Born Clerow Wilson Jr. in Jersey City, New Jersey, he was one of ten children born to Cornelia Bullock and Clerow Wilson Sr. His father worked as a handyman but, because of the Great Depression, was often out of work. When Wils… 展开

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Wilson toured regularly through nightclubs with a black clientele in the so-called "Chitlin' Circuit". During the 1960s, Wilson became a regular at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. An unexpected brea… 展开

Wilson was married twice. In 1957, he married Lavenia Patricia "Peaches" Wilson (née Dean); they divorced in 1967. He had four children with his common-law wife Blonell Pitman. After winning custody of his children in 1979… 展开

On November 25, 1998, Wilson died from metastatic biliary cancer in Malibu, California. He was cremated at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery and his ashes were scattered off Malibu Beach. 展开