Free Wheelin Bob Dylan Had A Secret Black Wife and Daughter

Free Wheelin Bob Dylan Had A Secret Black Wife and Daughter

Did you know Bob Dylan had a secret, very BLACK wife?

Author : "LorMarie"

Author's Website | Articles from

A few years ago I was reading a People’s Magazine article about Bob Dylan and his works of art. Behind him was a picture of a woman that looked eerily similar to myself. She had shoulder length hair with delicate hands barely covering her voluptuous breasts and was unmistakably black.  No, Bob Dylan was not dreaming of me when he created the beautiful image. However, I could not get over how much she looked like me. Heck, she probably looked like many of the readers of this blog. That’s just it, she looks like “us.” That’s because Bob Dylan loved chocolate according to British author, Howard Soundes:

“I think he dated some of these black girls because they didn’t idolise him. They were real down to earth, and they didn’t worship him. They are strong women who would just say, cut your bullshit.”

The author said Dylan’s music was not popular in the African-American community. “While women from his own, white middle-class background, often saw him as an overawing presence, he was just another guy to African-American women and this was refreshing to him.”

He liked black girls so much that he married his black back-up singer Carolyn Dennis and had a daughter with her. BUT, he kept them hidden from the media. Let’s be fair, though. Both he and his black ex-wife are believed to have wanted to keep their relationship and daughter out of the spotlight. Were his relationships/marriages with white women hidden from the media? That’s a fair question to ask. It is suggested that he tried to hide his marriage to his first wife, a white woman named Sara Lownes:

 Until now, it has been thought that he was married only once, to Sara Lownes, in November 1965, in a low-key ceremony on Long Island. Even then he shied away from publicity, inviting only two guests, his manager Albert Grossman and a bridesmaid.

What if race had everything to do with the hiding the mystery marriage to Dennis? Can we blame them for wanting to hide their union from racist fans that may have hurt their pocket book? Maybe, just maybe Dylan wanted the media to mind their own business. Only the couple knows for sure.

Would you be willing to hide?

Christelyn barging in here–sort of rings true, based on the recent news that Michael Ealy secretly courted and married a non-black woman (presumably) for fear of upsetting his black female fans?

Be Sociable! Share!
Pinterest


Related Posts


Post comment as twitter logo facebook logo
Sort: Newest | Oldest
jakethewrestler 458 pts

Bob is a private man.  The less we know about him the greater the challenge to try and figure him out.  His mysteyriness is part of his attraction.  He's a legend

cns 732 pts

The makes me love Bobby D. (Robert Deniro) that much more. Never hid nothing and dared anyone to speak on it.

Nikki J 345 pts

When I first heard about Mick Jagger having a secret relationship with a Black woman I didn't find it romantic or cute. I thought he was at first ashamed of his relationship. Haven't read the whole story about the two of them so really IDK. But Bob Dylan is different. He's always been a private person, somewhat anti-Hollywood. So it makes sense that he would hide a couple of relationships from the public. 

DeepWater 2518 pts

Always heard he'd married a Black singer.   He comes from a different day, when it was not cool to go public with such.  The man is near or around 70.   So it most definitely wasn't cool to be "out" with a Black woman publicly. However, I am not surprised.  He is a musician after all.   Musicians, though not always, have some type of infinity with Black folk, maybe because we brought that soul (and blues and rock and roll) to music, thus said synergy with Black folk.

AminahMatthews 603 pts

Sorry guys, I was wrong. A big misunderstanding. I thought this was his biological child. But John and his wife adopted Zachary John.

http://www.caramelsonmaplestreet.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/denver_zachary.jpg

 

You can read the article here: http://www.caramelsonmaplestreet.com/  archies February 2012.

Apparently he also dated Mavis Staples back in the day. He asked her to marry him but she said they were way too young but they "courted" off and on for years. Interesting...

LorMarie 1361 pts

I believe that if Bob Dylan had any ill motives behind the "secret", Carolyn Dennis would have spoken up by now. It appears that both agreed to keep things hush hush for whatever reason. 

Catzmaw 13 pts

If he was secretive about his white wife I don't see how being secretive about a black wife could be related to race. Dylan has always been notoriously secretive about himself and his private life. Period.

cocoababe 1584 pts

I think some of us are confusing private and celebrity life. He wanted to shield her from his CELEBRITY LIFE. I'm sure his family knows her, was invited to the wedding, saw the birth of their child, etc.  It's just he never put that info out to People, Rolling Stone, NBC, MTV, etc, because he was trying to protect them..... and frankly its none of their damn business.

Let's stop the "OMGAWD! He hid her because he's ashamed she's black!" Yeah, NO.

introvertedwanderer 1056 pts

 cocoababe My thoughts exactly. The lines have blurred so much that a lot of times the general public has the mentality that celebrities owe us every aspect of their lives, and not just their body of work. A lot of entertainers, regardless of their celeb status in the biz,  try to keep thier relationships and familial life out of the public eye.  Sometimes, it's very hard to do that because of the aggressiveness of the paps based on how popular an entertainer is, but it's not like a lot of these celebs want their relationships and family business out there for all to know about. And for those that are very private, such as a Bob Dylan type of celeb, they take even extra steps to almost guarantee privacy.

 
Maxine 1006 pts

 cocoababe Yes.  He hid his white wives too. I was living in Austin, TX when he played ACL, a huge outdoor concert a few years ago.  He wouldn't allow them to broadcast him on the giant screens because he is THAT shy!

ReluctantGeekGirl 37 pts

I heard about Dylan and his secret wife years ago.  Back then it bothered me, and it still bothers me now.  I am am extremely private person myself and had I married a celebrity, I would keep a low profile (but would still show up to events at random).  

 

However, It's another thing to pretend that I, as a celebrity's spouse, doesn't exist altogether.  

SwirlQueen 1066 pts

Thanks for profiling this couple.  I posted a pic and their story last year.  I also posted a tidbit about Dylan wanting to marry Mavis Staples.  They had "Pop's" blessing and all.  Mavis regretted not marrying Dylan as he revealed in an interview.  At anyrate, Dylan had a respect and love for the sisters. 

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1373789154360&set=a.1296292336988.2044066.1520732982&type=3&theater#!/photo.php?fbid=1373789114359&set=a.1296292336988.2044066.1520732982&type=3&permPage=1

 

  & https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1296292336988.2044066.1520732982&type=3#!/photo.php?fbid=1373789154360&set=a.1296292336988.2044066.1520732982&type=3&theater

 

Here is a pic of Bob with former wife Carolyn Dennis.  http://folkfanlcb89.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/.pond/carolyn_dennis.jpg.w300h375.jpg

 

VictoriaAntoine 452 pts

Yes I know that but Personally If I was going to date white men or non black men I dont like to be seen a secret to them

 

Brenda55 20837 pts moderator

 VictoriaAntoine I can see why they did it. We are talking 1986.  I remember how it was.  Freindofjay has been on the site to say how it was.  Heck even today the hateraid flows in the direction of a celeb who does not date and marry who their fans think they should.

 

 

EarthJeff 3545 pts

 Brenda55  VictoriaAntoine "I can see why they did it. We are talking 1986."

 

Agreed, I can see why he did it too.  As much as I believe it is important that we all show the world that IRRs are fine - and even NORMAL  - because this will slowly help change mindsets, 20 or 30 years ago was a whole different story.  Having a career that depends on fan support magnifies that greatly, too.  

AminahMatthews 603 pts

My answer is YES. I think I would prefer to keep our relationship a secrete if I was dating/married to someone white and famous for safety reasons ONLY. Not just for me, but for his safety and our kids too. I agree with this. I think it was wise for him to protect his family away from racist fans. I mean look at how racist and ignorant people get when they see one of Hollywoods Sexiest Men Alive Bradley Cooper with Zoe. Brad Pitt  and his ex Robin Givens. Paula Patton and Robin Thicke. Halle Berry and Gabriel, etc...

Wakawaka 119 pts

 AminahMatthews Don't forget Michael Fassbender and poor Nicole. That woman has been ripped into shreds by some of his fans who don't approve of her. Honestly I think dating a celeb is hard enough, throw in race issue then fans can get very vicious.

thecrazyartist 2414 pts

 Wakawaka  AminahMatthews

 I feel the same way, after seeing the amount of hate such couples recieve, I would want to keep it private and I don't blame anyone who feels the same.  The death threats, hate sites, ignorance, insults, etc.  It's just too much and a threat to physical and mental well being.  I actually think(this is just a personal opinion) that more white male celebrities(or male celebs marketed as white) date out than the media would lead us to believe.  I remember on a website(years ago) one of the posters said something to the effect "If a white male celebrity is always single he is either dating a black woman or is gay".  Sounds horrible, but I think the media is likely to blow off a relationship if it is a prominent WM star and a BW, just to avoid "controversy" and offending the "fans".

LorMarie 1361 pts

 AminahMatthews

 And when I really think about it, my answer would be yes as well. Being ashamed is one thing, but safety issues brings this to another level.

KingsDaughter 4939 pts

 AminahMatthews  Janet Jackson was secretly married to that other guy for years...I think he was Latino or something.

THE D 111 pts

Well, he also had a long relationship with Mavis Staples. They were even engaged but she didn't want to marry him because he was white.

KingsDaughter 4939 pts

 THE D  I don't think they were ever engaged...but he did ask. That's what she said in one interview.

AminahMatthews 603 pts

WoW, these celebs are FULL of secretes.

 

Let me see...was it Chris that posted this or did I read this somewhere else that John Denver was married to a black woman and they adopted a black child or I think it was their biological child? I don't know. Correct me if I'm wrong Chris. 

Christelyn 9249 pts moderator

 AminahMatthews It wasn't me, but I find that news intriguing...

ReluctantGeekGirl 37 pts

 AminahMatthews  Had to google that one.  Looks like both of JD's ex wives were white.

introvertedwanderer 1056 pts

I happened to recently read a couple of articles about this relationship, and I wasn't surprised that Bob Dylan and Carolyn chose to keep their relationship and the child they had away from media attention.  Bob Dylan is a very private person, and is known to just do his own thing, and from what I read, has a history of having taken up with many women over the years.  It's funny because when I read those articles that described some of his relationships/flings, my  thought was wow, Bob Dylan sounded like the type of dude that women with some sense of self respect would have run away from, instead of getting into a relationship with him. Hopefully, when he got with Carolyn he was a bit more grounded in his behavior.

LorMarie 1361 pts

I should mention that the first quote underneath Soundes's name was from his book, not Soundes himself

KolaBoof1 306 pts

I remember Angela Bassett played Bob Dylan's "mistress" in a film several years ago ...the character was written for Susan Sarandon but he requested they cast Angela Bassett. 

Christelyn 9249 pts moderator

 KolaBoof1 Kola, I bet you have TONS of juicy Hollywood stories you could dish!

AminahMatthews 603 pts

 KolaBoof1 WHAT?! Seriously? First time hearing this.

 
LorMarie 1361 pts

Makes me wonder...who else had a secret???