Marvin Gaye

Acting

Marvin Gaye

Born 1939-04-02 · Washington, D.C., USA

Marvin Pentz Gay Jr. was born on April 2, 1939, the second oldest child of domestic worker Alberta Gay and Pentecostalist minister Marvin Gay Sr. From an early age, Gaye took an ardor for singing; he believed that this vocation helped him through his severely troubled youth. Gaye's sister has stated that Gay Sr. beat Marvin often and into his teens. At 17, Gaye became a high school dropout, enlisting in the U.S. Air Force. Disgruntled by the humble labor he had to do, Gaye pretended to have mental illness. The service authorized him a "General Discharge." Gaye returned to the D.C. area and set up a vocal quartet with a friend called The Marquees. Gaye's first vocal recording as a lead singer, "Mama Loocie," was recorded with Harvey and the New Moonglows, which was composed of Harvey Fuqua and members of The Marquees. After the group's dissolution in 1960, Gaye moved to Detroit. Performing at Motown head Berry Gordy's house, Gaye drew Gordy's interest; the ensuing sale of Fuqua's part of Gaye's contract led to Gaye signing with Motown company Tamla. Gaye initially wanted a career as a standards and jazz performer. After numerous album releases and chart successes, in 1971, Gaye saw the release of his concept album What's Going On. It was his first platinum-selling album and earned him much critical praise. His next project would be the score and soundtrack to the 1972 blaxploitation film, Trouble Man. In 1981, advised by music promoter Freddy Cousaert, tax exile Gaye moved into Cousaert's Ostend apartment in Belgium. Staging a personal recovery, Gaye penned the song "Sexual Healing," which would be his greatest hit, eventually doing ten weeks in the top position on the Hot Black Singles chart. The song was the first single from the album Midnight Love, which sold in excess of six million units. Gaye then went out on the Sexual Healing Tour, starting April 18, 1983, which would be his last tour. Around halfway through the year, he ended the tour, suffering paranoia stemming from cocaine use. Gaye then relocated to his parents' residence in L.A. Marvins Sr. and Jr. had growing conflict between them for months. Relatives and friends felt that Marvin Jr. was sometimes suicidally driven. One day, Gaye attempted to follow this urge with a leap from a hurtling sports car. He only received slight bruises. On April 1, 1984, Marvin Sr. yelled at Alberta about a lost insurance policy letter; they'd argued about the form for days. A severe thrashing then ensued between the two Marvins, with Marvin Sr. on the receiving end. Minutes thereafter, Marvin Sr. entered Gaye's bedroom, clutching a .38 pistol that had been bought for him by Gaye, and shot his son once in his heart and once in the shoulder. Marvin Jr.'s body was transported to California Hospital Medical Center, where at about 1 P.M., Gaye was pronounced dead on arrival. Celebrities across the world were shocked by the news of Gaye's untimely passing, from Smokey Robinson to Al Sharpton. Following Gaye's death, his awards and honors have flourished -- a fitting legacy for the man titled Prince of Soul.

Acting credits

Whitney poster
7.3

Examines the life and career of singer Whitney Houston. Features never-before-seen archival footage, exclusive recordings, rare performances and interviews with the people who knew her best.

Whitney

2018

The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart poster
7.6

The story of the triumphs and hurdles of brothers Barry, Maurice, and Robin Gibb, otherwise known as the Bee Gees. The iconic trio, who found early fame in the 1960s, went on to write over 1,000 songs and have 20 No. 1 hits throughout their career, transcending more than five decades of changing tastes and styles.

The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart

2020

Marvin Gaye - Visionär des Soul poster
8.0

He was the gentle rebel of soul: Marvin Gaye, one of the greatest musicians of the 20th century. With his unmistakable voice and hits, he left an indelible mark on American pop culture—one that endures to this day.

Marvin Gaye - Visionär des Soul

2026

The Summer of Love poster
7.2

In 1967 an expressive, colourful musical force painted a backdrop of social change, fashion, love, turmoil and war. The world remembers the Summer of Love in 1967 as one of those moments when a unique and creative explosion of music and popular culture arrived in the UK and USA.

The Summer of Love

2017

The Ballad of Andy Crocker poster
6.0

Returning Vietnam veteran Andy Crocker arrives in his small hometown to discover his best friend and business partner has mismanaged their business into bankruptcy and his high school sweetheart has married another man. It is evident his small town has little to offer him except the hard-working life of his father, while the broader world has limited opportunities for a man who left school after the third grade.

The Ballad of Andy Crocker

1969

Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever poster
8.7

Television special taped before a live studio audience at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, California on March 25, 1983, and broadcast on NBC on May 16. Highlights include Michael Jackson's performance of "Billie Jean", a Temptations/Four Tops "battle of the bands", Marvin Gaye's inspired speech about black music history and his memorable performance of "What's Going On", and a Jackson 5 reunion. This performance is noted for Michael Jackson debuting his signature moonwalk.

Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever

1983

TV in Black: The First Fifty Years poster
5.3

Discover how television has reflected the African American experience in this retrospective of the medium's first half-century. Actors, writers and historians discuss the image of black America on television from Amos and Andy to the present day. The interviews accompany clips from groundbreaking shows and performances by entertainment pioneers that create a timeline of the portrayal of African Americans throughout TV history.

TV in Black: The First Fifty Years

2004

No artwork available
7.0

Utilizing a wealth of archival footage featuring Prince, Aretha Franklin, Miles Davis and more, They All Came Out to Montreux is an affectionate story about how Claude Nobs turned his Swiss town into the home for one of the world’s biggest jazz festivals.

They All Came Out to Montreux

2023

No artwork available
6.6

DJ Cinema is mixing up blends with artists like Biggie, Nas, Jay-Z, AZ, Rick Ross, Fabolous, 50 Cent and Jadakiss.

DJ Cinema Presents: Masterpiece Theater Blend Dvd

2009

The T.A.M.I. Show poster
7.9

Hailed by one music reviewer as "the grooviest, wildest, slickest hit ever to pound the screen," "The T.A.M.I. Show" is an unrelenting rock spectacular starring some of the greatest pop performers of the 60s. These top recording idols – representing the musical moods of London, Liverpool, Hollywood and Detroit – packed the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium with 2,600 screaming fans and virtually brought down the house. This is the cinematic record of that electrifying event.

The T.A.M.I. Show

1964

Death In Hollywood poster
6.8

HOLLYWOOD. Tinseltown. Land of the stars. A city where an actor can reach the greatest heights overnight - and descend just as rapidly. What goes up must come down, and Hollywood's failing stars leave a legacy of sadness, pain and disappointment in their wake. Here, in graphic detail, are the shocking stories behind the deaths of the silver screen's most beloved celebrities, as well as it's lesser known players. Packed with stunning newsreel footage, and previously unrevealed facts, DEATH IN HOLLYWOOD documents many a celebrity's morbid demise due to suicide, drug and alcohol abuse, disease, and even murder. From the outrageous to the tragic, DEATH IN HOLLYWOOD leaves no tombstone unturned in it's quest to dig up the truth about Hollywood's dearly departed.

Death In Hollywood

1990

Chrome and Hot Leather poster
5.6

A Green Beret returns home from the Vietnam war to find that a gang of murderous bikers has killed his fiancee. He calls on several of his Green Beret buddies to come and help him take revenge on the gang.

Chrome and Hot Leather

1971

Save the Children poster
6.6

A concert film highlighted by performances from Marvin Gaye, Jerry Butler, and Roberta Flack.

Save the Children

1973

Marvin Gaye - Live In Montreux 1980 poster
6.1

Marvin Gaye: Live in Montreux 1980 is a taped performance of singer Marvin Gaye's performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival, recorded on July 17, 1980. Gaye included this performance as part of a European tour. Gaye performs a majority of his hits from his recent disco-funk hits "Got to Give It Up" and "A Funky Space Reincarnation", to his duet hits with Tammi Terrell including "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" and "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing", in which Gaye re-interpolated the songs as a somber tribute to Terrell, who died over a decade before, to sixties Motown classics such as "I'll Be Doggone", "Ain't That Peculiar", "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)" and "I Heard It through the Grapevine", to seventies standards such as "What's Going On", "Trouble Man" and "Let's Get It On". The Montreux set was later released as a CD/DVD in 2003.

Marvin Gaye - Live In Montreux 1980

2003

The Midnight Special Legendary Performances 1974 poster
NR

The Midnight Special is an American late-night musical variety series that aired on NBC during the 1970s and early 1980s, created and produced by Burt Sugarman. It premiered as a special on August 19, 1972, then began its run as a regular series on February 2, 1973; its last episode was on May 1, 1981. The ninety-minute program followed the Friday night edition of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. The show typically featured guest hosts, except for a period from July 1975 through March 1976 when singer Helen Reddy served as the regular host. Wolfman Jack served as the announcer and frequent guest host. The program's theme song, a traditional folk song called "Midnight Special", was performed by Johnny Rivers.

The Midnight Special Legendary Performances 1974

1974

Mr. Nelson on the North Side poster
NR

Music icons including Chuck D, Orianthi, and Chaka Khan recount never-before-told stories of Prince the performer and Prince the man, and how his unique creativity, in turn, inspired them to do their best work.

Mr. Nelson on the North Side

2024

Marvin Gaye: Transit Ostende poster
NR

Marvin Gaye, king of soul music in the US, "dropped" by mere chance into Ostende and then stayed on for more than a year while waiting for a solution to his numerous family and professional problems. Ostende is a geographical accident in the life of this star who punishes himself with this unnatural exile which does not prevent him, however, from creating and materializing a new album that will provide him with an enormous comeback world-wide.

Marvin Gaye: Transit Ostende

1989

DTV: Golden Oldies poster
NR

Compilation of DTV music videos from on The Disney Channel, combining tunes from the 1940s through the 1960s with footage of Disney animation.

DTV: Golden Oldies

1984

The Day the Music Died poster
8.0

This documentary film is mostly about the New York Pop Festival, which began on July 17, 1970 at Randall's Island, NY, and lasted for three days

The Day the Music Died

1977

Marvin Gaye: Greatest Hits Live '76 poster
6.8

Recorded live on Marvin Gaye's first European tour in 1976, at the Edenhalle Concert Hall, in Amsterdam, Holland.

Marvin Gaye: Greatest Hits Live '76

1976

Motown 40: The Music Is Forever poster
NR

Archival music performances and contemporary interviews cover some of the history of Motown Records and Productions.

Motown 40: The Music Is Forever

1998

Larry presents: Best of The 80s poster
NR

01 Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go - Wham 02 Girls Just Want To Have Fun - Cindy Lauper 03 Wishing Well - Terence Trent D´Arby 04 Let´s Groove - Earth, Wind&Fire 05 Through The Barricades - Spandau Ballet 06 Total Eclipse Of The Heart - Bonnie Tyler 07 My Favourite Waste Of Time - Owen Paul 08 (Feel Like) Heaven - Fiction Factory 09 Oh Julie - Shakin´ Stevens 10 Eternal Flame - Bangles 11 Africa - Toto 12 It´s Raining Men - The Weather Girls 13 99 Luftballons - Nena 14 Precious Little Diamond - Fox The Fox 16 Tribute (Right On) - The Pasadenas 17 You Spin Me Round (Like A Record) - Dead Or Alive 18 The Promise You Made - Cook Robin 19 All Cried Out - Alison Moyet 20 Hold On - Santana 21 The Power Of Love - Jennifer Rush 22 Something´s Jumpin´ In Your Shirt - Malcolm McLaren&The Bootzilla Orchestra (feat. Bootsy Collins&Introducing Lisa Marie) 23 Take Me Home Tonight - Eddy Money 24 Love Of The Common People - Paul Young 25 etc...

Larry presents: Best of The 80s

2004

No artwork available
NR

Jacques Peretti sets out to find out what happened to the game that obsessed him as a kid. In this documentary, he presents an eye-opening account of the sport's heady popularity in the 1970s and 1980s.

Darts Tarts – Welcome to my World

2006

Funky Dance Grooves poster
NR

Video compilation of funk, dance and soul tracks.

Funky Dance Grooves

2004