The post After “The Jeffersons'” Sherman Hemsley Passed Away, His Family’s Drama Was Heated appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Although beloved actor, Sherman Hemsley, played the loud and outspoken “George Jefferson” on the The Jeffersons, in real life he was a very shy brotha, who preferred to keep his personal life ultra private. Unfortunately, after he passed away on July 24, 2012 at age 74, that privacy was invaded when the intense drama among his loved ones came to a head. In fact, the battling caused Sherman’s body to lay embalmed in a refrigerator at an El Paso, TX funeral home for over THREE months before he was finally laid to rest.

The reasons for that has everything to do with a dispute over his will, a fight for his estate, a surprise brother, gay rumors, and friends. Yeah, it was a really jacked up situation, but one man who was reportedly close to Sherman, spoke out to clear up the drama.

Hemsley’s Will Dispute
Six weeks prior to his passing Sherman had written the will for his estate, which was valued at $50,000.00. Soon after he died, a friend named Flora Enchinton was listed as the sole beneficiary. In his will, Sherman- who was never married and had no kids- referred to Flora as his “beloved partner.”

Flora stated that she was not only Sherman’s manager, but that she lived with him for over a decade and that they were close friends for 20 years.

Embed from Getty Images

Hemsley’s ‘Brother’ Reportedly Surfaced
After the will was filed a man, named Richard Thornton, came outta the woodwork, claiming to be Hemsley’s brother and contested the will. That is what ultimately stalled Sherman Hemsley’s burial and memorial service for three months.

Sherman’s friend, Flora Enchinton , then publicly contested Thornton’s validity:

Via ABC 7 News El Paso- “It is disgraceful,” Flora Enchinton said. “It is sad. This was a man with dignity.”I have never heard of anyone with the name of Richard Thornton in the 20 years I have known Sherman. … This is not what Sherman would have wanted. … Sherman left very worried about me, about me staying alone, what was going to happen me being alone if he was gone. That’s what worried him the most. I guess maybe he sensed what was going to happen. It just gives me these emotions and feelings (that) all of a sudden there’s these people that have never known anything about our life, about who we are, about what we’re all about, about what we endured,” Enchinton said about the validity of her role in Hemsley’s life being questioned.

Then Came Conflicting Reports About A ‘Gay Lover’

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Rumors soon surfaced, that Sherman Hemsley was gay and that Flora was acting as his ‘beard’ to cover up Sherman’s ‘secret gay relationship’ with their longtime friend, Ken Johnston. There was never any validity to those rumors, but yet they still ran rampant as the fight over Sherman’s will continued. However, Ken’s son apparently shut those rumors all the way down…

Son Of Sherman’s Friend ‘Set Record Straight’ About Flora & Father
Shortly after Sherman Hemsley was finally buried in November 2012, Ken Johnston’s son, Steven Johnston, reportedly spoke out to Diary of A Street King to ‘set the record straight’ about his father’s relationship to Sherman and Flora.  Steven claimed that Flora was really his father, Ken’s, girlfriend. According to Steven, Flora was a ‘gold-digger’ who took advantage of Sherman to ultimately be granted his estate.

Steven Johnston also claimed that Ken was Sherman’s real manager, not Flora:

“The media also erroneously reported that Flora knew Sherman for 20 years, when she didn’t get to really know him until the move in ’99 to El Paso. She became his ‘manager representative’ in helping out my father when he was sidelined by a stroke in 2003, but my father was still the manager. My father told me that they were always talking about getting back to Los Angeles and it was getting close to becoming a reality until my fathers stroke,” wrote Steven Johnston.

In November, Flora was granted Sherman Hemsley’s estate and the legal fight was over.

This drama is probably not what Sherman envisioned the end of his life would have been shrouded in. But thankfully, the man who brought so much joy to the world was finally able to rest peacefully after being buried in a military service in El Paso, TX on November 9, 2012.

The post After His Death, ‘Jeffersons’ Sherman Hemsley’s Reported Family Drama Was Heartbreaking appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Although beloved actor, Sherman Hemsley, played the loud and outspoken “George Jefferson” on the The Jeffersons, in real life he was a very shy brotha, who preferred to keep his personal life ultra private. Unfortunately, after he passed away on July 24, 2012 at age 74, that privacy was invaded when the intense drama among his loved ones came to a head. In fact, the battling caused Sherman’s body to lay embalmed in a refrigerator at an El Paso, TX funeral home for over THREE months before he was finally laid to rest.

The reasons for that has everything to do with a dispute over his will, a fight for his estate, a surprise brother, gay rumors, and friends. Yeah, it was a really jacked up situation, but one man who was reportedly close to Sherman, spoke out to clear up the drama.

Hemsley’s Will Dispute
Six weeks prior to his passing Sherman had written the will for his estate, which was valued at $50,000.00. Soon after he died, a friend named Flora Enchinton was listed as the sole beneficiary. In his will, Sherman- who was never married and had no kids- referred to Flora as his “beloved partner.”

Flora stated that she was not only Sherman’s manager, but that she lived with him for over a decade and that they were close friends for 20 years.

Embed from Getty Images

Hemsley’s ‘Brother’ Reportedly Surfaced
After the will was filed a man, named Richard Thornton, came outta the woodwork, claiming to be Hemsley’s brother and contested the will. That is what ultimately stalled Sherman Hemsley’s burial and memorial service for three months.

Sherman’s friend, Flora Enchinton , then publicly contested Thornton’s validity:

Via ABC 7 News El Paso- “It is disgraceful,” Flora Enchinton said. “It is sad. This was a man with dignity.”I have never heard of anyone with the name of Richard Thornton in the 20 years I have known Sherman. … This is not what Sherman would have wanted. … Sherman left very worried about me, about me staying alone, what was going to happen me being alone if he was gone. That’s what worried him the most. I guess maybe he sensed what was going to happen. It just gives me these emotions and feelings (that) all of a sudden there’s these people that have never known anything about our life, about who we are, about what we’re all about, about what we endured,” Enchinton said about the validity of her role in Hemsley’s life being questioned.

Then Came Conflicting Reports About A ‘Gay Lover’

Embed from Getty Images

Rumors soon surfaced, that Sherman Hemsley was gay and that Flora was acting as his ‘beard’ to cover up Sherman’s ‘secret gay relationship’ with their longtime friend, Ken Johnston. There was never any validity to those rumors, but yet they still ran rampant as the fight over Sherman’s will continued. However, Ken’s son apparently shut those rumors all the way down…

Son Of Sherman’s Friend ‘Set Record Straight’ About Flora & Father
Shortly after Sherman Hemsley was finally buried in November 2012, Ken Johnston’s son, Steven Johnston, reportedly spoke out to Diary of A Street King to ‘set the record straight’ about his father’s relationship to Sherman and Flora.  Steven claimed that Flora was really his father, Ken’s, girlfriend. According to Steven, Flora was a ‘gold-digger’ who took advantage of Sherman to ultimately be granted his estate.

Steven Johnston also claimed that Ken was Sherman’s real manager, not Flora:

“The media also erroneously reported that Flora knew Sherman for 20 years, when she didn’t get to really know him until the move in ’99 to El Paso. She became his ‘manager representative’ in helping out my father when he was sidelined by a stroke in 2003, but my father was still the manager. My father told me that they were always talking about getting back to Los Angeles and it was getting close to becoming a reality until my fathers stroke,” wrote Steven Johnston.

In November, Flora was granted Sherman Hemsley’s estate and the legal fight was over.

This drama is probably not what Sherman envisioned the end of his life would have been shrouded in. But thankfully, the man who brought so much joy to the world was finally able to rest peacefully after being buried in a military service in El Paso, TX on November 9, 2012.

The post ‘Jeffersons’ Sherman Hemsley Was Private, But Family’s Public Beef After He Died Was Sad appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Although beloved actor, Sherman Hemsley, played the loud and outspoken “George Jefferson” on the The Jeffersons, in real life he was a very shy brotha, who preferred to keep his personal life ultra private. Unfortunately, after he passed away on July 24, 2012 at age 74, that privacy was invaded when the intense drama among his loved ones came to a head. In fact, the battling caused Sherman’s body to lay embalmed in a refrigerator at an El Paso, TX funeral home for over THREE months before he was finally laid to rest.

The reasons for that has everything to do with a dispute over his will, a fight for his estate, a surprise brother, gay rumors, and friends. Yeah, it was a really jacked up situation, but one man who was reportedly close to Sherman, spoke out to clear up the drama.

Hemsley’s Will Dispute
Six weeks prior to his passing Sherman had written the will for his estate, which was valued at $50,000.00. Soon after he died, a friend named Flora Enchinton was listed as the sole beneficiary. In his will, Sherman- who was never married and had no kids- referred to Flora as his “beloved partner.”

Flora stated that she was not only Sherman’s manager, but that she lived with him for over a decade and that they were close friends for 20 years.

Embed from Getty Images

Hemsley’s ‘Brother’ Reportedly Surfaced
After the will was filed a man, named Richard Thornton, came outta the woodwork, claiming to be Hemsley’s brother and contested the will. That is what ultimately stalled Sherman Hemsley’s burial and memorial service for three months.

Sherman’s friend, Flora Enchinton , then publicly contested Thornton’s validity:

Via ABC 7 News El Paso- “It is disgraceful,” Flora Enchinton said. “It is sad. This was a man with dignity.”I have never heard of anyone with the name of Richard Thornton in the 20 years I have known Sherman. … This is not what Sherman would have wanted. … Sherman left very worried about me, about me staying alone, what was going to happen me being alone if he was gone. That’s what worried him the most. I guess maybe he sensed what was going to happen. It just gives me these emotions and feelings (that) all of a sudden there’s these people that have never known anything about our life, about who we are, about what we’re all about, about what we endured,” Enchinton said about the validity of her role in Hemsley’s life being questioned.

Then Came Conflicting Reports About A ‘Gay Lover’

Embed from Getty Images

Rumors soon surfaced, that Sherman Hemsley was gay and that Flora was acting as his ‘beard’ to cover up Sherman’s ‘secret gay relationship’ with their longtime friend, Ken Johnston. There was never any validity to those rumors, but yet they still ran rampant as the fight over Sherman’s will continued. However, Ken’s son apparently shut those rumors all the way down…

Son Of Sherman’s Friend ‘Set Record Straight’ About Flora & Father
Shortly after Sherman Hemsley was finally buried in November 2012, Ken Johnston’s son, Steven Johnston, reportedly spoke out to Diary of A Street King to ‘set the record straight’ about his father’s relationship to Sherman and Flora.  Steven claimed that Flora was really his father, Ken’s, girlfriend. According to Steven, Flora was a ‘gold-digger’ who took advantage of Sherman to ultimately be granted his estate.

Steven Johnston also claimed that Ken was Sherman’s real manager, not Flora:

“The media also erroneously reported that Flora knew Sherman for 20 years, when she didn’t get to really know him until the move in ’99 to El Paso. She became his ‘manager representative’ in helping out my father when he was sidelined by a stroke in 2003, but my father was still the manager. My father told me that they were always talking about getting back to Los Angeles and it was getting close to becoming a reality until my fathers stroke,” wrote Steven Johnston.

In November, Flora was granted Sherman Hemsley’s estate and the legal fight was over.

This drama is probably not what Sherman envisioned the end of his life would have been shrouded in. But thankfully, the man who brought so much joy to the world was finally able to rest peacefully after being buried in a military service in El Paso, TX on November 9, 2012.

The post ‘Jeffersons’ Sherman Hemsley Was Private, But Public Family Drama After Death Was Outraging appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Although beloved actor, Sherman Hemsley, played the loud and outspoken “George Jefferson” on the The Jeffersons, in real life he was a very shy brotha, who preferred to keep his personal life ultra private. Unfortunately, after he passed away on July 24, 2012 at age 74, that privacy was invaded when the intense drama among his loved ones came to a head. In fact, the battling caused Sherman’s body to lay embalmed in a refrigerator at an El Paso, TX funeral home for over THREE months before he was finally laid to rest.

The reasons for that has everything to do with a dispute over his will, a fight for his estate, a surprise brother, gay rumors, and friends. Yeah, it was a really jacked up situation, but one man who was reportedly close to Sherman, spoke out to clear up the drama.

Hemsley’s Will Dispute

Embed from Getty Images

Six weeks prior to his passing Sherman had written the will for his estate, which was valued at $50,000.00. Soon after he died, a friend named Flora Enchinton was listed as the sole beneficiary. In his will, Sherman- who was never married and had no kids- referred to Flora as his “beloved partner.”

Flora stated that she was not only Sherman’s manager, but that she lived with him for over a decade and that they were close friends for 20 years.

Then Hemsley’s ‘Brother’ Stepped In & Shook Things Up

After the will was filed a man, named Richard Thornton, came outta the woodwork, claiming to be Hemsley’s brother and contested the will. That is what ultimately stalled Sherman Hemsley’s burial and memorial service for three months.

Sherman’s friend, Flora Enchinton , then publicly contested Thornton’s validity:

Via ABC 7 News El Paso- “It is disgraceful,” Flora Enchinton said. “It is sad. This was a man with dignity.”I have never heard of anyone with the name of Richard Thornton in the 20 years I have known Sherman. … This is not what Sherman would have wanted. … Sherman left very worried about me, about me staying alone, what was going to happen me being alone if he was gone. That’s what worried him the most. I guess maybe he sensed what was going to happen. It just gives me these emotions and feelings (that) all of a sudden there’s these people that have never known anything about our life, about who we are, about what we’re all about, about what we endured,” Enchinton said about the validity of her role in Hemsley’s life being questioned.

Then Came Conflicting Reports About A ‘Gay Lover’

Embed from Getty Images

Rumors soon surfaced, that Sherman Hemsley was gay and that Flora was acting as his ‘beard’ to cover up Sherman’s ‘secret gay relationship’ with their longtime friend, Ken Johnston. There was never any validity to those rumors, but yet they still ran rampant as the fight over Sherman’s will continued. However, Ken’s son apparently shut those rumors all the way down…

Son Of Sherman’s Friend ‘Set Record Straight’ About Flora & Father

Shortly after Sherman Hemsley was finally buried in November 2012, Ken Johnston’s son, Steven Johnston, reportedly spoke out to Diary of A Street King to ‘set the record straight’ about his father’s relationship to Sherman and Flora.  Steven claimed that Flora was really his father, Ken’s, girlfriend. According to Steven, Flora was a ‘gold-digger’ who took advantage of Sherman to ultimately be granted his estate.

Steven Johnston also claimed that Ken was Sherman’s real manager, not Flora:

“The media also erroneously reported that Flora knew Sherman for 20 years, when she didn’t get to really know him until the move in ’99 to El Paso. She became his ‘manager representative’ in helping out my father when he was sidelined by a stroke in 2003, but my father was still the manager. My father told me that they were always talking about getting back to Los Angeles and it was getting close to becoming a reality until my fathers stroke,” wrote Steven Johnston.

In November, Flora was granted Sherman Hemsley’s estate and the legal fight was over.

This drama is probably not what Sherman envisioned the end of his life would have been shrouded in. But thankfully, the man who brought so much joy to the world was finally able to rest peacefully after being buried in a military service in El Paso, TX on November 9, 2012.

The post “Jeffersons” Sherman Hemsley Was Private, But His Public Family Drama After Death Was Outraging appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Although beloved actor, Sherman Hemsley, played the loud and outspoken “George Jefferson” on the The Jeffersons, in real life he was a very shy brotha, who preferred to keep his personal life ultra private. Unfortunately, after he passed away on July 24, 2012 at age 74, that privacy was invaded when the intense drama among his loved ones came to a head. In fact, the battling caused Sherman’s body to lay embalmed in a refrigerator at an El Paso, TX funeral home for over THREE months before he was finally laid to rest.

The reasons for that has everything to do with a dispute over his will, a fight for his estate, a surprise brother, gay rumors, and friends. Yeah, it was a really jacked up situation, but one man who was reportedly close to Sherman, spoke out to clear up the drama.

Hemsley’s Will Dispute
Six weeks prior to his passing Sherman had written the will for his estate, which was valued at $50,000.00. Soon after he died, a friend named Flora Enchinton was listed as the sole beneficiary. In his will, Sherman- who was never married and had no kids- referred to Flora as his “beloved partner.”

Flora stated that she was not only Sherman’s manager, but that she lived with him for over a decade and that they were close friends for 20 years.

Then Hemsley’s ‘Brother’ Stepped In & Shook Things Up>>>

The post ‘Jeffersons’ Sherman Hemsley Was Private, But The Public Family Drama After Death Was Outraging appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Remember Clifton Davis? He starred in the 70’s hit TV show, That’s My Mama, and the 80’s hit, Amen (also starring Sherman Hemsley).

What many may not know is that Davis was a very successful songwriter also, with two of his biggest hits being the Jackson 5’s “Never Can Say Goodbye” and “Lookin’ Through The Windows.”

Another thing most of us didn’t know is that Davis was also a heavy cocaine addict, an admitted womanizer, an abusive boyfriend, and a self proclaimed ‘people user.’ Davis detailed how he somehow turned it all around and began preaching the word of the Bible as a devoted minister. Here’s what he said…

On his ‘user ways’:

“I was committed to getting over with the women, enjoying my life and doing what I pleased. I was selfish and cold, and I felt no shame about it.”

Davis is referring to the reputation he had of using the women in his life. He was in a four year relationship with singer, Melba Moore, back in the day. He also had a thing going on with jazz singer, Nancy Wilson, and a few other celebs, mixed in with the groupie love and one-night stands he confessed to having at the same time.

While all of that was going on, Davis said he was becoming an avid cocaine addict and he said the unstable nature of show business is what sparked it. His addiction kicked in right after winning a Tony Award in 1972 for Two Gentlemen of Verona:

“You’re nervous until you get the next job, and when you get it, you think, ‘I got it because I am great! Then the job would end. ‘I’m nothing. Nobody loves me.’ Finally I got to the point where I said to myself, ‘You ain’t nothing. Let’s get high and don’t worry about it.’ ”

By 1979, Davis was a really heavy coke addict. He’d ruined tons of personal and business relationships and he was only getting worse:

[That period of time was filled with] “invading emptiness. It was all going out, there wasn’t anything going in. I was so high I couldn’t audition, and I didn’t show up for a few gigs. I was coked from morning to night.”

Although he was raking in $250,000 a year from That’s My Mama and other TV appearances, he was still falling short on being able to keep up payments on his drug bill. He eventually had to sell his Hollywood Hills house (in L.A.) and move into a much smaller penthouse apartment just to make ends meet:

“[I sold] half the profits [of the sale of my house] on drugs in six months. I went through a quart of vodka daily. No food—just coke. I was skin and bones, about 130 pounds.” (his normal weight at that time was 200 pounds and he is 6 feet tall).

Then Davis says the domestic violence kicked in and he began physically abusing his then-girlfriend, Ann Taylor. By this time his relationship with Melba Moore and Nancy Wilson were well over:

“I slapped her around a couple of times. Finally I realized I was in danger of hurting her, so I sent her away. Still she’d call three times a day, saying, ‘Don’t snort that—talk to me instead.’ ”

Davis eventually hit rock bottom, overdosed and almost died, until his secretary found him…yet he says he found a way to make her tell him to ‘kick rocks’ too:

“I was there dying, and she couldn’t get me to answer the phone. She used her key to the apartment and pried open the door. I was passed out with my freebase pipe in my hand. She screamed, ‘Don’t you die on me!’ I came to and cussed her out and told her to mind her own business. I drove away my very last friend.”

On that same night, Davis got a call from his stepbrother, who was living thousands of miles away from him in North Carolina. His stepbrother told him his…

family was extremely worried about him and had been holding an all-night prayer meeting for him. Davis said:

“[That phone call] pierced through my heart like an arrow right into my soul. It was a message from God. My stepbrother knew I was about to die. I knelt down and prayed, and my life began to change from that moment on.”

After that moment, Davis successfully kicked his habit and married his girlfriend, Ann in 1981 (they divorced in 1991) and began taking theology courses to become a minister.

“[I realized I] had not been the [entertainment] industry’s fault, but mine. I wasn’t coping properly. My bitterness melted away. God had given me talent, and I realized I could be a Christian and an actor.”

Soon after that, art imitated life, because Davis was taking his finals for his theology degree, when he learned that he’d gotten the part for one of the lead roles on the show, Amen. Although the show had a whopping 32.5 million viewers and Davis was making $35,000 per episode, he was still wearing his $19 shoes he had to wear during his broke theology student days. Davis said:

“I may not be the typical preacher—the Bible tucked under the arm and the somber look in the eye. Yet there’s been a large transformation in my life, and I want to share that with others—not from behind a clergy collar, but heart-to-heart.”
[Source: People Magazine]

It sounds like Clifton Davis’ drug days and years of being a self-confessed ‘people user’ humbled the heck out of him and we’re happy for the brotha. It’s been decades now since his coke days and he’s still preaching to anyone willing to listen. He’s been married to his wife, Monica Durant, since 2000. Sometimes we only truly understand how high we can climb after we’ve hit the lowest point that we can possibly fall. For Davis, that lowest point was the brink of death and he has clearly learned his lesson.

The post OMG! “Amen” Actor Reveals Using Women, Drugs, & Being An Abusive Boyfriend appeared first on I Love Old School Music.