Della Beatrice Howard Robinson Information

You can’t talk about the love life of Ray Charles Robinson without mentioning Beatrice Howard. A love adventure that spanned more than two decades highlighted the rise in Ray Charles’ global music reach.

But there’s a lot more to Ray’s marriage to Bea than meets the eye. Several intrigues took place around this showbiz couple, and it won’t be fair not to do justice to each detail. Knowing more about Bea’s relationship with Ray gives you an insight into how the king of souls lived his life. 

Biography

Della Beatrice Howard Robinson, fondly nicknamed “Bea”, is a spouse to one of the most recognized music acts in recent memory.

Bea was married to Ray Charles Robinson after his first marriage ended within a year. The couple exchanged marital vows after a short relationship that started in Texas around mid-1954. The marriage was Robinson’s first but Ray’s second after his divorce from Eileen Williams in mid-1952.

Age

There’s very little information about Bea’s personal life online. But it is on record across several sources that she was born in 1929, a year earlier before her ex-husband. She is currently around 90 or 91 years old at press time, as no one has complete info on her birthdate.

Net Worth

The estimated net worth of Della Bea Howard Robinson borders around $ 15 million, according to several accounts. Her massive net worth isn’t unconnected with her long relationship with, and eventual divorce from one of the planet’s finest ever musicians. Ray Charles’ career rolled in millions of dollars, and Bea still stacks a lot of that cash in the bank.

Height and Other Measurements

Della measures 5 ft. 5 in. (5`5”) and weighs an average of 169 lbs. Body measurements for Bea are not in the public domain.

Troubled Marriage with Ray

Bea Robinson’s marriage to Ray Charles lasted for more than two decades. Everything seemed to be going on perfectly, but there would be trouble in paradise, and it’s not any fault of Bea’s.

Lifestyle choices of Ray would destroy his marriage with Bea, one bad act at a time. They eventually divorced in 1977, allowing Ray to continue with his debauchery until he passed on.

Several factors contributed to Ray and Bea’s divorce, and here’s a close look at each one:

Volatile relationship

After Ray and Bea tied the knot on April 5, 1955, all seemed rosy as they moved to a posh residence in View Park, CA. But that’s almost as good as it got for the showbiz couple. Ray was always in the news for the wrong reasons and wasn’t much of a loving father at home too. His volatile attitude proved to be a major reason why Bea decided to call it quits two decades later.

The first decade of Bea’s union was marked with some positive moments, as she birthed three kids for Ray in just five years. But things turned worse from there as Ray had one negative attribute capable of ending any relationship.

Drug problems

Ray got addicted to women when he was twelve, but his drug problems proved to have a greater hold on him. Bea’s ex-husband was addicted to heroin and other substances for several decades until his death. His first go at hard drugs was marijuana at just 18 years old.

Ray will keep using these substances for several decades, even after getting married to Bea. His consistent use of banned substances made him less affectionate, especially during the marriage’s later stages. There’s very little evidence available to suggest any form of abuse from Ray, but it might have happened anyway.

Extra-marital affairs

Ray Charles’ 1978 biography chronicles most aspects of his childhood, especially how he got entangled with his womanizing problem. In one of his interviews, Ray mentioned women as one of his major addictions. He loosely stated “women are my central obsession. From when I was young up until now, I can’t let them be”

Charles’ obsession with women eventually led to a long line of mistresses, even though he never married after divorcing Bea. Ray’s first wife (Eileen Williams) didn’t give birth to any child throughout their relationship. But that didn’t stop Ray from fathering at least a dozen children (that we know of).

Apart from Della’s three children, Ray fathered at least six other children while still married to her. Check out what this table shows for a clearer picture:

Most of these affairs rocked the once-peaceful Robinson marriage, making it difficult for Bea to carry on. Ray hosted a family get-together in the early 2000s for his kids. Even though he tried to unite his family, Ray couldn’t do much to bring Bea back to him.

Legal issues

Bea’s ex-husband was arrested on multiple occasions for possession of banned substances. Charles avoided jail time in most cases but had to deal with probation and hefty fines.

Career differences

While Ray’s soul career spanned several decades and multiple tours, Bea was a lesser-known gospel singer. Whenever Bea wasn’t booked for performances, she spent most of her time caring for her three kids. Ray was largely unavailable, and Bea had to play both parenting roles more often. 

Such a gap in parenting and being part of a family caused issues in Bea’s relationship with Charles. Even if career differences didn’t pose much of a problem, it’s another reason Charles’s marriage to Bea didn’t work.