What Happened to Jerry Newton, Wayne's Brother? | Las Vegas Advisor (2024)

A:

Jerry Newton was the older brother, by two years, of singer Wayne.

When they were still children, the pair performed together as the Rascals in Rhythm. As teenagers, billed as the Newton Brothers, they performed in the Carnival Lounge at the Fremont downtown starting in 1959. Still not old enough to legally be in the casino, they played six shows a night, six nights a week, starting at 5 p.m.

In a 2009 interview with the Las Vegas Sun, Wayne recounted how different he and his brother always were. Although Jerry was best man at the wedding of Wayne's first marriage to Elaine Okamura in 1968, the brothers had split up by then. Jerry was the jokester who comically insulted Wayne on stage, but as Jerry's putdowns became more abrasive, Wayne was less and less amused.

Finally, as Wayne became more of a star, Jerry split from the act. We've read a number of accounts of the estrangement of the brothers, from a fist fight to bad blood after the death of their parents. Whatever the reason(s), the brothers didn't talk to each other for decades.

At some point, Jerry moved to Tullahoma, Tennessee, and bought the old WJIG radio station, razed the building, and built WBGY. We read that he got involved with various businesses in the small town and eventually bought a local bank.

Sometime later, Jerry moved back to Las Vegas and reportedly became a bus driver, shuttling visitors to and from the airport.

Then, in April 2016, Jerry made an overture to reconnect with Wayne by booking a tour of his brother's Casa de Shenandoah, which had recently opened to visitors. Wayne surprised Jerry and his family by personally conducting the tour. A couple months later, Jerry attended Wayne's show at Bally's and the two were in regular contact through the summer.

That August, Jerry was admitted to the hospital with pneumonia. Wayne visited him at the end for the final reconciliation. Jerry Newton passed away shortly thereafter at age 76.