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 DON CORNELIUS ...in his "Soul Train" days |
He helped put many black
R&B stars on the map
By ANDY MURCIA
of TheColumnists.com
Don Cornelius. the creator of TV's "Soul Train," is gone, apparently the victim of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. This was more than just another shocking headline to me because Don and I were both former Chicago cops and knew each other.
Los Angeles police reports say he shot himself about 4 AM the other morning. Self inflicted gunshot wounds can sometimes be pretty hard to determine. I must trust the LAPD reports since they investigated the case at the scene and I didn’t.
I would describe my relationship with Don Cornelius as a casual friendship. I’d be at the golf range with my son. Andrew Joseph, and we'd often see Don there. He hit a ball pretty well. Early on, when my son was still a teenager, I introduced him to Don and as they shook hands Don almost automatically went into his interviewing mode. Don was always very cool on camera interviewing the likes of Marvin Gaye, James Brown or Michael Jackson. Don had that terrific baritone voice, so identifiable that once you heard it you’d not forget it. He asked my son what school he attended, what his interests were, and how long he’d been playing golf.
Don gave freely of his time in retirement and often spent time just being nice to people. While he knew he had been a giant success on TV, he never really acted differently than when he was a Chicago cop.
Don was always a well-mannered, laid back type of guy. He and I often discussed how lucky we both were not to have to shovel Chicago snow anymore since moving to Sherman Oaks. Don’s home was just up the street from mine.
Don once walked with me to our cars after golf and he noticed a sticker I had on my wife’s car that merely stated the driver was a member of a cop’s family. He liked that sticker very much and asked me if I could get him one. I emailed a retired cop pal of mine back in Chicago and he sent me a couple. I went by Don’s home and dropped that off for him. While Don never got too emotional about most anything, I could see that he was truly touched that I came through for him on this little favor. He thanked me profusely and, while to my knowledge he never put the sticker on his car, he never failed to thank me again and again for it just about every time we met.
These last couple of years Don seemed lonely – always coming to the golf range alone, quietly hitting his basket of balls, and then sitting on a bench and resting a bit. He looked like he was in good shape and hadn't put on much extra weight.
I often sat with him while he was resting and we’d chat about our “old days” as Chicago cops. He once was assigned to the old three wheeler motorcycles durng the summer months and had to issue parking tickets. He didn’t like giving poor people tickets of any kind.
He had some funny stories, like the time he was writing a parking ticket on a shiny new Cadillac and the owner came running out of the restaurant yelling, “Stop, don’t write it!” The guy turned out to be the legendary blues singer Bobby “Blue” Bland who, at this early stage of his career, was just a valet and driver for the great blues man, B.B. King. Don told Bland he had only written the date on the parking ticket so far, so, "If you can show me B.B. King, I’ll not finish the ticket."
Bland ran back in the rib joint and came
out with B.B. King! Don recognized B.B. immediately, but always
with that subtle twinkle in his eye, Don said, “How do
I know you’re B.B. King, the great blues singer? You had
better sing something fast if you don’t want this ticket!
Bobby and B.B. both broke into song, taking turns singing
verses, “If you write that ticket, mister po-lice man,
I’m gonna sure have the blues all day”.
Of course, he gave them a pass and later on they all became good
friends.
Don knew every great R&B act and they all loved him. Don did for black entertainers what Dick Clark did for mostly white entertainers. Don opened the door, starting when he borrowed $400 in Chicago to do a pilot for local TV. That, with a lot of hard work, eventually took off like wild fire all over the world!
Don was the coolest MC anywhere. He gained the respect of all, both black and white. I know, as of late, he had domestic problems and was currently on probation. He also had been under stress with his health problems. Still I can’t see Don taking his own life. I just can’t. I sure hope the LAPD gives this case a second and third look-see and puts it to bed one way or the other. Don loved life, people, and his “godfather-like” position as the guy who blew the door open for most of the legendary black acts in history.
I will miss sitting on the bench with Don at the golf range. I will miss his generous comments about my son’s swing and what a fine young man I had, etc. I will miss hearing Don relate stories about his own two grown sons. Most of all I will miss this good Chicago cop who really made it big with his hard work and integrity as a man of his word. We all knew that Don had lots of “love, peace, and soul.”
Rest In Peace, Copper.
©2012 by Andy Murcia. This column first posted Feb. 6, 2012.
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