Marvin's father at court few days after Marvin's death.

Mstrustme said:

...which is a very defensive, self-comforting position. Body language experts would say these are two people that don't trust each other very much.

Timmy84 said:

Now THIS is how I remember seeing his dad. Also confirms that it was a wig he was wearing in the earlier clip. He wouldn't have lost THAT much hair in the 10 years between The Midnight Special interview and his sons death.

PDogz said:

Yeah that was definitely a wig he was wearing on The Midnight Special.

graecophilos said:[quote]I can not believe this is Marvin's father.
He doesn't look like Marvin at hall. Different hair, different skull structure, different everything. Also they look the same age, not like father and sun.
[quote]

We've never seen a picture of Marvin Sr when he was young so it's a bad comparison, but I know what you mean. Marvin's late younger brother and his two sisters look like their father, Marvin and his brother Mike (of course) look like their mother.
[Edited 5/26/09 11:07am]

thatruth said:[quote]graecophilos said:[quote]I can not believe this is Marvin's father.
He doesn't look like Marvin at hall. Different hair, different skull structure, different everything. Also they look the same age, not like father and sun.




This is Frankie from '89...

funkpill said:

Marvin's dad was a cross-dresser, so his hair being like that is no surprise.

Timmy84 said:[quote]thatruth said:[quote]

graecophilos said:

OMFG

Looks A LOT like Marvin.

Still, why should his dad wear a wig. was he that vein. Or forced? It's a ridicioulous wig anyway.

daPrettyman said:

Marvin said when he was a kid (and I assume he saw him as he got older) that he'd see his father put on one of his mother's wigs and wear his mother's clothes and get all dressed up. Marvin's dad was in his drag in that interview.

Timmy84 said:

Very much so. I wonder if he had escapades with other men? He seems like the kind that might experiment.

I remember reading in one Marvin biography that his father mostly wore women's underwear (bras, panties, etc.) and would sleep in womens pajamas and robes.

daPrettyman said:

WHAAAT? I thought his father was homophobe and beat the shit outta Marvin when he was small.

So his father was a transvestite or what, what ??

what do you mean, his father was in his drag? This ain't women's clothes, he would have had to go to jail.

graecophilos said:

His father was confused.

Plus just because he seemed puny don't mean he didn't put fear into his children. Marvin was definitely scared of him, one question could result in a whooping because Marvin was very defiant (something Marvin Sr. never liked, he hated being questioned). That's why Marvin hated authority. Why you think he and Berry's relationship was rocky?

And he did wear women's clothes even if it didn't appear to be and you can't go to jail for that in America.

graecophilos said:

He wasn't a homophobe, but he was abusive. From my understanding, he was abusive to his whole family...not just Marvin.

Yes, he was definitely a TV. He loved womem's clothing.

Timmy84 said:

I read that Marvin Jr. was stubborn. A lot of people were stubborn and Marvin Jr. got ass whoopin's like 99% of all black kids at that time did. They called it discipline then, now it's referred to as abuse.

Timmy84 said:

man, this brings in totally different component in my concept of MG's biography.

So, was it a common fact that his father was confused (was he bicurious?) and that he whore women's clothes? Just underwear in public? In this interview it doesn't look like men or women's wear!

I thought up until the 1970s men were sent into prison for wearing women's clothes. A land that still has death penalty would do this as well.

daPrettyman said:

a stubborn kinda fella

is the word stubborn out of fashion? sounds not current to me.

But Marvin was more rebellion
than the other siblings

daPrettyman said:

Yeah Marvin indeed was stubborn. That's why his life in many ways reflected his art. His first hit WAS "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" (and he co-wrote that). I also heard Marvin pushed his father to the brink doing any little thing: using his hairbrush, stealing his chewing gum (Marvin was a notorious gum chewer) and getting home five minutes or so after he was supposed to have come home since his father raised his family with strict values. He whipped Marvin and the others if they got the answer to a question in the Bible wrong.
[Edited 5/26/09 13:46pm]

graecophilos said:

You can't go to jail in the US for wearing clothing from the opposite sex.

I don't know if he was bi-curious or not. From my understanding, the majority of TVs are straight, married, have kids and have no desire to be with women or become a woman. They just like wearing womens clothing.

You really should read this:

Timmy84 said:

such a fag daddy, i would treat him disrespetcfully as well. I don't have anything against gays, but I hate closeted men who are tvs and pretend to be tough and aggressive.
[Edited 5/26/09 13:49pm]

daPrettyman said:

Yeah Marvin's dad was straight. In fact Marvin said at one point in his adult years (I think early adult years) he started to have the same fascination with women's clothes as his father did but because seeing that scarred Marvin, he shed away from it quick. That's why he began to do things his father had prohibited him to do like sports. When he first emerged, he was as skinny as his dad but as he got older, he began bulking up and he also grew his beard so people wouldn't think he was a "punk". It was to get away from the stupid criticism they gave him and his family.

graecophilos said:

In the Black community, especially during the time Marvin grew up, you couldn't do that without repercussions. During that time, children were supposed to be seen and not heard. Children didn't have any opinions and had to obey. If they didn't, they were definitely going to get a beating.

daPrettyman said:

Yeah it was called corporal punishment. That's what another star (I won't mention his name) had to go through too.

Timmy84 said:

More than one went though the same thing and tell a similar story. MJ, Prince, Stevie Wonder, etc. It was just common in Black America at the time. Now, we are so conditioned to White America's ideas of discipline for our children and we have have a high percentage of teens and 20-somethings in jail or dead due to a lack of upbringing. OK, I'll shut up. I can go on and on about this.

daPrettyman said:

I feel ya...

But anyway, back to Marvin and his dad. You know what's funny about this. We hear so much about Marvin, Sr. & Marvin, Jr. not getting along but deep down inside Marvin really LOVED his father. He tried to understand his dad near the end of his life. That's why his music included religious themes in later years (from "What's Going On" onwards).

In fact these songs were dedicated to Marvin, Sr.:
"Everybody Needs Love" (and my father, he needs love...)
"Praise" and "Love Party" both had religious themes in it so did "Love Me Now or Love Me Later", in the latter song's alternate version, Marvin recites a hymn.
"Joy" (Marvin openly dedicated the song to his dad during his final world tour).

daPrettyman said:

daprettyman, you sound like a 70 yo old cynical man. Not beating your children should be the norm for everyone, whites, blacks, greens and fags.

i never heard Stevie was punished. A slappy here and there, but... of all the huge stars (maybe Paul McCartney as well) he seemed to be really fine with his childhood and youth, that's probably why he appears to be a nice, social and lucky man.

Timmy84 said:

I wish real clips of his final world tour would emerge.

graecophilos said:

You have to have walked in my shoes to understand. I'm not 70, but I have grew up in the South and have experienced things you probably wouldn't begin to understand. I know you aren't beating me up, nor am I on you, but being an American is different for everyone. Now, I'm done with that.

"Sneaking out the back door
To hang out with those hoodlum friends of mine
Greeted at the back door
With "boy I thought I told you not to go outside"
Trying all your best to bring the water to your eyes
Thinking it might stop her from WHOOPING YOUR BEHIND!" - Stevie Wonder, "I Wish" (1977)

Timmy84 said:

Stevie regularly mentions how his mother beat his ass for being mischievous growing up.