small wedding party celebrated by getting very drunk, not an uncommon state for Frankie at the time. Frankie had started using heroin again, and she was forced to hide the money from his occasional gigs in a hole in the wall of their apartment to prevent him from using it to buy drugs. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Mini Bio (1) Frankie Lymon was born on September 30, 1942 in Harlem, New York City, New York, USA. So Lymon was already a 20-year-old has-been when he met Elizabeth Waters backstage at the Audubon Ballroom. 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. "Frankie was that kind of person, your honor," she said. 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