Joseph Jackson
Encyclopedia : J : JO : JOS : Joseph Jackson
- For other individuals with this name, see Joe Jackson.
Born to Samuel and Chrystal Jackson as the eldest of four children in Arkansas, Joseph grew up a lonely and reserved child who had few friends in school. His parents divorced when Joseph became a teenager and after living in California with his father until he turned 18, he left for Chicago. It was around that time he met 17-year-old Katherine Scruse. After a year, the two began a relationship eventually marrying in November of 1949 in Crown Point, Indiana. The next year, they settled at a two-bedroom house in Gary, Indiana, where the first of their nine children, Rebbie, was born. Joseph had tried careers as a boxer (before marrying Katherine) and a musician (afterwards) but failed to take off. He eventually settled for a job as a steel mill crane operator.
It would be in 1962 that Joseph realized his own children had talent after Tito displayed his talent at playing guitar for Joseph, after Joseph whipped him when he had used the guitar without his permission. Discovering Jackie's and Jermaine's vocal abilities, Joseph formed a group around his sons with two neighboring musicians. Eventually younger brothers Marlon and Michael joined the group eventually becoming The Jackson 5. Joseph got the boys booked at as many gigs as he could, including strip club joints, to get ahead and get a following. By 1969, the group had built a following big enough to get them a deal with Motown Records that year. In 1970, after the group became famous, Joseph moved the entire family out of Indiana eventually settling in a gated mansion located in Encino, California nicknaming the house, Hayvenhurst. During a break within making albums and singles with Motown, the Jackson 5, in the advice of their father, began performing in Las Vegas alongside their other siblings.
Joseph and Katherine's marriage reached shaky terms during their sons' rise to fame when in 1973, it was confirmed that Joseph had cheated on Katherine with a female groupie (name Cheryl Terrel) during a Jackson 5 tour, and had a baby (Joh'vonnie Jackson) by the groupie. Katherine filed for divorce that year but later recanted. A similar incident of Joseph's infidelity came to light in 1979 when Joseph was rumored to have been seen with a Motown executive. Katherine again filed for divorce and again recanted. Both decisions occurred the same way because Joseph refused to leave the house. In 1982, the Jackson brothers negotiated to get out of their deal with their father. Joseph's youngest child, Janet, also left Joseph's management deal in 1987 after rising to stardom on her own terms with her third album, Control. La Toya came under the exclusive management of her soon-to-be husband the following year. In 1997, Joseph and Katherine were together to see their sons get their induction to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
In late 2005, Joseph announced he would host a boot camp for aspiring Rap artists, both to move his career to the next stage and to change what he sees as distasteful about the genre. "Everybody is liking "rap" now. I'm gonna have to clean it up a little bit: all that vulgar language out there. I'm gonna have to keep that clean, with nice singing in it, and great music behind it".
He currently has a home in Los Angeles while his wife Katherine lives in Las Vegas.
Book
- Die Jacksons (German version) Random House (2004) ISBN 3-8090-3028-7
External Links
- [Joe Jackson Hip Hop Boot camp] - Joe Jackson Hip Hop Boot camp Website
- [Profile at German branch of Random House]
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