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| Myra (13) and Jerry Lee Lewis (22) |
In 1958, after becoming famous for his hit songs "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" and "Great Balls of Fire", Jerry Lee went on a six-week-tour of Britain. Upon arriving at the airport, Paul Tanfield, a reporter with the Daily Mail, noticed a nymphet in Jerry's entourage.
“I'm Myra. Jerry's wife.” the nymphet replied in response to Tanfield's inquiry.“And how old is Myra?” Tanfield asked.“Fifteen.” Jerry replied.
The news that 22-year-old Jerry Lee was married to a 15-year-old was not well received by British citizens, and it got worse for Jerry Lee when it was revealed that Myra was not 15. Not only was Myra 13 when they married, but she was Jerry’s first cousin too. And it turned out that Jerry Lee may have still been married to his first wife.
Upon receiving the startling news, the media and angry British citizens besieged the age-gap couple's plush Westbury Hotel. After Jerry Lee's marriage was investigated by the British police, the Director of Public Prosecutions, and the House of Commons, Jerry Lee was asked to leave Britain after only three performances.
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| Jerry Lee Lewis Interview After Return to the US |
After returning to the States, Jerry Lee dodged questions about his age-gap marriage to his cousin. However, disc jockeys in the States and around the world refused to play Jerry Lee's music. Subsequently, he was reduced to being a two-hit wonder, and he went from making $10,000 to $100 a night per performance.
The age-gap couple was married for 13 years, and per Jessica Gelt's Los Angeles Times piece "Jerry Lee Lewis’ teenage bride speaks out [...]" (October 29, 2022), Maya clarified in an interview given after Lewis' death in 2022, "I was called the child bride, but I was the adult and Jerry was the child [...] I didn't miss a beat. I took care of everything."
Jerry Lee Lewis Full Interview After Return to the US
