The Smiley Smile Message Board

I see this discussed very briefly from time to time, with most attention (rightfully) focused on Murry and his sons. But what do we know about the Murry/Mike relationship? Was it essentially adversarial? Did Mike generally get along with him, but wasn't afraid to tell him off? Feel free to post what you know about this relationship. Anything from the time Mike was growing up through Murry's death, but particularly the Beach Boys management period. Thanks.

Murry was Mike's uncle. That's not a flip response, but a vital part of their relationship, such as it was. He was also, until 1964, Mike's manager, so that's a double strain: you think Murry didn't favor his own boys in general business dealing ? If you don't, I have two words for you: "California Girls". It's been reported in a book - I think the Gaines tome - that Mike once punched Murry out on the roadside while on tour. I think their relationship... wasn't the best.

     "My darling uncle didn't die soon enough.
     But I didn't resent Murry anymore than I'd
     resent anyone who stole from his kids, beat
     them unnecessarily, intimidated them, and
     screwed them up emotionally."

     —Mike Love, 1980

Well there certainly isn't any room for speculation there.  :lol

     Right, I figured Mike should answer this question in his own words.

"the relationship between the Loves and the Wilson's was like the Hatfields and McCoys"

Way to go Ponghit..!!!  Besides the relationships we are talking about ever notice how OLD Murry looks in pictures.. Im mean no disrespect to the man but he died in his early 50"s I think.. Maybe 53 or 54..?  You look at promo pic with the pipe in his mouth + glasses on he looks more than 10 yrs older than he really was.. Not to much has ever been said about his health but just from his pictures  his body seems to age faster than his true age.. Anyone ever notice that..?

yeah....   except the Hatfields and McCoys weren't related   

But apparently ML perceived it that way, per his commentary on the bio film.....

     Booze? Stress? You got any guts?

As nice looking a guy as Carl was, he also seemed to age very prematurely in his mid to late 40s.  And of course, I'm referring to the period prior to his cancer diagnosis.  Perhaps he was already ill and didn't know it, but – to me, at least – Carl's appearance began to change drastically a full two or three years before his cancer was diagnosed.  Maybe some of it could be attributed to those years of heavy smoking, or the years he was a heavy drug user – or both.

I thought Carl aged BIG TIME between 1983-85. Maybe it was the grey in his beard that cropped up, or the fact that he began to brush his hair back, revealing a very slight receding hairline but he started to look older than Al and Mike.