In the 1993 Movie What's Love Got to do with it?, a lot of information was left out of the actual story, when I first seen the movie as a 15yr old I, thought of Ike Turner as a abusive, conning, obsessive, dominating, jealous, wife beating, ambitions, crazed, coke head.
Well, the movie depicted Anna Mae Bullock as a innocent, naive, virgin, who fell into stardom by accident. Anna was no fool, she was talented, hard working, and most of all she had ambitions, she knew of Ike Turners reputation before she became his " JUMPOFF"!. her sister Aileen was working for Ike at his club, and allegedly she was sleeping with him, including Tina's best friend from high school, she knew Ike was a married man, had the keys to at lease 30 women's houses in East St. Louis, and would smack the shit out of anyone, male or female if they got out of line! Tina's high school friend later had a daughter by Ike, named Twanna. Tina played the home girl, little sister role to the fullest, hanging around the club, going over to Ike's house, dating several guys in the band, and even beating up, Ike's other girlfriends, mistresses, jumpoff's when they got out of line! he would pay her $5.00 for the deeds, and even place bets on her, because he knew Tina could fight! Ike would pay her $5.00, but would eventually end up making upwards $500.00
In 1958, eighteen-year-old Tina became a mother for the first time, giving birth to her son Craig in August of that year. Craig was the offspring of Tina's and
Kings of Rhythm saxophonist Raymond Hill. The news of her out-of-wedlock pregnancy and her performances with the Kings of Rhythm
Initially, Turner's relationship with Ike Turner was friendly. Following the birth of her first child, Ike eventually allowed Tina to move in at his home in East St. Louis. During this early period, Ike began helping Tina with her voice. Initially neither Ike nor Tina felt attraction for the other: Tina thought Ike was not the ideal-looking man while Ike dismissed Tina as being "too skinny". Tina later acknowledged that Ike favored curvaceous women. Ike was still married to Lorraine Taylor during t
This unexpected pregnancy caused her mother Zelma to kick her out of her house. she begin work at the local hospital, as a candy striper, renting a filthy, dark, cold, garage from a elderly women for $30.00 a month. After Tina and her infant became seriously ill, Ike offered to help her out financially.
Tina asked Hill for support, he in return attacked her, upon hearing this news, Ike and six of his boys went into a rang of angry, and beat, stomped, and broke both of Hills legs. members of the Kings of Rhythm felt like Little Anne, which everybody called her, was like a kid sister, besides she just had his first child, how dare he hit her?
Hill was forced to return to his hometown of
Clarksdale and never returned back. Shortly after that, Tina moved into Ike Turner's house in East St. Louis. She became apart of the family, taking care of Ike's and Lorraine's for boys, including her own, in which the Turners treated like their very own child, handling financial expenses, medical, clothing, etc. Within a couple of years, Tina was pregnant with Ike's child, and their son, Ronald, was born in October 1960. After moving in with Turner in 1962, she became the
stepmother of Ike's sons, Ike, Jr. (b. 1958) and Michael (b. 1959). Turner was pregnant again with Ike's child in 1968, but after discovering that her friend,
Ikette member Ann Thomas, and the future Ms. Ike turner was also carrying Ike's baby, daughter Mia Nicole Turner born 1969 she quietly had her baby
aborted Ike.
Tina was very submissive to Ike, she allowed him to be with other women, as she did the same, even as going as far as to share the same females, in the band from time to time, Tina was no angle, nor was she stupid, she allowed Ike to do as he please, because in her eyes she was #1.
but from time to time, she would get fed up, and fight the other girls, in once incident, she had just finished a show in Oakland, this is around the time Ikette Ann Thomas entered the group, she exited off the stage, and attacked Anne, hitting her with a makeup case in her face, then cocking her, in front of the entire band. If Ike became too friendly with a female acquittance, Tina would either hate her or become close friends with her, like a young white girl Ike hired in the mid-seventies name Rhonda.
When Tina eventually left like, she went to stay with Rhoda, Ike found out, blew up Rhonda's Yellow Corvette he purchased for her, and threw a bomb into her house, Ike brought her. until this day Rhonda is still on Tina's payroll acting as her tour manager. Ike accused them of being lovers!
Tina was with Ike from 1960-1976, if this man was so abusive, how could you last 16yrs with him?
what time did he have to make you a star if he was beating you every 5 minutes? Tina was a very strong women, she would never allow Ike to simply beat her, she would fight back, and even start the fights with him. Some women enjoy being beat by man, its a sign of love, attention, affection to females with low self esteem. Tina had so many wealthy famous, successful man chasing after her, why would you stay with a abusive, drug addicted, womanizer? because she wanted that
ROCK AND ROLL LIFESTYLE!
Turner was married at least five times. He sometimes claimed to have been married 19 times. marriages as early as 15yrs old he claimed. Turner's first marriage was to an Edna Dean Taylor from
Ruleville Mississippi, while he was still in his teens. she later passed away from a drug overdose, in the summer of 2010, her family blamed him. He then married a woman called Rosa Lee Sane. The marriage took place in
West Memphis. In 1953 he married pianist and singer Bonnie Mae Wilson, who was part of the Kings of Rhythm, but after two years she left him for another man.
[3] After Bonnie he became involved with Anna Mae Wilson, another female pianist in the band, whom he married in the mid 1950s. His next marriage was to Lorraine Taylor, who had two sons with Ike.
The facts surrounding his marriage to Anna Mae Bullock (
Tina Turner), have been very publicly debated, along with the accusations of abuse of his wife by Turner. Tina left the relationship after another violent argument on the way to a concert in 1976.
[ Their divorce was finalized in 1978.
[80] In Tina Turner's 1986
autobiography, she accused Ike of violent spousal abuse. In a 1985 interview Turner admitted, "Yeah I hit her, but I didn't hit her more than the average guy beats his wife...If she says I abused her, maybe I did." In his 1999 autobiography he worded this slightly differently; "Sure, I've slapped Tina... There have been times when I punched her to the ground without thinking. But I have never beat her."
Turner claimed on more than one occasion he had never been officially married to Bullock. In an 1985 interview with
Spin Magazine, Turner stated "As God is my judge, of all my wives, Tina is the only one I was never legally married to." He stated that she took his name in order to discourage a former lover from returning to her.
[ In his autobiography Turner wrote "We didn't recognize marriages", which Margaret Moser believes "is true by the rural Southern standards of the times".
Turner married former Ikette Margaret Ann Thomas in the early 1980s.
[ After his release from prison
Ike was met at the prison gate by blues singer Jeanette Bazzell who later became his wife. With Jeanette's support, Ike enjoyed a long period of sobriety. In 1995, they were married after years of courtship. Ike and Jeanette divorced in 2001 but remained friends. In 2006, he married long-time music collaborator Audrey Madison. She divorced him but reconciled with him before his death.
He has six known children: sons Ike Jr. and Michael (with Lorraine Taylor) and Ronald/"Ronnie" (with Tina Turner), and daughter Mia (with Ann Thomas). Mia Turner was conceived and born during Ike's marriage to Tina in the late 1960s. Tina's son Craig (fathered by saxophonist Raymond Hill) carries the Turner name. Ike Turner also has two other daughters: Linda Trippeter, who is the eldest; and Twanna Turner Melby, who took him in after he was released from prison.
Following Tina's ascent to solo success, Ike would accuse Tina of not being a good mother to her children, even alleging that Tina had sent Michael to a
mental hospital after he had entered Tina's home allegedly to have her and Ike reunite as a couple, family.Tina later denied Ike's allegations and "he gave me those children and not a penny to look after them with". Tina went back to square one, cleaning peoples houses, like she done for the Turners.
Was the book I, TINA released to overshadow the man/ mentor who made a homeless, single mother a star, of course! Tina wanted to get the last laugh against Ike, she felt like having the most successful comeback in Music History was not enough, she wanted to through dirt on his name, assassinate his character, but why? isn't this the same man, you almost died for? being caught in bed, in his house by his wife Lorraine, and standing in front of a loaded gun, to defend his honor? or sneaking out of the hospital three days after giving birth to his son Ronnie, on Wednesday and being on stage Saturday evening was it worth it?
Ike Turner, died in December 2007, and no Tina did not attend her mentors, best friend, baby daddy's funeral. A lot of her actions are very questionable, she seemed more like his bottom bitch, then his main bitch, to speak in Pimp terms! but I have to give credit, where credit do, Ms Tina Turner, gave the instructions to all future Jumpoff's, mistresses, baby mama;s, side chicks, that's if your going do it, land in the history books for it! and most importantly have enough material to write a book or fictional movie about it!
