Wikipedia

Errol Musk

Errol Graham Musk is a South African politician and businessman.[1] His mother, Cora Amelia Musk (née Robinson), was British and his father Walter was South African. Errol attended Clapham High School, where he dated Maye Haldeman,[2] and the pair married in 1970.[3]: 44  The family lived in Pretoria, where Maye worked as a dietitian and a model.[2] Their first child, Elon Reeve Musk, was born in 1971, named after Maye's grandfather J. Elon Haldeman, with the name Reeve after her maternal grandmother's maiden name.[2][1]

Errol Musk
Born1946 (age 78–79)
Pretoria, Union of South Africa
Alma materUniversity of Pretoria
Occupations
  • Engineer
  • politician
  • businessman
OfficePretoria city councilman
Term1972–1983
Political partyProgressive Federal Party (1980–1983)
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1970; div. 1979)​

Sue Musk
​
(divorced)​

Heide Bezuidenhout
​
​
(m. 1992; div. 2004)​
PartnerJana Bezuidenhout
Children7
Three with Maye: Elon, Kimbal, Tosca;
Two with Heide, Two with Jana
Parents
  • Walter Henry James Musk (father)
  • Cora Amelia Robinson Musk (mother)

On March 9, 1972, Musk was elected as an independent to represent Sunnyside on the Pretoria City Council.[4][3]: 52 [5][6] In 1980,[7]: 71  he became a member of the Progressive Federal Party, the new official opposition formed in 1977, and ran as their Sunnyside nominee in the 1981 election.[3]: 52 [8]: 225, fn 119  In 1983, his resignation from the PFP over its stance towards the constitutional referendum was front-page news for the ruling National Party's organ Die Burger, which portrayed the opposition as divided.[8]: 225, fn 119 [9] Musk rebelled against the PFP's call for rejecting the new constitution and cited his agreement with the New Republic Party's position that the Tricameral Parliament was a step in the right direction.[7]: 71–72 

Musk studied electromechanics at the University of Pretoria, worked as an electrical and mechanical engineering consultant, and developed properties,[1] especially retail and office property development.[10]: 27  His lucrative engineering business took on "large projects such as office buildings, retail complexes, residential subdivisions, and an air force base." He also owned an auto parts store, at least half a share in an emerald mine, and even "one of the biggest houses in Pretoria"[10][11] In 1979, Musk and wife Maye divorced.[2][12] Maye's book recalls that at the time of the divorce, he owned two homes, a yacht, a plane, five luxury cars, and a truck.[13]

In her memoir, Maye characterized her marriage as abusive and alleged Errol had been violent.[14] She recounts a time during their divorce when she sought refuge at a neighbor's home after Errol showed up with a knife looking for her.[13] After the divorce, Musk repeatedly sued his ex-wife for custody of their children.[13] He was briefly married to a woman named Sue.[13]

In the early 1990s, Errol, then aged 45, married Heide Bezuidenhout, a 25-year old he described as "one of the best looking women I've ever seen in my life".[15] They had two children.[16] Jana Bezuidenhout, who later became his romantic partner, was his stepdaughter from that marriage, four years old at the time Errol became her stepfather.[16][17]

In the early 1980s, Errol built a lodge in the Timbavati Game Reserve to rent to tourists.[6]: ch. 3  In 1986, he acquired rights to the output of three Zambian emerald mines, though he did not own mines themselves. In interviews with Walter Isaacson, he explained: "If you registered it, you would wind up with nothing, because the Blacks would take everything from you".[6]: ch. 1  He later referred to his wealth during Elon's teen years in an interview with Business Insider South Africa, saying he had "so much money we couldn't even close our safe" and mentioned his emerald dealings.[18][19] Snopes confirmed that at some point he owned "a stake in an emerald mine near Lake Tanganyika in Zambia".[20] He once described his emerald mine as an "under the table" operation.[21]

According to the 2015 biography of Elon Musk titled Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future, in 1995, Errol Musk gave $28,000 to Elon and Kimbal as they were starting up the software company Zip2.[22] Elon Musk has denied receiving the money from his father.[22]

Errol once commented, "The only thing we are on Earth for is to reproduce."[23][neutrality is disputed]

In 2014, Musk gave an interview about his son Elon.[24] In 2017, Musk was interviewed by Neil Strauss of Rolling Stone for a profile of Elon titled "The Architect of Tomorrow". Errol recalled that he had once shot and killed in self-defense "three out of five or six armed people" who had broken into his home. Elon described his father Errol as a "terrible human being", adding: "Almost every evil thing you could possibly think of, he has done."[25][26]

In March 2018, it was reported that Errol had fathered a child with his adult step-daughter Jana Bezuidenhout.[16][27]

In July 2022, Errol gave an interview to the tabloid newspaper The Sun, announcing that he and Jana Bezuidenhout had had another child.[28][29] Musk has a total of seven children, according to People magazine in November 2022.[18] On August 1, 2022, Errol appeared on The Kyle and Jackie O Australian radio show, saying he was "not proud" of Elon.[30]

Errol was interviewed by author Walter Isaacson for his 2023 biography of Musk's son Elon, which discussed Errol Musk at length.[31] In June 2024, he said Elon had upgraded his home security system, fearing he was at risk of kidnapping.[32]

In 2024, Errol defended Elon after the latter said that the United Kingdom was heading towards a civil war.[33] Later in 2024 Errol said that Prime Minister Keir Starmer was a fascist as a result of his response to the 2024 United Kingdom riots.[34][35] He later called for Starmer's resignation.[36] In January 2025, he again defended his son's remarks but also urged people to ignore them.[37]

In a January 2025 video interview, Errol Musk stated that governance in South Africa has deteriorated.[38] Later in January, Errol endorsed a meme coin called "Musk It" and revealed that he planned to raise $200 million for the Musk Institute via this project.[39][40]

In February 2025, Errol arranged a phone call between his son Elon and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on which the two discussed the impact of Donald Trump's policies on South Africa.[41]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c Hull, Dana; May, Patrick (April 20, 2014). "Exploring the otherworldly ambitions of Elon Musk". Buffalo News. Archived from the original on April 17, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d Holson, Laura M. (April 30, 2016). "At 68, Maye Musk, the Mother of Elon, Is Reclaiming the Spotlight". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 28, 2020. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c Vlismas, Michael (2022). Elon Musk: Risking it All. Jonathan Ball Publishers. ISBN 978-1776191857.
  4. ^ Eligon, John; Chutel, Lynsey (May 5, 2022). "Elon Musk Left a South Africa That Was Rife With Misinformation and White Privilege". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on November 11, 2022. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  5. ^ "Reaction against the Establishment." (Mar 9, 1972) Pretoria News, cited in Isaacson
  6. ^ a b c Isaacson, Walter (September 12, 2023). Elon Musk. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-3985-2751-5 – via Google Books.
  7. ^ a b Shandler, David (1991). Structural Crisis and Liberalism: A History of the Progressive Federal Party, 1981–1989 (MA thesis). University of Cape Town.
  8. ^ a b Sussman, Gary (2003). The referendum in F.W. de Klerk's war of manoeuvre: An historical institutionalist account of the 1992 referendum (PDF) (PhD thesis). London School of Economics.
  9. ^ "The reported resignation of Errol Musk, the PFP candidate for Sunnyside (Pretoria) election was made a front-page story. Die Burger. 4 October 1983"
  10. ^ a b Vance, Ashlee (2017). Elon Musk: Tesla, Paypal, SpaceX: l'entrepreneur qui va changer le monde (in Portuguese). Eyrolles. p. 40. ISBN 9782212594379.[permanent dead link‍]
  11. ^ Friend, Tad (October 10, 2014). "Plugged In - The New Yorker". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on October 10, 2014. Retrieved June 28, 2024.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  12. ^ Friend, Tad (August 24, 2009). "Plugged In". New Yorker. Vol. 85, no. 25. pp. 50–59.
  13. ^ a b c d Musk, Maye (December 31, 2019). A Woman Makes a Plan: Advice for a Lifetime of Adventure, Beauty, and Success. Penguin. ISBN 978-1-9848-7851-9 – via Google Books.
  14. ^ "Maye Musk on Escaping Domestic Abuse and Raising Three Geniuses (Including Elon) on Her Own". Harper's BAZAAR. November 15, 2019.
  15. ^ Mier, Tomás (July 14, 2022). "Like Father Like Son: Elon Musk's Dad Has Secret Second Kid With Stepdaughter". Rolling Stone.
  16. ^ a b c Crilly, Rob (March 25, 2018). "Elon Musk's father has baby with step-daughter he has known since she was four". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  17. ^ Ball, Molly; Kluger, Jeffrey; De la Garza, Alejandro (December 13, 2021). "Elon Musk Is TIME's 2021 Person of the Year". Time. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
  18. ^ a b Sager, Jessica (November 7, 2022). "Who Is Elon Musk's Estranged Father? All About Errol Musk". People. Archived from the original on November 24, 2022. Retrieved November 28, 2022.
  19. ^ Wet, Phillip de (February 23, 2018). "'We had so much money we couldn't even close our safe': Elon Musk's Dad tells BI about the family's insanely casual attitude to wealth". Business Insider. Archived from the original on November 28, 2022. Retrieved November 28, 2022.
  20. ^ Liles, Jordan (November 17, 2022). "What We Know About Elon Musk and the Emerald Mine Rumor". Snopes. Archived from the original on April 8, 2023. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  21. ^ Mahdawi, Arwa (April 25, 2023). "What's that going up in flames? Why, it's Elon Musk's reputation". The Guardian.
  22. ^ a b Hahn, Jason (March 26, 2018). "Inside the Complicated Relationship Between Elon Musk and His Estranged Father, Errol Musk". People. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  23. ^ Olinga, Luc (July 18, 2022). "Errol Musk, Elon's Dad, Prompts a New Controversy". thestreet.com. The Street. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
  24. ^ "Apr 13, 2014, page 10 - Oakland Tribune at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ Strauss, Neil (November 15, 2017). "Elon Musk: The Architect of Tomorrow". Rolling Stone.
  26. ^ "Jun 03, 2020, page A13 - Evening Standard at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com.
  27. ^ Gillespie, James (March 25, 2018). "Elon Musk's 'evil' father has a baby with stepdaughter". thetimes.com. The Times. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
  28. ^ Sharma, Shweta (July 15, 2022). "Elon Musk's father confirms second child with his own stepdaughter - report". The Independent. Archived from the original on July 15, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  29. ^ Biggs, Jade (July 16, 2022). "Elon Musk's dad reveals he fathered an "unplanned" child with his stepdaughter". Cosmopolitan. Archived from the original on July 15, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  30. ^ Oladipo, Gloria (August 1, 2022). "Elon Musk's father says he isn't proud of his son". The Guardian.
  31. ^ Pearce, Matt (September 11, 2023). "The biggest ideas and pettiest rages in Walter Isaacson's Elon Musk biography". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 12, 2023.
  32. ^ Tabahriti, Sam. "Elon Musk increased security for his 76-year-old father Errol amid kidnapping fears, report says". Business Insider.
  33. ^ "Elon Musk's father defends son over UK civil war prediction". independent.co.uk. The Independent. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
  34. ^ HONEYCOMBE-FOSTER, MATT (November 4, 2024). "Elon Musk's dad says Britain is fascist hell now". politico.eu. Politico. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
  35. ^ Schofield, Kevin (November 4, 2024). "Elon Musk's Dad Says Keir Starmer Is Leading 'A Fascist Government'". huffingtonpost.co.uk. Huffington Post. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
  36. ^ Leeson, Lucy. "Elon Musk's father claims England has 'gone back 400 years to Tudor times' as he calls for Starmer to resign". independent.co.uk. The Independent. Retrieved November 25, 2024.
  37. ^ "'Tell Him to Get Lost': Musk's Dad Urges Public to Ignore His Son". The Daily Beast. January 7, 2025.
  38. ^ NewsNation (2025-01-22). Elon Musk changed after Biden snubbed him, father Errol says | Cuomo. Retrieved 2025-01-25 – via YouTube.
  39. ^ Schwartz, Leo. "Inside Errol Musk's foray into the volatile world of memecoins". fortune.com. Fortune. Retrieved 31 January 2025.
  40. ^ Cameron, Hugh. "Elon Musk's Father Launches Own Meme Coin". newsweek.com. Newsweek. Retrieved 31 January 2025.
  41. ^ Skweyiya, Sisipho; Roelf, Wendell. "Musk's dad says he arranged son's call with South African leader". reuters.com. Reuters. Retrieved 5 February 2025.
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