Did Ray Charles watch his brother drown?

At the age of five Charles watched his four-year-old brother drown in a laundry tub despite his efforts to save the boy. Soon afterward Charles began to go blind. At the age of seven his right eye was removed, soon after which he became totally blind.

Why did Ray Charles move so much?

Ray Charles was a poor, blind, newly orphaned teenager living in Tampa, Florida, in 1948 when he decided to move to Seattle, picking the city because it was as far away as he could get from where he was. Charles often spoke of Seattle as a pivotal point in his long and hugely successful career as a singer/songwriter.

Was Ray Charles actually blind?

Born Ray Charles Robinson on September 23, 1930, in Albany, Georgia, he was raised in Greenville, Florida, and started playing the piano before he was five. At age six, he contracted glaucoma that eventually left him blind.

Did Jamie Foxx actually sing in Ray?

A classically trained pianist, Foxx says it was important to the portrayal that he was not just acting when he sat down to the piano. But Foxx does not sing them; he skillfully lip-syncs to the actual vintage Ray Charles studio sessions and concert recordings.

Why are Ray Charles eyes closed?

At the age of 7, he became completely blind when his right eye was removed due to intense pain. Most medical experts agree glaucoma was the culprit, although growing up in Charles’ time and place, not to mention economic background, no one will ever be able to say for sure.

Is the movie Ray accurate?

Finally, though, Ray is about Ray, and its attempt to define his character. In many ways, the definition is accurate. Foxx brilliantly captures Ray’s energy and contradictions. Yet those contradictions are not allowed to stand.

Why did Ray Charles wear dark glasses?

Ray Charles did not lose his sight until he was about seven years old. Years later, doctors suggested that juvenile glaucoma had caused his blindness. But Charles always maintained that his visual impairment never hindered his career in any way. So blindness didn’t have anything to do with it.