select February 20, 2003 February 14, 2003 February 8, 2003 Whitney Houston got the last word in her feud with her dad -
skipping out on her father's funeral yesterday.
Houston's spokeswoman confirmed the pop diva's absence, saying she chose to grieve privately.
But mourners who filled St. James AME Church in Newark to remember John Houston
couldn't help but notice that his famous daughter was missing.
Father and daughter had been embroiled in a lawsuit since August,
when John Houston sued Whitney for $100 million, arguing he had
saved her career after she was charged with pot possession in Hawaii
in January 2000. The charge was ultimately dropped.
The 39-year-old recording star - who admitted drug use in a nationally
televised interview in December - and her husband, singer Bobby Brown,
did attend the wake Thursday at the Whigham Funeral Home in Newark, Houston spokeswoman Nancy Seltzer said.
'Very emotional'
"Whitney spent the majority of the day with her father yesterday, privately, in the viewing room of the funeral home," Seltzer said.
"She attended the wake ceremony later that night in the church. Today, she chose to grieve privately."
Seltzer said Houston was not simply trying to avoid the glaring lenses of paparazzi in front of the church.
"The truth is it was very difficult, very emotional and very powerful," Seltzer said.
In spite of the lawsuit, "Whitney saw him before he died, and they were never estranged," Seltzer said. "John and Whitney loved each other and always will."
John Houston, a World War II veteran, died Feb. 2 of cardiac arrest.
He was buried at Fairview Cemetery in Westfield, N.J., with full military honors.
Whitney's mother, singer Cissy Houston, was front and center at both the service and the burial, even though she and John Houston had been separated since 1980 and divorced since 1993.
Dionne Warwick, Cissy's cousin, attended the funeral. Aretha Franklin, a longtime family friend, sent a recording of "Amazing Grace," along with words of praise for what a "great father" the 82-year-old music manager had been.
Originally published on February 8, 2003 February 3, 2003 Radio Promotion If you want to read the earlier news,
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News > February 2003
Greatest Gainer/Hot Shot Debut !
Whitney's "Try It On My Own" debuts as Greatest Gainer
on the Adult Contemporary Singles chart in the current issue of Billboard Magazine.
Last week, 'Try It On My Own' was the Hot Shot Debut on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play Chart!
You can read the chart positions for 'Try It On My Own" here.
Whitney, the No. 1 diva
Whitney was voted best diva on the MTV.fr web site by MTV France viewers.
The poll was conducted for MTV's "Top 10 at 10" Divas Special, which aired
on Wednesday (February 12) on MTV France. Viewers could choose between fifteen top divas,
including Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige, Madonna,
Jennifer Lopez, Toni Braxton and Janet Jackson, but Whitney won by far,
as 41.6 % of the votes went to her. Below are the full results :
Whatchulookinat
Through The Rain
A New Day Has Come
More Than A Woman
Family Affair
Gangsta Lovin'
Fallin'
Killing Me Softly
Emotion
Beautiful
Die Another Day
Jenny From The Block
Hit The Freeway
Son Of A Gun
Why'D You Lie To Me
Whitney's grave choice
DIVA SKIPS ESTRANGED FATHER'S BURIAL
By Joanna Molloy
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Staff Writer
Whitney's father passes
from whitneyhouston.com - Sunday was an especially sad day for Whitney as her father, John Houston,
passed away at the age of 82. Our prayers and deepest sympathy go out to
Whitney and her entire family. To leave your words of sympathy for Whitney,
click
here.
Last week, Whitney was interviewed by several radio stations in America
because of the release of her new single 'Try It On My Own' and
the 'Just Whitney' album.
She spoke over the phone to DJs in New York, Baltimore, Chicago, Los Angeles.
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