Marvin Gaye Killed: Soul Music Loses Its Conscience
Marvin Gaye spent his final years battling cocaine addiction and suicidal depression while living in his parents' house in Los Angeles. His father, Marvin Gay Sr., was a cross-dressing Pentecostal minister with a history of violence. On the afternoon of April 1, 1984, an argument over a misplaced insurance document escalated. The elder Gay retrieved a .38 caliber pistol his son had given him as a Christmas gift and shot Marvin twice at close range. The singer was pronounced dead at California Hospital Medical Center. He was 44 years old, one day short of his birthday. His father pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter after doctors discovered a brain tumor, receiving a suspended sentence and five years probation.
April 1, 1984
42 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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