H JAMES BROWN: ONE YEAR LATER The family circle TEDDY BROWN (1954): He died in a car crash near Elizabethtown, N.Y., in 1973. EN R LD I CH JAMES JOSEPH BROWN II (2001): Attorneys for Mr. Brown’s estate have questioned whether the child is Mr. Brown’s. His mother says she won’t submit him to DNA testing until all the other children undergo testing. TH EW OM TH E Much of the controversy surrounding James Brown’s estate stems from family uncertainty. Only six children are named as heirs in his will, but five others are claiming they have a birthright to the Godfather of Soul’s legacy. Here’s a look at some of the women in Mr. Brown’s life and the children said to be a product of those relationships. EN TOMI RAE HYNIE: She was known as Mr. Brown’s fourth wife, but the legitimacy of the marriage was called into question after his death amid allegations that she wasn’t divorced from a Pakistani man when she and Mr. Brown exchanged vows in 2001. TERRY BROWN (1955) LARRY BROWN (1958) VELMA WARREN: Mr. Brown’s first wife. They met in Toccoa, Ga., when Mr. Brown’s gospel group sang at her church, according to his autobiography, James Brown, The Godfather of Soul. They married in 1953, separated in 1964 and divorced in 1969. DARYL BROWN (1960) BEA FORD: One of Mr. Brown’s protégés, she was the wife of soul singer Joe Tex, Mr. Brown’s labelmate and rival. (Legend has it that Mr. Brown once fired shots at him after he mocked his cape routine on stage.) After Ms. Ford left Mr. Tex to join the James Brown Revue, Mr. Tex released You Keep Her. ADRIENNE RODRIGUEZ: She was Mr. Brown’s third wife. They met in Los Angeles when Mr. Brown appeared on Solid Gold, according to his autobiography. She was the hairstylist and makeup artist for the show. They were married from 1984 to 1996, when she died after liposuction surgery. They did not have any children. RUBY SHANNON: Mr. Brown spotted her in the crowd at one of his shows in Los Angeles, and she became his onthe-road girlfriend in the early 1960s. When she became pregnant, she left Mr. Brown and returned to her family in Houston. She died in 1975. CHRISTINE MITCHELL: She met Mr. Brown at one of his concerts in Miami after he spotted her in the crowd and arranged for her to go backstage. They went on to have a long-term relationship. She died of meningitis in 1991. JEANETTE MITCHELL (1970) DEIDRE JENKINS: She was Mr. Brown’s second wife. In his autobiography, he says she was from Baltimore and they probably first met when he was playing a gig at a Maryland beach. They were married from 1970 to 1981. MARY FLORENCE BROWN: She is the founder and president of the Sacramento, Calif., chapter of the James Brown Fan Club. LARHONDA PETITT (1961) YVONNE FAIR: Another of Mr. Brown’s musical protégés, she got her start as a member of the Chantels and the James Brown Revue. She recorded I Found You with Mr. Brown, which he later altered into the megahit I Got You (I Feel Good). Ms. Fair went on to play a role in the movie Lady Sings the Blues and pursued a solo career in the 1970s. VENISHA BROWN She died in 1994. (1965) LEA JENSEN: She met Mr. Brown at a concert in Vancouver and flew to a few of his concerts in the United States. She was 17 years old when she gave birth to Mr. Brown’s daughter. DEANNA B. THOMAS (1969) NICOLE PARRIS (1968) YAMMA B. LUMAR (1972) MICHAEL DEON BROWN (1968): His mother waged a protracted battle against Mr. Brown for child support. According to Augusta Chronicle archives, the Superior Court of Sacramento County, Calif., ordered Mr. Brown in 1969 to pay $500 per month. He was also ordered to pay $33,000 in attorney’s fees and costs and was later sued for not paying $3,536.52 of the sum. Michael Brown is currently incarcerated at Rio Cosumnes Correctional Center in Elk Grove, Calif., on COLOR KEY: WHO’S WHO? Heirs named in James Brown’s will whose mothers were married to the Godfather Heirs named in Mr. Brown’s will whose mothers were not married to the Godfather Marriage to Mr. Brown did not produce any children drug paraphernalia and parole violation charges. He writes an Internet blog called “Being the son of the ‘Godfather of Soul.’ ” In a telephone interview with The Chronicle, he said he has not undergone DNA testing, but he plans to do so next year. He did provide a photocopy of a 1969 paternity test comparing his, his mother’s and Mr. Brown’s blood types, concluding “that blood grouping studies do not exclude Mr. James Brown as the possible father of Michael Deon Brown.” Children who have come forward since Mr. Brown’s death and have been confirmed by DNA testing DNA testing has not been conducted to determine whether Mr. Brown is the father DNA testing has not been conducted to determine whether Mr. Brown is the father; the mother’s marriage to him is in question – Johnny Edwards, Staff Writer