Beach boys were one of my most fav iconic bands ........deepest sympathies ........
Brian Wilson's wife Melinda Ledbetter dead at 77: 'Heartbroken' Beach Boys star calls her his 'savior' in emotional post
- Beach Boys artist, 81, posted sad news on his Instagram page Tuesday
- He praised his spouse for her encouragement and support
- The two had been wed since 1995 and adopted five children
Beach Boys artist Brian Wilson's wife Melinda Ledbetter has died at the age of 77.
Wilson, 81, took to Instagram Tuesday to confirm the tragic news himself, accompanying a pair of images with his sad sentiments on the passing of his spouse, who he tied the knot with in 1995.
'My heart is broken,' he said. 'Melinda, my beloved wife of 28 years, passed away this morning. Our five children and I are just in tears. We are lost. Melinda was more than my wife. She was my savior.'
He opened up about their close relationship, saying Ledbetter 'gave me the emotional security I needed to have a career' and 'encouraged me to make the music that was closest to my heart.'
Wilson continued: 'She was my anchor. She was everything for us. Please say a prayer for her' and concluded his statement: 'Love and Mercy Brian.'
Beach Boys artist Brian Wilson, 81, said his wife Melinda Ledbetter has died at the age of 77. Wilson and Ledbetter were pictured on February 8, 2015 in Berlin, Germany
Wilson said, 'Melinda was more than my wife. She was my savior'
Wilson took to Instagram Tuesday to reveal the bad news on the passing of his spouse, who he tied the knot with in 1995
The Beach Boys alum and Ledbetter were parents to five adopted children: Dakota Rose, Daria Rose, Delanie Rose, Dylan and Dash.
Wilson's statement was accompanied by one from his children, calling their late mother 'a force of nature and one of the strongest women you could come by.'
The statement read: 'It is with a heavy heart that we let everyone know that our mom, Melinda Kay Ledbetter Wilson passed away peacefully this morning at home.'
It continued: 'She was not only a model, our fathers savior, and a mother, she was a woman empowered by her spirit with a mission to better everyone she touched.'
Wilson and Ledbetter's children said they 'will miss her but cherish everything she has taught us,' specifically 'how to take care of the person next to you with out expecting anything in return, how to find beauty in the darkest of places, and how to live life as your truest self with honesty and pride.'
The children ended the statement: 'We love you mom. Give Grandma Rose and Pa our love.'
Rolling Stone reported that Ledbetter 'died Tuesday of unknown causes.'
Wilson and Ledbetter initially crossed paths in 1986 when she sold the musical artist a Cadillac, and began dating on and off thru 1989, People reported on Tuesday. They crossed paths again in Los Angeles in 1992 and began dating again, tying the knot three years later.
Wilson and his children included a vintage image of Melinda in the memorial post
Wilson said Ledbetter 'gave me the emotional security I needed to have a career' and 'encouraged me to make the music that was closest to my heart.' Pictured in June 2015
The Beach Boys alum and Ledbetter were parents to five adopted children: Dakota Rose, Daria Rose, Delanie Rose, Dylan and Dash. Pictured in 2002 in LA
Wilson in 1998 described Ledbetter as 'a partner who's also a best friend' in an interview with People, adding, 'I've never had a relationship with a girl like we have.'
Ledbetter told the outlet that her spouse had problems dealing 'with the world's insanity' but was 'probably the most sane person' she knew.
The relationship between Wilson and Ledbetter was chronicled in a 2014 biopic film titled Love & Mercy, in which they were respectively portrayed by Paul Dano/John Cusack and Elizabeth Banks.
The motion picture examined the Beach Boys singer's past battles with mental illness; and his controversial dealings with the late Dr. Eugene Landy, who was his therapist and legal guardian at one point.
Ledbetter was key in assisting Wilson in extricating Landy from his life.
Landy, who died in 2006, was barred from any contact with the Beach Boys artist in 1992, a year after Wilson's relatives sued Landy and said that he had 'undue influence' over the musical artist.
Ledbetter said in a 2004 appearance on Larry King that Wilson was largely estranged from his friends, family and colleagues when she met him in the 1980s during his time under Landy's care.
She said of Landy, 'He was called into help and I think originally he did help. He helped Brian lose weight. He helped Brian care about himself physically again.
The couple was pictured at the Golden Globes in LA in January of 2016
Wilson and Ledbetter posed with their children Daria, Dylan and Delanie at the Kennedy Center in 2007 in Washington, DC
'As time went on, he became very captive of Brian. Brian was primarily a prisoner.'
Ledbetter in May of 1998 spoke with The Chicago Tribune about Wilson rebuilding his life after parting ways with Landy, as well as the problematic upbringing he endured.
'He came from an incredibly dysfunctional family,' Ledbetter said. 'His father was abusive, his father was abused. And Brian should have been an abuser too. Instead, Brian just withdrew. He was never involved with his kids.'
Ledbetter continued: 'Now, although music is still extremely important to him, he's learned that there's love, family. I just wonder what the music would have been like if he had this sooner, what he could have done if he had a supportive, loving family around him all along.'
In 2015, Ledbetter told ABC News that she 'didn't know how tough it would be' to see his story put to film.
'I think I was more nervous than him when I took him to see it, and after, I said, "So what did you think?" And he goes, "Oh, it was really a lot worse in real life,"' she said.
Ledbetter was a native of Whittier, California, and worked as a model for 16 years prior to getting into auto sales, according to Rolling Stone.
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