Murder: True Crime Stories - SOLVED: Sam Cooke 2

Episode Date: April 23, 2026

At the height of his career, Sam Cooke was more than a music icon. He was becoming an increasingly outspoken figure in the civil rights movement, using his platform to challenge injustice while navigating the pressures of fame, business, and a rapidly changing America. In Part 2 of Murder: True Crime Stories, Carter Roy examines the final chapter of Cooke’s life, including his growing activism, the events leading up to a fateful night in Los Angeles, and the violent confrontation that left him dead at just 33 years old. As authorities quickly ruled the killing justified, questions began to surface about what really happened inside the motel room. Conflicting accounts, missing details, and lingering doubts have fueled decades of speculation. More than half a century later, the death of Sam Cooke remains one of the most controversial and debated cases in true crime history. Head over to our Murder True Crime Stories YouTube channel to WATCH our video episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@MurderTrueCrimeStories If you’re new here, don’t forget to follow Murder True Crime Stories to never miss a case! For Ad-free listening and early access to episodes, subscribe to Crime House+ on Apple Podcasts. Murder True Crime Stories is a Crime House Original Podcast, powered by PAVE Studios 🎧 Need More to Binge?  Listen to other Crime House Originals Clues, Crimes Of…, Serial Killers & Murderous Minds, Crime House 24/7, and more wherever you get your podcasts! Follow me on Social Instagram: @Crimehouse TikTok: @Crimehouse Facebook: @crimehousestudios YouTube: @murdertruecrimestories To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hi everyone, it's Carter. Exciting news. Video episodes of murder true crime stories are now on YouTube. Every Friday, I'll be dropping a full video episode going deeper into the cases that still haunt us, the mysteries that haven't been solved, and the stories that deserve more than just a headline. Same depth, same commitment to telling the real story. Now, you can watch it. Subscribe at Murder True Crime Stories on YouTube.

to catch a new video episode every Friday. This is Crime House. These days, we can look up anything we want to know about celebrities. But even before the internet, fame came at the expense of one's privacy, especially for someone as famous as soul legend Sam Cook. In his 33 years, Sam Cook had already accomplished so much. He was an internationally beloved singer and songwriter, his record company was reshaping how the music industry treated black artists.

He'd reached a level of wealth and influence that was unprecedented for a black man in the 1960s. And then one day, he was just gone. And all these decades later, we're still wondering what really happened to him. People's lives are like a story. There's a beginning, a middle. and an end. But you don't always know which part you're on. Sometimes the final chapter arrives far too soon, and we don't always get to know the real ending. I'm Carter Roy, and this is Murder, true crime stories, a crime house original powered by Pave Studios. New episodes come at every

Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, with Friday's episodes covering the cases that deserve a deeper look. Thank you for being part of the crimehouse community. please rate review and follow the show and for ad free access to every episode, subscribe to Crimehouse Plus on Apple Podcasts. This is the second of two episodes on the 1964 murder of music legend Sam Cook in Los Angeles, California. Last time, we talked about Sam's childhood, his gospel roots, and his crossover success as a pop artist. We also discussed his involvement in the civil rights movement and his desire to help up-and-coming black artists succeed in the music industry. Today, I'll explain how Sam reached new levels of success in music and in business. Rather than making him untouchable, his achievements left him exposed.

There were plenty of people looking to take advantage of him, and in 1964, one of the, encounters turned fatal. What happened next changed the music industry forever. All that and more coming up. Before you knew what a stock was, you traded snacks, cards, turns. That instinct to trade didn't disappear. It just grew up. With no minimums, no monthly fees, and 100 free trades, TD Easy Trade taps into that instinct. Because you are made to trade, and TD Easy Trade is made to help. Although it would be in the 1950s, the civil rights movement really picked up steam in the early 60s. With people like Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X at the helm, more young people got involved. There were organized actions like sit-ins and boycotts, as well as mass protests

and marches. It was everywhere, even in pop culture, and in May 1961, 30-year-old music superstar Sam Cook took a stand when he refused to perform for a segregated audience in Memphis, Tennessee. It was a huge risk. Sam was one of a select few black artists whose fans were both black and white. By standing against segregation, he risked losing the white part of his audience. But Sam Cook had never backed down from doing what he thought was right. It might have made him less popular in the South, but in other parts of the country, he remained on top. Just one month later, he was featured on PM East, PM West, a late-night show about music on ABC.

They dedicated an entire segment to him called Sam Cook Phenomenon. He performed around a dozen of his greatest hits with a few softball interview questions in between. Sam had been on many popular TV shows before, but a feature like this was still a rare accomplishment for a black entertainer. Sam's personal life was another story. His wife, 26-year-old Barbara Cook, had recently given birth to the couple's second daughter. Little Tracy was just six months old when they learned that Barbara was pregnant again. In December of 1961, she had a baby boy. they named Vincent.

From what everyone else could tell, Sam was over the moon. He loved his daughters, but Sam had wanted a son for a while. But according to Barbara, Sam had doubts about Vincent. He never directly accused her of cheating, but they both thought Vincent

looked a little out of place among the family. He didn't look like either of his sisters with his lighter coloring in big ears. Sam's mother eventually declared that Vincent looked exactly like Sam had as a baby, which helped a little. But out of his three kids with Barbara, Sam was closest to Linda, probably because she was the oldest and could sing along with him. But when it came to his relationship with Barbara, she'd never felt so distant from him. He was constantly working, either on his own stuff or for the artists on his record label S-A-R,

and when he was home, he didn't seem to show much interest in her. Sam was in his own world, and Barbara didn't feel welcome there. And soon they drifted even further apart. In October of 1962, Sam was invited to tour England with none other than Little Richard. This was the first time Richard had agreed to play. play his rock and roll songs since his religious awakening five years earlier. It was an equally big step for Sam who'd never been to Europe, but he couldn't have gotten a warmer welcome. The British fans loved Sam, who took the opportunity to experiment a bit with

his performance style. The people in his inner circle had been encouraging him to tap into his gospel roots. As a soul stirer, Sam, Sam, had a gift for capturing the spirit in every song, but Sam wasn't convinced that a white audience would respond to that sort of highly emotional singing. The Brits proved him wrong. So when Sam returned to the U.S. at the end of the month, he worked with his arranger to reintroduce some gospel flavor into his act. And it turned out, American audiences loved it too. Sam had always been an undeniably talented singer, but now he had locked onto something that set him apart, blending gospel with pop. This new flush of inspiration seemed to trickle into Sam's other

businesses too. On top of their publishing and recording companies, he and his business partner, J.W. Alexander, worked to establish a booking agency too. But there was an issue. Sam was basically funding, S-AR records out of his own pocket. And despite all the touring and record sales, those pockets weren't as deep as everyone thought. Even with his own label, Sam was still under contract with the record company RCA Victor. He was their artist and worked with them to manufacture and distribute the music from the artist signed to S-A-R. It was a complicated arrangement, which made it difficult to keep track of who owed who and how much. What Sam did know was that money was tight, which seemed odd considering how many millions in sales he'd generated for RCA. And that was just

his own singles and albums. SAR's artists sold pretty well too. That money was also missing. Although he was one of their top artists, no one at the label would returned Sam's calls to discuss the discrepancies. By March of 1963, Sam was deeply frustrated and ready to walk away entirely. He was complaining about his money troubles when a friend of his recommended an accountant named Alan Klein. Alan had performed an audit of Atlantic for pop star Bobby Darren, which turned up a huge amount in unpaid royalties. That was exactly what Sam needed. So Sam reached out to Alan and explained the situation.

By May, Sam hired him to audit both RCA and the licensing company, BMI. Within a week, Alan got BMI to agree to pay Sam $29,000. That's around $300,000 today. RCA would prove to be a harder nut to crack. Still, Sam was thoroughly impressed. All of this was happening while Sam was out on his biggest tour to date. For almost two months, Sam performed in 24 states as well as Montreal and Toronto. Although there were other acts on the ticket, Sam was the headliner.

Sam loved it, but it was still grueling. So when the tour ended in early June, he decided to see. spend the rest of the month in LA. He hung out at home, reading or playing with the kids. Otherwise, he was in his office with the door closed. Things between him and Barbara were more or less the same. He took her to social events and bought her presence, but they were more like required public appearances than dates. It was painfully obvious that he was keeping her at a distance. at nights once the kids were in bed, Sam would usually choose to go out instead of spending time with Barbara. To be fair, he was very busy, even if he was supposed to be taking a break, and that didn't stop Sam from continuing to work.

Sam also took the opportunity to get back into the recording studio, and there was always lots to do at the SAR Records Office. One morning, Sam left for the office. He forgot to close the cover that he'd finally agreed to put on the pool. Barbara left shortly after him to run a few errands, which meant the maid was watching the kids. Well, just to be safe, she didn't let them play outside near the uncovered pool. By the time Barbara got home at around 4 o'clock, the kids were going stir crazy. so she said it would be okay if they went outside she trusted tracy who was not quite three to keep an eye on

18-month-old vincent but a few minutes later tracy came to barbara's bedroom to tell her that vincent was in the pool barbara ran out of the house and dove into the water fully clothed she tried to give him CPR The maid must have called 911 because paramedics arrived shortly after. Someone also called Barbara's sister, who was also living in L.A. at the time. She was the one to call Sam at the office. She barely caught him in time. Sam was about to go out with JW when his assistant said his sister-in-law was calling. Something terrible had happened.

He needed to go home now. A music star, whose biggest hit was called Romantic Homicide, has just been formally charged with first-degree murder eligible for the death penalty. This is Vanessa Richardson, host of Crime House 24-7. 21-year-old singer David Anthony Burke, known as David, faces first-degree murder, sexual acts with a minor, and mutilation of human remains in the killing of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose dismembered body was found. stuffed in bags inside his abandoned Tesla. Prosecutors say he committed sexual acts against her when she was under 14, and she was a witness in an investigation against him. When those claims allegedly threatened his music career, authorities say he made her disappear.

Hear the rest of that story and never miss another on Crime House 24-7, where we cover Breaking True Crime News Daily. Follow Crimehouse 24-7 wherever you listen to podcasts. so you never miss a story as it breaks. In June of 1963, 32-year-old Sam Cook experienced every parent's worst nightmare. While he was working in the recording studio, his 18-month-old son Vincent drowned in the family pool.

Sam and his wife, 27-year-old Barbara, were devastated, and they blamed each other as much as they blamed themselves, Sam kept his feelings bottled up, but Barbara couldn't contain herself. She yelled and cried while Sam stayed silent. Even at the funeral three days after the accident, Sam remained, closed off. Sam's family flew in from Chicago. He was surrounded by friends and loved ones, but they didn't think it was their place to try to get him to open up. When Jess Rand, Sam's manager at the time, suggested that Sam takes some time off, Sam refused.

He had to get back to work. The night after his son's funeral, Sam was back in the recording studio, working with one of his artists on their next single. There was still a week before he left for another string of appearances on the East Coast. Sam spent as little of it at home as possible. Anytime he and Barbara tried to talk, she'd burst into tears. Sam didn't know how to handle it. But if he thought being out on the road again would help him feel better, he was wrong, Sam could always turn it on when he was on stage,

but behind the scenes, he was different. He drank more and wasn't his usual, fun-loving self. While Sam was away, his accountant, Alan Klein, continued his business with RCA. Like Sam, he was struggling to get a hold of anyone at the label, but after reviewing the documents from Sam's two companies, S-A-R Records and Kags Music, Alan knew there was a lot of money left unpaid.

Eventually, Alan did get in touch with someone at RCA. He and J.W. Alexander, Sam's business partner, met with a vice president from the label, During the meeting, Alan didn't hold back. According to his calculations, RCA owed Kegg's music around $200,000 in royalties, the equivalent of $2 million today. Even then, the RCA reps wanted to figure out a deal that didn't involve a formal audit of their records.

Alan kept pushing, even threatening to walk away from RCA entirely. He'd taken Sam to meet with reps from Columbia Records just to show he meant it. Eventually, RCA relented and sent Alan all the information he needed. It was a nice little victory, but all the back and forth had given Alan a lot of time to think, and he was cooking up something much bigger than simply recovering unpaid royalties. Allen wanted to create a new corporation that would be an intermediary between Sam and RCA. This new company would take over RCA's artist's contract with Sam, and essentially becoming his new label. It would then grant RCA exclusive distribution rights to those records for 30 years in exchange for free use of their studios.

The company would also get a higher royalty rate of 6%, which was virtually unheard of at the time. For Sam, this would mean total control over his records. He would decide everything from which songs to release and win all the way down to the color of the sleeve. Better than that, he'd own the master recordings. So after RCA's 30 years were up, Sam could re-release and redistribute his songs however he saw fit, or rather this company could.

On paper, Allen would own the new corporation and J.W. Alexander would be its president. Sam's name wouldn't be anywhere on its other than as the artist and songwriter. Alan assured Sam this was simply for tax purposes. Everyone knew Sam was really the one in charge as proof, and they decided to name it Tracy LTT after Sam's daughter. That meant that any money RCA owed Sam would go to Tracy Limited instead. Nothing like this had ever been done before. And the RCA vice president was intrigued by the idea, to sweeten the pot, Alan agreed to let go of the formal audit.

would let RCA do an internal audit and come up with a final number in good faith. Toward the end of September, 1963, Alan met Sam in New Orleans with a check for $110,000 for the back royalties. But the real victory was the advance that RCA had agreed to pay as part of the new deal with Tracy Limited. It was $450,000 to be made in payments over the four years. Today, that would be a $4.7 million deal. On the heels of such a major accomplishment, Sam officially asked Alan to be his manager. Once again, Sam was flying high. But that feeling wouldn't last long. A few days after the show in New Orleans, Sam and his crew traveled to Shreveport, Louisiana for another show. Sam called ahead to Booker,

at the Holiday Inn just outside of the town. They drove all night and arrived at 7.30 a.m. Shreveport wasn't nearly as cosmopolitan as New Orleans. So when the clerk saw the reservation belonged to a group of black people, he said they had no vacancies. Everyone was upset, but Sam was livid. He yelled for the manager, declaring that he had just as much right to be there as anyone else. And when the others finally got Sam to leave, they all sped off, blaring their car horns and yelling insults at the Holiday Inn staff. They had no other choice but to go to the nearest colored guesthouse.

The police were waiting for them when they arrived. Apparently, the clerk had called to complain about a group of rowdy black people. Everyone was arrested, including Sam. Sam, but not for trying to stay at the hotel. Instead, they were charged with creating a public disturbance. Sam and the rest posted Bond and were released after a few hours. It was a humiliating experience. But more than that, it was a painful reminder that even wealth and power couldn't protect him from racism. The sting was still fresh when Sam started a run of performances two months later at the Apollo Theater in New York City.

While he was there, he ran into a young boxer, 21-year-old Cassius Clay, aka Muhammad Ali. They'd crossed paths before, and Sam liked the kid a lot. Cassius was in the city to promote a comedy album he'd recorded with Columbia Records. On the personal side, he was also there to spend time with his friend and personal mentor, Malcolm X. Sam had met Malcolm years earlier. Sam wasn't interested in converting to Islam, so he'd never listened too closely to what Malcolm had to say. But spending time with him and Cassius during this trip,

Sam came to realize that his political philosophy aligned with Malcolm's a lot more than he thought. Sam also believed in the importance of black pride. That was why he'd worn his hair natural for the majority of his career, and why he'd built an impressive library of books on Black History at his home back in Los Angeles. Sam was also a living example of Malcolm's message of self-determination. Starting with his publishing company, Sam had taken every opportunity to stay in control of his art and his money. Not only had it made him extremely successful, but it also allowed him to help others follow in his footsteps. With this new understanding, Sam and Malcolm also became friends and spent more time together over the next few months.

After all the conversations Sam had been having with Malcolm was getting more difficult for him to keep his politics out of his music. One of his favorite songs around this time was Blowing in the Wind by Bob Dylan. He was touched by its message and more than a little jealous that he'd never written anything like it. So, he decided to make his own version. In December of 1963, after a small holiday gathering at his home, Sam played his latest song for J.W. Alexander. It was called A Change Is Gonna Come. And it was the most vulnerable thing he'd ever written. Sam poured every ounce of his own frustration and hurt into the lyrics.

But ultimately, the song was about holding on. to faith in the face of seemingly endless struggle. J.W. was deeply moved by the song and Sam's excitement about it. They both knew it probably wouldn't sell the way his other records did, but that didn't matter to either of them. The song made it onto his album, ain't that good news, released in March of 1964, and while the civil rights movement latched onto it right away, it didn't gain much popularity with the rest of Sam's audience. Still, Sam was proud that it was out in the world. It represented a major personal milestone.

And there was one more that he was eager to check off. A second chance at New York's biggest club, the Copacabana. It had been six years since Sam's first epic failure on the Copa stage, and it still haunted him. The manager of the club felt the same way and initially turned down, Allen Klein's request for a booking, but Alan kept pushing and even got some RCA bigwigs involved on Sam's behalf. They promised to promote the heck out of the show, including securing a massive billboard in Times Square. Eventually, the manager relented and gave Sam a two-week run in June. Alan booked Sam at two dinner clubs and the cat skills just before he opened at the Copa. The idea was

that they'd be dress rehearsals for the real thing. It was a good thing Alan booked the gigs because the performances were a mess. Instead of working with his usual arranger, Sam had hired the one Sammy Davis Jr. used, and he decided not to include many of his biggest hits in favor of songs that a white audience would like. The new arrangements were two instrument forward

and left no room for Sam to do his thing. Not that he was trying to do much of that. He was too scared of failing again. Luckily, Sam had a team of people who knew how to help. They reworked the set list and brought back Sam's arranger. By the time opening night at the Copa came, they had a white-friendly version of a San Cook show. Sure enough, Sam crushed it.

it was exactly the validation he'd always hoped for. After the Copa, Sam toured for a few more months, but he'd grown tired of life on the road. More and more black artists were getting caught up in all sorts of scandals and not just in the South. Sam felt like it was only a matter of time before something happened to him too, so he decided it was time to get back to Los Angeles and take a well-earned. break. He only had two more gigs lined up for the rest of 1964. The first was a five-night run at the Royal Peacock in Atlanta, Georgia over Thanksgiving, featuring two of his top performing groups from SAR Records. On the last night of the Atlanta gig, Sam handed out bonuses

to his musicians. He told them all to get nice gifts for their families and said he'd see them in Miami in three weeks. None of them knew that Sam had just given his final performance. Amazon presents Jeff versus Taco Truck Salsa. Whether it's Verde, Roja,

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Says, I want to buy a monument. It might be unsolved because they chose not to solve. Follow us wherever you listen to podcasts. They ought to tear that satanic symbol down in Elberton, Georgia. The night of December 10th, 1964, started out like any other. 33-year-old Sam Cook had just returned to L.A. after his show in Atlanta. He had plans to meet his friend and longtime sound engineer Al Schmidt at a popular nightlife spot in Hollywood called Martoni's. Al brought Joan, his wife at the time, and the three got a table in the bustling club.

Sam ordered several martinis and kept drinking while Alan Joan ate their food. He wasn't a sloppy drunk by any means, but after all those drinks, Sam was less careful than usual. The three friends chatted and laughed as they drank. At one point, Sam took a wad of cash out of his pocket and flashed it all around. round. Joan tried to get him to put it away and stop showing off. He was going to attract the wrong sort of attention, but Sam just laughed her off. He wasn't worried about all that. Talk eventually turned to business as it usually did when Al and Sam got together. They discussed Sam's plans for the next album. Sam was feeling particularly inspired by the blues lately and thought

maybe he'd try making a blues record next. The night wore on, and Sam showed no signs of slowing down, but the Schmitz had other plans. When they left, Sam was chatting up a young woman at the bar. Before heading out, Al said he was excited to get back into the studio with Sam, but he would never get the chance. The next day, Al Schmidt was watching the news when a breaking story stopped him in his tracks.

Sam Cook was dead. Al and Joan couldn't believe what they were seeing, but the LAPD's 77th precinct wasn't too surprised. According to them, this was nothing more than another shooting in a black neighborhood. Their official story went like this. Sam picked up a young woman, 22-year-old Elisa Boyer at Martoni's bar around midnight. They left at approximately 1.30 in the morning, heading to another nightclub for more drinks. It was around 2.30 a.m. when they arrived at the Hacienda Motel,

about 15 miles south of Martoni's in a neighborhood known as Watts. Sam went to the front desk to get a room where he first met Bertha Franklin, the 55-year-old manager of the motel. According to Elisa, Sam then dragged her into a room, removed her clothes, and threw her on the bed. She was sure he was going to assault her, so while he was in the bathroom, she snatched up the pile of clothing and made her escape. She first ran to the manager's apartment and knocked on the door, but she only waited for a moment before taking off again. Elisa ran from the motel and ended up in a phone booth about a block away, where she called the police at 308 a.m.

Meanwhile, Sam came out of the bathroom and saw she was gone. when he went to get dressed, he would have realized that Elisa had taken the majority of his clothes, which were in a pile with her own. Now angry and in a hurry, he threw on what he could find and went after her in just his jacket and shoes. According to Bertha, Sam pounded on her door in a blind rage, accusing her of hiding the girl. She tried to tell him that Elisa wasn't there, but allegedly Sam pushed past her to search the apartment. When he didn't find Elisa, Sam allegedly attacked Bertha, who claimed that she fought back by kicking, scratching, and even biting. At her first opportunity, Bertha reached for a pistol she kept for safety and fired three shots at close range.

Sam stumbled back in shock. According to Bertha, his last words were, Lady, you shot me. That story didn't make sense to anyone who'd ever known Sam Cook. He was never the type to get physically violent with anyone, let alone a woman. Sam's friends, family, and fans were sure there was much more to the story than the police were telling them. It was also pretty clear that the LAPD wasn't particularly motivated to investigate the case. Native Angelinos knew that the 77th precinct had a relationship with a black community that could be described as negligent at best and combative at worst.

So it wasn't surprising that the investigation was incredibly short and rested entirely on the testimony of the two women. The closest the case ever came to a trial was a coroner's inquest held five days later, which declared. shared Sam's death a justifiable homicide. Elisa and Bertha were both interviewed at the inquest, and while authorities seemed satisfied with their answers, the public was left with more questions. Sure enough, the closer they looked, the more holes they noticed.

For one thing, Elisa said that she repeatedly asked Sam to take her home, including while they were in the office getting a room. But according to Bertha, Elisa didn't say anything the entire time they'd interacted. She certainly never heard the young woman asked to go home. Even more suspicious. Bertha described a harrowing physical fight, but she didn't have any visible marks on her at the inquest.

Beyond that, another guest at the motel that night reported, seeing Sam and Elisa from the window of his room, and he disputed the claim that Sam dragged Elisa into their room. All this put even more doubt in the minds of Sam's supporters. Someone was hiding something, and it wasn't long until the public learned exactly what that was. A month after Sam's death, Elisa Boyer was arrested for sex work. Reports also came out that Bertha Franklin had a criminal record and was a former madam. And these revelations led to the first theory of what really happened that night. Sam had fallen into a trap.

According to this theory, Elisa and her pimp likely saw the cash Sam had been flaunting earlier that night. so Elisa was sent to lure him to the Hacienda motel, which they allegedly used as a sort of brothel. At the first opportunity, Elisa took Sam's pants, knowing that the money was in them. Seeing that he'd been robbed, Sam went after her, which was the real reason he was so furious when he confronted Bertha, who he might have assumed was involved somehow. Despite these revelations, the LAPD didn't pursue the case any further. But Sam's loved ones weren't giving up so easily. The general consensus was that authorities wanted to sweep the entire thing under the rug.

But why? Alan Klein and J.W. Alexander hired a private investigator to look into it, and before long, they realized that as beloved as Sam had been, he'd made his fair share of enemies too. Some of them were in pretty high places, like the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Any evidence that the FBI might have been involved in Sam's death is purely speculative. That said, the circumstances are pretty suspicious.

Sam was publicly associated with Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X, both of whom were on FBI while, watch lists during the 1960s. Those friendships alone would have been enough to put Sam on the FBI's radar. And as Sam became more vocal in his support of the civil rights movement, he would have been seen as even more of a threat. He died just as he was poised to re-release his most political song yet. an anthem that could and did go on to inspire his legions of fans, both black and white, in the fight against racial injustice. It was possible the FBI was working to protect other interests too.

Not only was Sam Cook an influential artist, but his record company was disrupting the music industry as a whole. He was creating a path for other black artists to reach his, same level of fame and fortune, and it threatened the old company's bottom lines. Whatever actually happened that night, Sam Cook's death was a tragedy for his loved ones and his many fans. The family held two funerals, one in Chicago and another in Los Angeles. Between the two services, more than 200,000 people came to pay their respects and celebrate. Sam's life. The case was officially closed after the coroner's inquest, but the pain of losing

Sam so suddenly continued to haunt his friends and family. However, one person was ready to move on. Less than a month after his death, his wife, 29-year-old Barbara, started seeing 20-year-old Bobby Womack, who'd been Sam's protege for years. Her marriage to Sam had been in shambles for years, so from her perspective, it probably didn't seem that fast, but from what others could tell, it seemed disrespectful of Sam, not to mention a little suspicious. And then things got worse when Alan and Barbara pulled the plug on the private investigation. Alan was worried about exposing too much like the state of Sam's marriage. As for Barbara, she wanted to spare her children any more pain.

Besides, nothing they uncovered would bring Sam back. For all the conspiracy theories out there, this added more fuel to the fire. They wondered if Barbara and Alan had something to do with Sam's death. Again, there is no evidence to suggest this was the case. but even Sam's family was suspicious, especially because Sam died without creating a will, which meant that by default, most of Sam's assets went to Barbara. For her part, Barbara felt like everyone was against her. Well, that included Sam's business partners.

So against their advice, she drained all of the money out of Sam's Tracy Limited account and converted everything to cash. She even tried to sue J.W. Alexander to dissolve the publishing company. Bills from the legal battle and taxes from cashing out such large sums threatened to eat up all the money Barbara managed to access. So she gave up the fight in 1966 and sold her half of Keg's music to Sam's old producers. The price she got was laughably small, $75,000, which would be just shy of $800,000 today.

Eventually, the producers sold their half of kegs to Alan Klein. Then in 1968, Alan bought out J.W. For many people, this felt like a slap in the face. Sam had worked so hard to get out from under the thumb of wealthy white men. And in the end, everything he built went to. to one anyway. But his businesses weren't the only legacy Sam left behind. During his lifetime and beyond, he inspired artists who went on to be trailblazers in their own right. Aritha Franklin and Dion Warwick both toured with Sam early in their careers and took his lessons to heart. And many

modern singers credit Sam as a major artistic influence. Even then, it's difficult to know that Sam never got to see his plans through. There was still so much he wanted to achieve, but like any story that's left unfinished, we'll have to be satisfied with what we do have. And when it comes to an artist like Sam Cook, that's more than enough. Thanks so much for listening. I'm Carter Roy, and this is Murder True Crime Stories. Come back next time for the story of a new murder and all the people it affected. Murder True Crime Stories is a Crime House original powered by Pave Studios.

Here at Crime House, we want to thank each and every one of you for your support. If you like what you heard today, reach out on social media at Crime House on TikTok and Instagram. Don't forget to rate, review, and follow. Murder True Crime Stories wherever you get your podcasts. Your feedback truly makes a difference. And to enhance your Murder True Crime Stories listening experience, subscribe to Crime House Plus on Apple Podcasts. You'll get every episode ad-free,

and instead of having to wait for each episode of a two-part series, you'll get access to both at once, plus exciting bonus content. We'll be back next Tuesday. Murder True Crime Stories is hosted by me, Carter Roy, and is a crime house original powered by Pave Studios. This episode was brought to life by the Murder True Crime Stories team, Max Cutler, Ron Shapiro, Alex Benadon, Natalie Pertowski, Sarah Camp, Megan Hannam, Sheila Patterson, Cassidy Dillon, and Russell Nash. Thank you for listening. Thanks for listening to today's episode of murder, true crime stories. Not sure what to listen to next, check out America's Most Infamous Crimes, hosted by Katie Ring.

From serial killers to unsolved mysteries and game-changing investigations, each week Katie takes on a notorious criminal case in American history. Listen to and follow America's most infamous crimes now, wherever you listen to podcast. A music star, whose biggest hit was called Romantic Homicide, has just been formally charged with first-degree murder eligible for the death penalty. This is Vanessa Richardson, host of Crime House 24-7. 21-year-old singer David Anthony Burke, known as David, faces first-degree murder, sexual acts with a minor, and mutilation of human remains in the killing of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose dismembered body was found stuffed in bags inside his abandoned Tesla. Prosecutors say he committed sexual acts against her when she was under 14, and she was a witness in an investigation against him.

When those claims allegedly threatened his music career, authorities say he made her disappear. Hear the rest of that story and never miss another on Crime House 24-7, where we cover Breaking True Crime News Daily. Follow Crimehouse 24-7 wherever you listen to podcasts. so you never miss a story as it breaks.