# Has an Artist ever been assasinated? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 11, 2003, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828 "2003-10-11T11:34:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![doctordoowop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecc23a/32.png) [@doctordoowop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doctordoowop)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/41 "2003-10-12T22:08:23Z")
Sam Cooke was killed by an LA motel manager -Bertha Franklin- in 1964. He was an early sporter of an Afro & supporter of Ali. Hoover had him under investigation as result & some still believe the FBI was involved. A coroner’s inquest was rather perfunctory. ---
**Author:** ![Dignan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f07891/32.png) [@Dignan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dignan)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/42 "2003-10-12T22:33:11Z")
I don’t know, would Chris Borden count? Maybe not since he willingly took a gun shot courtesy of a friend. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/43 "2003-10-12T22:40:10Z")
**Marvin Gaye** was shot by his dad. Don’t know if you’d call that an assassination. Valerie Solanas shot **Andy Warhol** , but didn’t kill him. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2003, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/44 "2003-10-12T22:50:29Z")
Oh yeah, and there was some speculation that [Bobby Fuller](http://www.del-fi.com/feature/bfdeath.html) (of “I Fought the Law and the Law Won” fame) was killed in a Mob hit. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2003, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/45 "2003-10-13T00:35:31Z")
Part of Jelly Roll Morton’s legend is that someone killed him via Voodoo curse, but that’s a little far afield of “assassinations” as I understand the term. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2003, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/46 "2003-10-13T01:57:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fibber McGee \* > \*\*Well, if you believe certain conspiracy theorists, Lennon _was_ assassinated by powers that considered him a threat, but I don’t believe those loons and neither should you. \*\* Like [Stephan King](http://www.lennonmurdertruth.com/index.asp)? ---
**Author:** ![Spavined\_Gelding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@Spavined\_Gelding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spavined_Gelding)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2003, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/47 "2003-10-13T02:26:50Z")
The Late Renaissance painter Caravaggio (1571-1610) was likely murdered. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2003, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/48 "2003-10-13T02:50:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jackelope \* > \*\*Didn’t Bob Marley die of cancer? Or are you asserting that it was all the marijuana smoke that _caused_ the cancer, which would be an effect of the Rastafarian religion’s emphasis on smoking dope, said religion being composed of followers of Ras Tafari, aka, Haile Selassie, the “Conquering Lion” Emperor of Ethiopia from 1934-1970? > > I suppose if one wanted to go out on a _verrrrry_ shaky limb, one could assert that Marley was “killed by political influence.” I.e., assassinated. > > (Note: I’m recalling some of this data from long, long ago in a time zone far, far away, and some of it may not be accurate. Such as “Bob Marley died of cancer.”) \*\* Keep in mind, the “standard” I mentioned was the standard of bugshit crazy conspiracy theories. Last I heard, Bob Marley died of cancer, which is not something that is easily induced in another person without their co-operation. However, doesn’t stop people from floating insane ideas about what “really” happened to ol’ Bob. First I heard of it was in an Introduction to African-American history class, where one student unexpectedly went off on a five minute spiel about how the CIA had him killed because he was bringing white people and black people together and ending racial disharmony all over the world. It was one of the wonderful moments where you could visibily see the professor struggling against her urge to tell the student exactly how dumb she was. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2003, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/49 "2003-10-13T02:57:03Z")
Well, one could also possibly include the death of [Bob Crane](http://www.who2.com/bobcrane.html) in this list, as he WAS found bludgeoned to death, although the murder has never been solved. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2003, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/50 "2003-10-13T03:14:46Z")
Tupac was assassinated … or was he just shot? ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2003, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/51 "2003-10-13T03:19:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by astro \* > \*\*Tupac was assassinated … or was he just shot? \*\* I guess it depends on who shot him and why. Political or religious = assassinated; drug deal or jealous girlfriend = just shot. ---
**Author:** ![doctordoowop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecc23a/32.png) [@doctordoowop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doctordoowop)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2003, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/52 "2003-10-13T03:52:01Z")
spoke-correct about Fuller-doubt it was suicide. King Curtis (sax player) was murdered on the streets of NYC. Cornell Gunter-Coaster- murdered in Vegas. Gaye shot by father to protect his mother. Got probation after it was found Marvin’s pop had a brain tumor & was not dangerous-recall convicted of invol or vol manslaughter. ---
**Author:** ![lost4life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c4cdca/32.png) [@lost4life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lost4life)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2003, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828/53 "2003-10-13T15:11:08Z")
Just some more info on Bob Marley. He did die of brain cancer, but people are referring to an assassination attempt in 1976. It was a couple of days before a concert that was in support of Jamaica’s People’s National Party. Several people were hit, including Marley who took two bullets. There were the mandatory conspiracy theories about CIA involvment, but the shooting was almost certainly politically motivated. Obviously he survived and performed at the concert a few days later. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-an-artist-ever-been-assasinated/206828.md?page=2)