Murry Wilson - Early Years

Early Years

Wilson was born in Hutchinson, Kansas, the son of Edith Sophia (née Sthole) and William Coral Wilson. His family moved west to Los Angeles when he was five. The family was initially so impoverished that they camped in a tent on the beach when they arrived. He met his future wife, Audree Neva Korthof, while attending Washington High School; they were married March 26, 1938.

Wilson had a blue-collar background. As a young man, he worked at Southern California Gas Company until the birth of his first son Brian, after which, he took a job as a foreman at a Goodyear Tire & Rubber factory, where he lost an eye in an industrial accident. During this period began writing songs. His biggest success came later with a dance song, "Two-Step Side-Step", which was featured by Lawrence Welk on his radio program in 1952 and covered on record by RCA Victor Western Swing artist Johnnie Lee Wills, as well as country music singer Bonnie Lou. He also wrote songs recorded in the early 1950s by doo-wop group The Hollywood Flames.