Ike: Stop Whining, and Go Thank Tina

Give it up, Ike. there’s nothing worse than listening to a 61-year-old crybaby.

In your (June 24) interview with The Times, you said: “I was the one who turned her into Tina Turner.” No one has ever said you didn’t. You gave her the name, perhaps even picked out her clothes and wigs. But it was God who provided her legs and voice. You can’t take credit for everything she has achieved.

But what angers me more is that you just don’t get this--Tina Turner is a human being and should be treated as one, whether you are married or just working partners.

You were quoted in The Times: “Only time I punched Tina with my fist. . . .” In Entertainment Weekly you said: “I back-handed her once.” How many rings were on your finger that day? In Vanity Fair you said to the interviewer: “I didn’t hit her any more than you been hit by your guy.”

You could have been a role model for the black community. But by your own words, you come off as the worst of stereotypes for black men and for men in power as well. The violence you speak so easily about is damaging and demeaning to women of all races and marital status. When asked if you had any regrets, your response was: “If I had it to do all over again, I wouldn’t do anything different.” Damn, that’s ugly.

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But aside from that, you should be thanking Tina. You have not received so much press coverage in years and that’s nothing to snap at. You have given interviews to magazines, been on talk shows and have started a new career. What more could you ask for?

How about respect.

And you could have gotten that very easily. Had you not denied Tina’s allegations that you were abusive to her and instead apologized, you would have come off as someone who has grown wise in his age. So stop whining. You’re getting paid. I’m sure you get royalties every time Angela Bassett sings “A Fool in Love.” The money in your pocket should start to jingle pretty loudly before the summer is over.

You were a team and you created lots of wonderful music together. You are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Both of you became legends in your own time. The Ike and Tina Turner Revue is something everyone growing up in the ‘60s and ‘70s remembers as the hottest thing out there.

So before you open your mouth to complain about this letter--stop. If you had not met Anna Mae Bullock, how high would Ike Turner have gone alone? It was chemistry that made you two fly high, and when you broke up, you each took a little from each other and all you brought into the relationship. And you left with talent to achieve whatever you wanted.

Now go on with your life, Ike, and stop whining.