This Day in History: 1964-12-11

Cooke was killed at the age of 33 on December 11, 1964, at the Hacienda Motel, in Los Angeles, California. Answering separate reports of a shooting and a kidnapping at the motel, police found Cooke’s corpse. He had sustained a gunshot wound to the chest, which was later determined to have pierced his heart.^[54] The motel’s manager, Bertha Franklin, claimed to have shot him in her defense. Her account was immediately disputed by Cooke’s acquaintances, none of whom were present at Cooke’s killing.