What caused Don Cornelius to die?
Don Cornelius was born on September 27, 1936, and spent his childhood in the Bronzeville district of Chicago.
After completing his studies at DuSable High School, he received his diploma in 1954 and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps soon.
Cornelius did his overseas service in Korea for a total of 18 months.
After returning to his hometown, he pursued various careers, beginning with selling tires and eventually becoming a police officer in Chicago.
In 1966, Cornelius enrolled in a broadcasting school that would last for three months. He eventually landed a job at WVON, a radio station based in Chicago, where he worked as an announcer, reporter, and DJ.
The following year, he started working at a small television station called WCIU-TV, where he hosted his news program.
The first episode of Soul Train aired on a Chicago station in 1970 as a daily local show. The following year, the show went into national syndication, and in 1971 it relocated to Los Angeles.
Cornelius contributed to the dissemination of many up-and-coming black artists to a broader audience through the creation of Soul Train.
Artists such as James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, and Michael Jackson were among those who appeared on Soul Train.
Cornelius became famous for his voice as well as his appearance, but his tagline from Soul Train was what made him most recognized. He would say things like, “And you can bet your last money, it’s all going to be a stone gas, honey!”
“I’m Don Cornelius, and as always in parting, we wish you love, peace, and soul,” he would say at the end of each conversation.
What ultimately led to Don Cornelius’s passing away?
Cornelius had already been experiencing a decrease in his health before to his passing, as stated by Shemar Moore, who served as a host on Soul Train in the past.
Cornelius was discovered unresponsive in his house on February 1, 2012, from what seemed to be a gunshot wound that he had inflicted upon himself.
After his arrival at the hospital in Los Angeles, he was confirmed to be deceased there.
How much money did Don Cornelius have in the bank?
Don made his money through television and music, but he also had a modest number of appearances in films, including the character of record producer Moe Fuzz in the film Tapeheads, which was released in 1988.
Cornelius made his final appearance in an edition of the television show Unsung that was broadcast just two days before he passed away.
According to Celebrity Net Worth at the time, Cornelius’s net worth was believed to be somewhere in the neighborhood of $15 million.
Was Don Cornelius ever in a relationship?
During his lifetime, Don Cornelius tied the knot not once but twice.
In 1956, he and Delores Harrison, who would become his first wife, tied the knot. They would divorce twenty years later, in 1976.
