Ronnie Turner is one of the two biological sons of the popular Swiss-American singer, songwriter, and actress Anna Mae Bullock (better known as Tina Turner) whose career lasted between 1959 and 2013. He is also the only one she had with her first legally married husband, the rock star Ike Turner. Although he has achieved average fame on his own as an actor, Ronnie’s profile is relentlessly bound up with those of his parents who are both superstars. Read on to get all the facts you need about the actor son of great singers.
Early Life and Career Beginnings
Ronnie was born as Ronald Renelle Turner on October 27, 1960, in St. Louis, Missouri. Shortly after his birth, his parents moved to Los Angeles where he was eventually raised. Thus, certain online sources wrongly claim that his birthplace is Los Angeles.
The story of the Afro-American actor Ronnie Turner’s early life can hardly be told without making copious references to his celebrity parents. As already hinted above, Ronnie is the only biological child that the famous Swiss-American singer Tina Turner had with the Afro-American singer, bandleader, and record producer Izear Luster Turner Jr (popularly known as Ike Turner) – an early pioneer of Rock n’ Roll in the 1950s.
As Ronnie grew, he became a part of his mother’s band as a bass guitarist when she started going solo. But over the years, his interest diverted to acting.
Meet His Siblings
As a teenager, Ronnie Turner’s mother Anna Mae Bullock (now known as Tina Turner) had the habit of frequenting nightclubs in St. Louis Missouri and East St. Louis, Southwestern Illinois, alongside her sister Ailline. On a certain night, they watched Ike Turner perform with his band, The Kings of Rhythm at Club Manhattan, a nightclub in East St. Louis area. They enjoyed the band’s performance but young Anna was totally enthralled by Ike’s talent. She began to desire an opportunity to perform on the stage alongside Turner who she greatly admires.
It eventually happened that Anna was given the opportunity to sing and she impressed Turner who allowed her the opportunity to perform regularly with the then all-male The Kings of Rhythm band. Along the line, Anna fell for the band’s saxophonist Raymond Hill who began to make advances at her. Eventually, she got pregnant by Raymond Hill and had to live with Raymond who himself lived with Ike Turner at the time. When Anna eventually gave birth to the child who she named Craig by Raymond Hill had returned to his hometown in Mississippi as a result of a severe ankle injury he had. So, as a single parent, Anna continued to live with Ike Turner being now the only female member of Ike’s the Kings of Rhythm.
At that time, Anna began to receive a series of sexual overtures from other members of the band. In one of the cases, in an attempt to escape one of the men seeking to have sex with her, Anna ran to Ike Turner’s room. But, once she was in Ike’s room, he soon began to make out with her. The product of that sexual encounter turned out to be Tina’s second biological son, Ronnie Turner. After Ronnie was born in 1960, Ike had to marry Anna in 1962, after which her name changed to Tina Turner.
While her relationship with Ike Turner lasted, she adopted two of Ike’s sons from a previous relationship. The names of these adopted sons are Ike Turner Jr. and Michael Turner. So, apart from having a fully biological brother in Craig, Ronnie Turner also has two half-siblings as just named.
Read Also: Clarababylegs Biography – 5 Interesting Facts You Need To Know
Fact Check: Is He Dead or Alive
There are people who do not crosscheck news items well before they begin to transmit what they thought they read, listened to, or watched on TV. Such people are often the cause of fake news spreading like wildfire and propelled by half-truths. This was the case when Ronnie Turner was rumoured dead. Of course, ‘in every rumour, there is a tinge of the truth’ as it is said.
The tinge of the truth here is that one of Tina Turner’s two biological sons died. That person was not Ronnie, but his brother Craig. Craig was found dead in July 2018 and the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed that the then 58-year old Craig had committed suicide by shooting himself with a handgun.
Other Interesting Facts
As an actor, Ronnie Turner is most famous for the 1993 film What’s Love Got To Do With It. The film which was based on the life of Ronnie’s mother Tina was directed by Brian Gibson.
Ronnie stands at a height of 1.75m or 175cm.
Ronnie has no social media presence.
Ronnie’s mother Tina got into another relationship after divorcing Ronnie’s father. She was in a romance with the German music executive Erwin Bach for long 27 years before they finally married each other in July 2013. The relationship has not produced any issue yet.
Ronnie Turner has been married to the French-American singer, songwriter, actress, and media personality Hafidda Messaï (now known as Afida Turner) since 2007.
