Berry Gordy born 28 November 1929

Berry Gordy, Jr., was born in 1929 and reared in Detroit. Gordy dropped out of Northeastern High School in his junior year to pursue a career as a Featherweight boxer. Between 1948 and 1951 he fought 15 Golden Gloves matches, 12 of which he won, but his fighting career was clipped short when he was drafted to serve in the Korean War. Upon his discharge from the Army in 1953, Berry Gordy returned to Detroit and used his service pay to open the Three-D Record Mart. His love for the jazz of Stan Kenton, Charlie Parker, and Thelonius Monk influenced his inventory more than his customers' requests for "things like Fats Domino," and his business soon failed. 

Gordy worked for his father for a short period and then as a chrome trimmer on the assembly line at the Ford Motor Company. The monotony was formidable, and Gordy's way of overcoming it was to write songs in his head, some of which were recorded by local singers. Decca Records bought several of his compositions, including "Reet Petite" and "Lonely Teardrops" (both recorded by Jackie Wilson), and when Gordy compared his royalty checks to what Decca made from the modest hits, he realized that writing the hits wasn't enough. He needed to own them. 

In 1959, again borrowing money from his father, he founded a music publishing company, Jobete, then two record labels, Tamla Record Company and later in the year Motown. Also in 1959 Gordy purchased the house on Detroit’s Grand Boulevard that would become known as Hitsville USA. He converted a photography studio near the back of the property into a recording studio, set up administrative offices on the first floor, and moved his family to the second floor of the two-family flat.

In 1960, Gordy officially incorporated his company, Motown Records including Tamla Records under the Motown Record Corporation name. The company enjoyed quick success, with its first release “Money (That’s What I Want)” by Barrett Strong in 1960. That same year “Shop Around” by The Miracles was Motown’s first record to sell more than one million copies. In the late 1960s, Gordy lived in a 1917 Italianate mansion with pool house and five-car garage in Detroit’s Boston-Edison district, which he sold in 2002.

From 1961 to 1971, Motown Record Corporation enjoyed over one hundred Top Ten hits, from artists that included Stevie Wonder, The Supremes, The Marvelettes, Marvin Gaye, and The Four Tops. By 1966 the company was taking in $20 million and added four more properties to its Grand Boulevard headquarters. By 1967 there were five labels under the Motown umbrella. In 1972, Gordy moved Motown Records to Los Angeles. 

Although Gordy continued his songwriting, credited with co-authoring such hits as “Lonely Teardrops,” “I’ll be There,” and “Reet Petite,” among others, his talent lay in mainstreaming black popular music by finding talent and matching them with the right musical vehicle. He created an empire that encouraged creativity and polished its performers. 

After establishing his record firm that churned out hit after hit in production line fashion, he turned to the movie business, with successes like Lady Sings the Blues, Mahogany, and The Wiz. Gordy was quick to include his family in the business, hiring his father, who he calls his “biggest hero,” and mother for office of the president. His sister Esther had many key roles throughout the company, including founding the Motown Museum. 

Gordy was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, the same year he sold his company to MCA, Inc. He retained control of Jobete, the music publishing operation, and Motown's film division, but sold the record label to the entertainment conglomerate for $61 million. He told the newspaper Daily Variety that he wanted to "ensure the perpetuation of Motown and its heritage." 

(Edited fromYour Dictionary, Detroit Historical Society and Wikipedia)