# Sam Cooke Explanation Incomplete **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [May 18, 2010, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-cooke-explanation-incomplete/539897 "2010-05-18T16:23:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dkuva](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/edb3f5/32.png) [@dkuva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dkuva)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-cooke-explanation-incomplete/539897/1 "2010-05-18T16:23:34Z")
Although that may be the quick newspaper blurb summary of Sam Cooke’s demise, it makes no sense in light of reality. First – Sam Cooke was seen with a large roll of money on the night he was killed. Why on earth would he have gone all the away across town to the Hacienda Hotel for this assignation? The answer is Elisa Boyer, the woman he was with was a hooker and this was her base of operations. Sam Cooke went into the room with her and she grabbed his clothes, including his wallet, keys, etc. You’d be angry too if you’d just been robbed. He chased her to the motel office, where the motel desk clerk shot and killed him. Given that this was a regular place of business for prostitutes, the house was most likely in on the robbery. There’s also speculation that it was a setup for an intentional murder which hired Elisa Boyer to play her part. But whatever it was, it surely doesn’t seem to be as Cecil’s explanation describes. As a starting point, you may want to look at the Wikipedia article on Sam Cooke. Reading as much as you can on this makes it clear that he was not raping Elisa Boyer and she was not fleeing for her life. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-cooke-explanation-incomplete/539897/2 "2010-05-18T20:51:04Z")
Here’s the link to Cecil’s column: [Odd descriptor in Sam Cooke article - Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=563646) **dkuva** , when starting a thread, it’s helpful to other readers if you provide a link to the column. In this case, it’s a classic (from 1976) and currently on the front page, but it will soon sink into the depths. So, providing the link saves searching time and helps keep us all on the front page. ---
**Author:** ![DChord568](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@DChord568](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DChord568)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-cooke-explanation-incomplete/539897/3 "2010-05-19T18:01:10Z")
As dkuva says, there’s way more to it than the perfunctory account given in Cecil’s decades-old column. The most thorough explanation of the circumstances regarding Cooke’s death is found in Peter Guralnick’s fine book [Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke](http://www.amazon.com/Dream-Boogie-Triumph-Sam-Cooke/dp/B0015UXNTE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1274291771&sr=1-1). Highly recommended, and here’s a tip for scoring a copy. If you have a Big Lots store anywhere in your neck of the woods, check their book selection. I found a hardback copy for $3 a few months ago, and they had many more in the several different stores I checked over a period of time. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-cooke-explanation-incomplete/539897/4 "2010-05-19T19:51:41Z")
Psst, Dex, are you rusty? The actual column is [What are the circumstances surrounding the death of R&B great Sam Cooke? - The Straight Dope](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/288/what-are-the-circumstances-surrounding-the-death-of-r-b-great-sam-cooke) I will grant from Cecil’s description it certainly sounds more likely she was a prostitute and tried to steal his stuff. Not sure if the desk manager was in on it or if that part was self-defense because Cooke assumed she was in on it. ---
**Author:** ![chorpler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chorpler/32/2888_2.png) [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2010, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sam-cooke-explanation-incomplete/539897/5 "2010-05-20T07:55:03Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Psst, Dex, are you rusty? The actual column is [What are the circumstances surrounding the death of R&B great Sam Cooke? - The Straight Dope](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/288/what-are-the-circumstances-surrounding-the-death-of-r-b-great-sam-cooke) > > I will grant from Cecil’s description it certainly sounds more likely she was a prostitute and tried to steal his stuff. Not sure if the desk manager was in on it or if that part was self-defense because Cooke assumed she was in on it. The Wikipedia article says that Elisa Boyer (why does Cecil’s article call her Linda Boyer?) was arrested for prostitution a few months after her involvement in the Sam Cooke incident. If true, it certainly seems likely that she was a prostitute then as well.