Anthony D. Cox (born 1936)
is an American film producer and art promoter. He is a former husband of
Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野 洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking.
Ono grew up i ...
.
Biography
Cox met Yoko Ono in 1961, after he saw some of her art work in an anthology and located her in
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
, Japan.
The couple married on November 28, 1962, but marriage was
annulled
Annulment is a legal procedure within secular and religious legal systems for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning almost ...
on March 1, 1963, due to Ono neglecting to officially finalize her divorce from her first husband, the Japanese composer
Toshi Ichiyanagi
was a Japanese avant-garde composer and pianist. One of the leading composers in Japan during the postwar era, Ichiyanagi worked in a range of genres, composing Western-style operas and orchestral and chamber works, as well as compositions using ...
. They remarried on June 11, 1963, two months before their daughter, Kyoko Chan Cox, was born on August 8, 1963. Cox became a full-time caregiver for Kyoko, while both he and Ono continued with their art, collaborating as
conceptual art
Conceptual art, also referred to as conceptualism, is art in which the concept(s) or idea(s) involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic, technical, and material concerns. Some works of conceptual art, sometimes called insta ...
ists.
Ono's growing estrangement from Cox in 1966 inspired her to create her artwork ''
Half-A-Room'', and the pain of their subsequent breakup inspired Ono to make ''
Ceiling Painting/Yes Painting
''Ceiling Painting/Yes Painting'' is a 1966 conceptual artwork by the Japanese artist Yoko Ono.
Work
The work is made from paper, glass, a metal frame, a metal chain, a magnifying glass, and a painted ladder. The word YES is printed on the piece ...
''.
Their marriage fell apart some time after 1966, when Ono met
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
at an art show.
Cox and Ono divorced on February 2, 1969. After some time, Tony Cox married Melinda Kendall.
After a legal battle, Cox was awarded custody of Kyoko. However, in 1971 Cox, who had joined a religious group known as the
Church of the Living Word, or "The Walk", after his divorce from Ono, vanished with his wife Melinda and Kyoko in violation of the custody order. He left "The Walk" after a few years, and in 1978, Cox and Kyoko stayed with the
Jesus People USA
Jesus People USA (JPUSA) pronounced: ǰ-pu-sa is a Christian intentional community in Uptown, on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1972, coming out of Jesus People Milwaukee during the Jesus movement, it is one of the largest con ...
commune in Chicago. He had divorced his second wife Melinda even before leaving "The Walk".
He and Kyoko contacted Yoko Ono after the
death of Lennon in 1980,
but they did not specify their location. Afterward, Ono agreed to no longer attempt to locate Kyoko, but still wished to make contact with her. In 1994, when she was 31, Kyoko made contact with Ono and they have been in close contact since then.
In 1985, in an autobiographical documentary film, ''
Vain Glory'', Cox discussed his experiences with the Lennons, with the Church of the Living Word, and with life on the run.
See also
*
List of fugitives from justice who disappeared
This is a list of fugitives from justice, notable people who disappeared or evaded capture while being sought by law enforcement agencies in connection with a crime, and who are currently sought or were sought for the duration of their presume ...
References
External links
''Yoko Ono: Money Can't Buy Me Love''– film in development dealing with Cox and Kyoko's relationship with Ono
Anthony D. Cox, Appellant, v. Yoko Ono Cox., 457 F.2d 1190 (3rd Cir. 1972), Docket Number: 71-2090*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cox, Anthony
1930s births
American conceptual artists
American expatriates in the United Kingdom
American film producers
Former members of new religious movements
Fugitives
Place of birth missing (living people)
Possibly living people
Year of birth uncertain