Dying Off The Radar

[Gisooo 3,737]

Never mentioned here, would be interesting after was just added today

 

Ron Pinkney (Wiki), American pioneer broadcaster who was the first African American play-by-play announcer on a major television network, died on May 27, 2020, at the age of 85

 

[LWCZ 288]

This one is a bit more obscure and, say, perhaps a little less reliable but...

 

Soul blues singer and some-time Bobby Womack and Sly Stone collaborator "Mighty" Joe Hicks seems to have actually passed in 1992! Today I came across "Life And Death In G & A" by Abaco Dream, for which Hicks reportedly provided vocals and I was wondering whether he's still around, as there is little to no information about him out there, other than that he "hailed from" (not that he was born in) San Francisco.

 

As there were basically no records available on a Joe/Joseph Hicks from San Fran on FamilySearch History Search, I took to Facebook to see whether someone could have written anything about Hicks' whereabouts. After a while, I came across three FB profiles which are supposedly of Hicks' children (as they were all putting younger photos of him in their posts wishing their dad a heavenly birthday, along with actual older photos of Hicks from presumably late 80s and early 90s). The thing is that Hicks seems to have aged a lot in those years when compared with the 1973 Midnight Special show I linked to the word "Mighty" (although I'd argue that he's still recognisable in those photos-mainly for his eyes and teeth-, albeit after going basically bald and gaining a lot of weight). Moreover, one of the children also published a photo of his gravesite, but this is where it gets a little bit interesting.

 

Seems like "Mighty" Joe Hicks was in fact born Horace J./H. Hicks (some records have J. in them, some have H., and some have zilch for his middle name) in 1926 (making him circa 47 at the time of the recording of the Midnight Special show, which is still kinda believable, although the later years must've been rough on Hicks). Moreover, when I searched for Horace Hicks through FamilySearch I found three main records, which would suggest that it's him. Firstly, there is a military draft registration card for a Horace Hicks born October 1926 in Texas, but living in Richmond, CA. Secondly, there is an entry from a residence database suggesting that Hicks resided in Los Angeles in 1981 and in Oakland in 1983. Given that Hicks recorded his album in Hollywood, he probably would have lived in Los Angeles at some point. Lastly, there is an entry in California's Death Index for the same Horace Hicks born in October 1926, who passed away in December 1992 in San Francisco, sending us back to the "hailed from San Francisco" bit from the beginning of the post, and who was later buried in Santa Nella.

 

Although the information on him seems to be coming from all around California and seems to be rather strange, I still believe it's him. Additionally, the back cover for his 1973 album also has also a "special thanks" section, which includes names of his wife and children (f.e. one of his daughters nicknamed "Muppi", which is basically confirmed by Hicks' daughter in a reply to Hicks' supposed cousin Ernestine's message on a FB post).