- In 1975, he had sustained brain damage from the heart attack he suffered while performing in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. After stabilizing him in a hospital, he was brought to a rehabilitation hospital, Morris Hall, in Lawrenceville, outside of Trenton, New Jersey. He remained there for several months until he was sent to a nursing home.
- A notorious womanizer, he was shot in the stomach by a former lover, with the bullet lodging near his spine. Since doctors deemed an operation risky, he carried the bullet for the rest of his life.
- Posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1987), the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame (2005), and the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame (2013).
- He was voted the 68th Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Artist of All Time by Rolling Stone.
- Shortly before his heart attack in 1975, he appeared in concert on U.S. Public Broadcasting's Soundstage (1974).
- On June 9, 1987 (his 53rd birthday), a ceremony was held and he was interred in the mausoleum at Westlawn Cemetery in Wayne, Michigan. His mother Eliza Wilson (who died in 1975) was also interred in the mausoleum.
- Godfather of Jody Watley.
- Cousin of Levi Stubbs and Hubert Johnson, one of the original members of The Contours.
- Recorded "Danny Boy" three times, in 1952, 1958 and 1965. The later version made Billboard's R&B and pop charts.
- Replaced Clyde McPhatter in Billy Ward's Dominoes in 1953, departed to go solo in 1956.
- Ironically, at the time of his death in 1984, his career was enjoying a brief renaissance, with the song "Reet Petit" reaching #3 on the UK charts and remaining in the top ten for 37 weeks.
- He entrusted his whole earnings to his manager, a sleazy hustler rumored to have mob connections. As a result, during his career high in the 1950s and subsequent decline in the late 1960s and 1970s, he was constantly broke. To add insult to injury, he was buried in an unmarked grave after his death, a fact that went unnoticed until some devout fans had his body exhumed in 1990 and gave him a proper burial.
- Suffered a major heart attack in 1975 in the middle of performing the song "Lonely Teardrops" for Dick Clark's "Traveling Oldies Revue". He fell forward, hitting his head on some equipment, and as a result, fell into a coma from which he never recovered.
- Cited as a major influence for his dance moves by singers James Brown and Michael Jackson, who both have their own signature dance styles.
- Headlined many of Alan Freed's Rock 'n' Roll shows in the late 1950s.
- Had breakout year in 1959 with five consecutive R&B and pop hits including his first million seller and signature standard "Lonely Teardrops".
- He was posthumously awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording at 7057 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on September 4, 2019.
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