Jon Elroy (Sanford) Foxx (1922 - 1991)

Born 9 Dec 1922 in St. Louis, Missouri, United States

Ancestors

Died 11 Oct 1991 at age 68 in Los Angeles, California, United States

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Biography

Redd (Sanford) Foxx is Notable.

Redd Foxx was a stand-up comedian and Golden-Globe winning actor, perhaps best known for his role as Fred Sanford in the TV series "Sanford and Son" in the 1970s.^[1]

Jon Elroy Sanford, later known by the name Redd Foxx,^[2] was born in St. Louis, Missouri on December 9th, 1922. He was the son of Fred Sanford and Mary Hughes.^[3][4] His father is said to have left in 1926,^[5] though he is still listed with the family in Chicago, Illinois in the 1930 census.^[4]

Having always enjoyed singing and performing, Jon and two of his friends/bandmates left Chicago for New York in 1939, hoping to make a name for themselves there. They had street band called the Bon Bons and Jon played washtub bass.^[6] In the 1940 census, Jon and one of these friends, Lamont Ousley, were enumerated in the same household in New York City.^[7] Early in his career, by then using the name Redd Foxx, became known as a comedian - his 50 comedy albums sold over 200 million copies. He is best known for his starring role on the television show Sanford and Son which aired in the 1970's.^[8] He won a Golden Globe for that role in 1973.^[9]

Redd was married four times:

• Evelyn L Killiebrew, married November 20th, 1945 in Manhattan, New York;^[10] Redd was living with her family in 1950.^[11]
• Betty Jean Harris, married July 22nd 1956, divorced in 1974^[12]
• Joi Yun Chi Chung, married December 31st, 1976 in Las Vegas, divorced in 1981^[13][14]
• Kaho Cho, married July 8th, 1991 in Las Vegas^[15]

Redd died on October 11th, 1991 in Los Angeles. He had a heart attack while on set for the show The Royal Family.^[3][16][8] He was buried in Palm Memorial Park in Las Vegas, Clark County, Nevada.^[17]

Sources

1. ↑ Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redd_Foxx
2. ↑ "REDD FOXX's Mother Talks About the Son Nobody Knows," Jet, 25 Dec 1980, pages 14-17; image copy, Google Books, (https://books.google.com/books?id=LLcDAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA1&pg=PA14 : accessed 16 Jan 2023).
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} "U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007," database, Ancestry Record 60901 #35531961 : accessed 16 January 2023; Jon Elroy Sanford/Redd Foxx, born 9 Dec 1917, died 15 Oct 1991.
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} "United States Census, 1930," ED 192, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, USA; sheet 1B, line 68, family 20, Elroy Sanford in Fred Sanford household; NARA microfilm T626, roll 422; FamilySearch, FHL microfilm 2,340,157, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XSTH-MWC.
5. ↑ Michael Seth Starr, Black and Blue: The Redd Foxx Story, (Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, 2011), chapter 1.
6. ↑ Michael Seth Starr, Black and Blue: The Redd Foxx Story, (Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, 2011), page 10.
7. ↑ "United States Census, 1940", ED 31-1703, Assembly District 19, Manhattan Borough, New York County, New York, USA; sheet 61A, family 203, line 38, Jon Sanford; FamilySearch, https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K7MK-GZS.
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1} Robert Jablon, "Redd Foxx, Star of TV’s ‘Sanford and Son,’ Dies at 68," AP News, 12 Oct 1991, https://apnews.com/article/21168a6b2f2b59aa45d4aa121279330b : accessed 16 Jan 2023.
9. ↑ "Redd Foxx," Golden Globe Awards, https://www.goldenglobes.com/person/redd-foxx : accessed 16 Jan 2023.
10. ↑ "New York, New York, U.S., Marriage License Indexes, 1907-2018," database with images, Ancestry Sharing Link, Ancestry Record 61406 #1320995 : accessed 16 January 2023; citing New York City Municipal Archives, New York, New York, Borough Manhattan, Volume 45; Jon E Sanford and Evelyn L Killiebrew, 20 Nov 1945.
11. ↑ "United States Census, 1950", ED 30-91, Newark, Essex County, New Jersey, USA; sheet 15, dwelling 104, line 15, Juan E Sandford; Ancestry, Ancestry Sharing Link, Ancestry Record 62308 #168394056.
12. ↑ News item about Redd Foxx and Betty Jean Harris divorce, The Los Angeles Times [California], 14 May 1974, page 2; image copy, Newspapers.com, (https://www.newspapers.com/clip/116641393/ : accessed 16 Jan 2023).
13. ↑ "Foxx Leaves Trail of Jokes After He Marries In Las Vegas," Jet, 20 Jan 1977, pages 10-11; image copy, Google Books, (https://books.google.com/books?id=Dr8DAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA10 : accessed 17 Jan 2023).
14. ↑ "Redd Foxx to Pay Ex-Wife $300,000 After Divorce," Jet, 1 Oct 1981, page 56; image copy, Google Books, (https://books.google.com/books?id=PLYDAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA56 : accessed 17 Jan 2023).
15. ↑ "Nevada, U.S., Marriage Index, 1956-2005," database, Ancestry Record 1100 #2522333 : accessed 17 January 2023; citing Book 717, Page C290800, Redd Foxx and Kaho Cho, 8 Jul 1991.
16. ↑ "California Death Index, 1940-1997," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VGP2-JXH : accessed 16 Jan 2023), Redd Foxx, 11 Oct 1991; Department of Public Health Services, Sacramento.
17. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/2704/redd-foxx: accessed 16 January 2023), memorial page for Redd Foxx (9 Dec 1922–11 Oct 1991), Find A Grave: Memorial #2704, citing Palm Memorial Park, Las Vegas, Clark County, Nevada, USA; Maintained by Find a Grave.

See also:

• FamilySearch Person: L4Q8-YBB
• Wikidata: Item Q712024
• Redd Foxx day in Alabama:
  "Redd Foxx no-show for Wallace meeting." Montgomery Advertiser [Alabama], 1 Jul 1978, page 43; image copy, Newspapers.com, (Newspapers Clip: 116633821 : accessed 16 Jan 2023).