Obit: “Soul Train” host & show creator Don Cornelius, dead at age 75
Posted February 1, 2012 11:04 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The long-running host and creator of “Soul Train,” Don Cornelius, has died from a self-inflicted gun shot wound to the head. He was 75 years old.
According to TMZ.com, his body was found Wednesday morning in his Los Angeles, Calif., home by police.
In the 1970s, there was nobody who had a cooler voice, slick outfits and a better ‘fro than Cornelius, and every weekend for 60 minutes, he took music fans on the ‘hippest trip in America.’
The Chicago, Ill.-born former journalist created the syndicated dance show “Soul Train” in 1971 when he realized there wasn’t a television venue for African-American recording artists.
And for over 30 years, until “Soul Train” ended in 2006, almost every major soul, funk, dance and pop artist appeared on “Soul Train,” such as James Brown, Aretha Franklin, The Jackson Five, David Bowie, LL Cool J and Elton John.
But it was his dancers that were the real stars as he introduced the ‘soul train’ line where fans learned the latest dance steps.
Cornelius ended his hosting duties in 1993.
In the last few years of his life, he dealt with poor health and a bitter divorce.
