Police responding to a address of a cutting begin Cornelius at his Mulholland Drive home about 4 a.m. He was arresting asleep of a self-inflicted gunshot anguish about an hour afterwards at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, according to the coroner's office.
A badge cruiser sat anchored at the aperture of Cornelius' home on a two-lane amplitude of Mulholland Drive in the hills aloft Los Angeles as detectives searched inside. News cameras camped alfresco as drivers on their morning drive collection by.
Police Officer Sara Faden said authorities accept disqualified out abhorrent play. Detectives accept not begin a suicide agenda and are talking to ancestors about his brainy state.
His afterlife prompted abounding to allege of the absolute access he and his appearance had on pop culture, music and the atramentous community.
"God absolve him for the solid acceptable and wholesome foundation he provided for adolescent adults common and the accord and alliance he singlehandedly brought about with his a lot of memorable conception of 'Soul Train,'" said Aretha Franklin, an aboriginal aerialist on the show.
Franklin alleged Cornelius "an American treasure."
The Rev. Jesse Jackson told KNX-Los Angeles that Cornelius "was a transformer."
"'Soul Train' became the aperture for African-Americans," Jackson said, abacus that he talked to Cornelius a few canicule ago and there were no signs Cornelius was upset.
Others aswell bidding their grief.
"I am abashed and acutely afflicted at the abrupt casual of my friend, colleague, and business accomplice Don Cornelius," Quincy Jones said. "Don was a abstracted avant-garde and a behemothic in our business. Before MTV there was 'Soul Train,' that will be the abundant bequest of Don Cornelius.
"His contributions to television, music and our ability as a accomplished will never be matched," he said. "My affection goes out to Don's ancestors and admired ones."
Clarence Avant, above administrator of Motown Records, said, "Don Cornelius' bequest to music, abnormally atramentous music, will be consistently anchored in history. 'Soul Train' was the aboriginal and alone television appearance to advertise and put a spotlight on atramentous artists at a time if there were few African-Americans on television at all, and that was the abundant eyes of Don."
"Soul Train" began in 1970 in Chicago on WCIU-TV as a bounded affairs and aired nationally from 1971 to 2006.
It showcased such allegorical artists as Franklin, Marvin Gaye and Barry White and brought the best R&B, body and afterwards hip-hop acts to TV and had teenagers ball to them. It was one of the aboriginal shows to advertise African-Americans prominently, although the ball accumulation was racially mixed. Cornelius was the aboriginal host and controlling producer.
"There was not programming that targeted any accurate ethnicity," he said in 2006, again added: "I'm aggravating to use euphemisms here, aggravating to abstain adage there was no television for atramentous folks, which they knew was for them."
Chairman and arch controlling of Atramentous Entertainment Television Debra Lee cited Cornelius as a claimed role model. She said she acclimated to accomplishment her affairs aboriginal on Saturday mornings so she could analysis out the latest music, fashions and ball moves on the show.
"He was such a avant-garde in the atramentous music amplitude but aswell in the atramentous business space," she said. "He created the appearance in a actual adverse environment. He fabricated it a success and he fabricated it a destination for African-Americans and lovers of our ability all over the country and all over the world.
"His ability is just amazing, and alone he was such a absorbing man," she continued, calling Cornelius "a abundant accuser who knew how to affix to artists" and had "the best articulation in the world."
Earvin "Magic" Johnson aswell cited Cornelius' business acumen.
"Don Cornelius was a avant-garde & a trailblazer," Johnson wrote on Twitter. "He was the aboriginal African-American to create, produce, host & added chiefly OWN his own show."
And, Johnson added, "Soul Alternation accomplished the apple how to dance!"
Other entertainers and music admirers aswell aggregate their thoughts about the appearance and its architect on Twitter, area both Cornelius and "Soul Train" were top capacity Wednesday.
Singer-actor Ginuwine remembered the smooth-voiced ambassador as "someone who paved the way for atramentous music."
"I still bethink my aboriginal time on body train," he wrote, "what an experience."
On his blog, music mogul Russell Simmons alleged Cornelius "one of the greatest music legends there was."
"Don Cornelius gave artists who had been absolute from a lot of boilerplate cars of announcement a adventitious to accomplish in foreground of a huge civic audience," Simmons wrote. "It was a amazing befalling that afflicted their careers and the accomplished music industry. To win a Body Alternation Music Award meant that the a lot of adult tastemakers in the apple admired your work."
"Soul Train," with its brand aperture of an activated chugging train, was not, however, an actual success for Cornelius, an ex-disc jockey with a baritone boom and air-conditioned manner.
Only a scattering of stations initially were receptive.
"When we formed it out, there were alone eight takers," he recalled in a 2006 account with The Associated Press. "Which was about amid a little atramentous and a accomplished lot disappointing."
The affidavit he heard? "There was just, 'We don't wish it. We pass,'" he said, with chase traveling unmentioned. "No one was arrant abundant to say that."
"Soul Train" had accustomed on the arena at a time if the country was still addled from the civilian rights movement, political about-face and cultural swings. It aswell accustomed if atramentous faces on TV were an event, not a approved occurrence.
"Soul Train" was apparent by some at aboriginal as the atramentous "American Bandstand," the mainstay TV music appearance hosted by Dick Clark. While "American Bandstand" featured atramentous artists, it was added of a advertise for white artists and actual boilerplate atramentous performers.
"Soul Train" followed some of the "Bandstand" format, as it had an admirers and adolescent dancers. But that's area the comparisons stopped. Cornelius, the suave, ultra-cool emcee, fabricated "Soul Train" arrangement examination by creating a appearance that showed addition ancillary of atramentous music and culture.
When it started, bright Afros bedeviled the set, as adolescent blacks boogied and shimmied to the music of the brand of Earth Wind & Fire and added acts conceivably beneath acceptable to get on "American Bandstand."
"May u blow in accord and acknowledge u 4 ur platform," rapper Q-Tip wrote on Twitter. "U will consistently be remembered."
People acquainted into to see the agreeable acts, but the dancers anon became as abundant of a capital attraction. They alien Americans to new dances and appearance styles, and fabricated the "Soul Train" ball band — area humans angle band up on anniversary ancillary while others ankle down to appearance their moves — a cultural flashpoint.
"The 'Soul Train' band — that will go down in history as a way of dancing at parties all about the world," Lee said.
Though "Soul Train" became the longest-running amalgamated appearance in TV history, its ability began to abate in the 1980s and '90s as American pop ability began folding in atramentous ability instead of befitting it segregated. By that time, there were added options for atramentous artists to arise on boilerplate shows, and on shows like "American Bandstand," blacks could be apparent dancing forth with whites.
But even if Michael Jackson became the King of Pop, there was still a charge to highlight the achievements of African-Americans that were still marginalized at boilerplate events. So Cornelius created the "Soul Alternation Awards," which would become a key account for musicians. The alternation aswell spawned the Body Alternation Lady of Body Awards and the Body Alternation Christmas Starfest.
Cornelius, who was inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame in 1995 and has a brilliant on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, said in 2006 he remained beholden to the musicians who fabricated "Soul Train" the destination for the best and latest in atramentous music.
"I ample as continued as the music backward hot and important and good, that there would consistently be a acumen for 'Soul Train,'" Cornelius said.
Neil Portnow, admiral and arch controlling of the Recording Academy, alleged "Soul Train" a cultural abnormality and its architect "a accurate abstracted and trailblazer."
"He fabricated an enduring appulse on American television, one that will abide to be accepted for ancestors to come," Portnow said. "His beautiful, abysmal articulation and abstinent clip consistently articulate balmy and accustomed to the millions who admired and followed his broadcasts."
Cornelius stepped down as "Soul Train" host in 1993. The awards alternate to the air in 2009 afterwards two-year hiatus. Last year's awards were captivated on Nov. 27 in Atlanta, with Earth Wind & Fire accepting the "Legend Award."
In his afterwards years, Cornelius had a afflicted marriage. In 2009, he was bedevilled to three years' acquittal afterwards argumentation no challenge to abomination conjugal battery. In his annulment case that year, he aswell mentioned accepting cogent bloom issues.
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