This Day in History: Marvin Gaye Is <br />Shot and Killed by His Own Father April 1, 1984 Gaye's father — Rev. Marvin Gaye Sr. — <br />shot and killed the Prince of Soul <br />three times in the chest following a <br />physical dispute between the two. It was a day before the <br />soul icon's 45th birthday. Despite winning his first Grammy <br />for "Sexual Healing" just a year <br />before, Gaye was struggling with <br />debt, depression and substance abuse. He had recently moved in <br />with his father and mother. Gaye and his father had a <br />difficult and complicated <br />relationship since Gaye was a boy. According to Gaye's brother, Frankie — <br />who held the singer in his arms as he died — <br />his final words were, “I got what I wanted ...<br />I couldn’t do it myself, so I made him do it.”
