Myra Gale Brown was born on July 11, 1944, in
Vicksburg, Mississippi, the daughter of Lois (née Neal) and
J. W. "Jay" Brown. The Browns later had a son, Rusty Brown (b. 1954). On December 12, 1957, at the age of 13, Williams married Jerry Lee Lewis, then 22, in
Hernando, Mississippi. Lewis asserted that Williams was 15 years old and was his wife of two months. However, it was discovered that she was only 13, and that they had been married for five months. This caused an uproar and, after a few dates, the tour was cancelled. though his 1986 naming to the first group of
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame members recognized Lewis' early influence on the genre. Lewis would also find success in
country music. By 1970, Lewis' drug addiction, alcoholism, and infidelity had taken a toll on their marriage. Williams filed for divorce on the grounds of adultery and abuse, Shortly after her divorce, Williams married Pete Malito, the detective she had hired to trail Lewis and document his infidelities, and moved to
Atlanta, Georgia. The marriage lasted a year and a half. After they divorced, Williams worked as a receptionist. Williams was paid $100,000 for her story, but was resentful that she was not consulted for the script or casting of the film, despite it being promised. so she published her memoir,
The Spark That Survived, in 2016. From 1980 onwards, Williams worked as a real estate agent in Atlanta. She married her third husband, Richard Williams, in 1984. The couple live in
Duluth, Georgia. == Books ==