The Untold Truth Of Little Richard

Publish date: 2024-05-03

"Little Richard" wasn't born with that moniker. He came into the world in 1932 in Macon, Georgia, as Richard Wayne Penniman, the youngest of 12 various and assorted brothers and sisters, according to the BBC. (His mother had intended to name him Ricardo, but a paperwork mistake made him Richard, and the name stuck.) 

Bullied as a child for a limp, young little Richard suffered hideous physical abuse from his father, who once whipped him when he was caught singing for his sisters while wearing makeup and a dress. That father forced Little Richard to leave home. "My daddy wanted seven boys, and I had spoiled it, because I was gay," he told "The South Bank Show" (via The Independent) in 1985.

Little Richard would eventually move west, and bring all of his siblings along. "I raised them, they were little bitty kids when I brought them to California," he told Rolling Stone in 1970. Of the collective seven boys and five girls, Richard was the only entertainer or public figure. "I have two sisters that are registered nurses, and one of my brothers is a C.P.A., all of them have good positions now." Brother Peyton, who played in Little Richard's band, did a stint in the military.

If you or someone you know may be the victim of child abuse, please contact the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.

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