ZitatRichard Penniman, better known as Little Richard, who combined the sacred shouts of the black church and the profane sounds of the blues to create some of the world’s first and most influential rock ’n’ roll records, died on Saturday morning. He was 87.
His death was confirmed by his son, Danny Jones Penniman, who said the cause was cancer. He did not say where his father died.
ZitatBy his own account, alcohol and cocaine began to sap his soul (“I lost my reasoning,” he would later say), and in 1977, he once again turned from rock ’n’ roll to God. He became a Bible salesman, began recording religious songs again and, for the second time, disappeared from the spotlight.
He did not stay away forever. The publication of his biography in 1984 signaled his return to the public eye, and he began performing again.
Little Richard was a legendary singer, a pioneer of rock ‘n’ roll — and he was also a wedding officiant to the stars.
Following Little Richard’s death on Saturday at the age of 87, tributes poured in where many celebrities, such as Demi Moore and Cyndi Lauper, reminisced on when “the architect of rick and roll” officiated their weddings.
“Bruce and I were so lucky and honored to have him officiate our wedding back in 1987 — thankful for the memories,” Moore tweeted, along with a picture of her and Bruce Willis.
Lauper also took to Twitter to share that Little Richard married her and David Thornton in 1991, and the couple is still together today. Similarly, Steven Van Zandt shared that his wedding to his wife Maureen was the first wedding Little Richard conducted.
And according to a Chicago Tribune article, Little Richard also married Tom Petty and Dana York on June 3, 2001. “He did yell, ‘Shut up!’ at one point,” Petty said in the article. “He was really nervous, but so was I. He gave a long talk about love and its characteristics, and what it shouldn’t do. He was pretty inspirational.”
Little Richard even made a “surprise” appearance at Bo and Nora’s first interfaith wedding on “One Life to Live” in 1995, where he performed.
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