Kippie Raleigh Lancaster

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Kippie Raleigh Lancaster (Kovacs)

Birthdate:
Birthplace: Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey, United States
Death: July 28, 2001 (52)
Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA, United States (long illness)
Place of Burial: Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA, United States
Immediate Family:

Daughter of Ernie Kovacs; Edie Adams and Bette Lee Kovacs
Wife of Gerald Mendel Millman and Bill Lancaster
Mother of Private
Sister of Mia Susan Kovacs and Private
Half sister of Private User

Managed by: Private User
Last Updated:
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Immediate Family

About Kippie Raleigh Lancaster

Kovacs and his first wife, Bette Wilcox, were married on August 13, 1945. When the marriage ended, he fought for custody of their children, Elizabeth ("Bette") and Kip Raleigh ("Kippie"). The court awarded Kovacs full custody upon determining that his former wife was mentally unstable.[87] The decision was extremely unusual at the time, setting a legal precedent. Wilcox subsequently kidnapped the children, taking them to Florida.[88] After a long and expensive search, Kovacs regained custody. These events were portrayed in the 1984 film, Ernie Kovacs: Between the Laughter.[89][90][91]

Kovacs' first wife made a legal attempt to gain custody of her two daughters shortly after his death. She began August 2, 1962 by claiming $500,000 was her share of Kovacs' estate and charging her ex-husband had abducted the girls in 1955; Kovacs was granted legal custody of his daughters in 1952.[87][92] On August 30, she filed an affidavit claiming Edie was "unfit" to care for the girls.[93] Both Bette and Kippie testified they wanted to stay with Edie.[94][95][96] Kippie's testimony was very emotional; in it she referred to Edie as "Mommy" and her birth mother as "the other lady."[97] Upon hearing the verdict that the girls would remain in their home, Edie Adams broke down, saying, "This is what Ernie would have wanted. Now I can smile." Bette Kovacs' reaction was, "I'm so happy I can hardly express myself.", after learning she and her sister would not need to leave Edie

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6096309

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Kippie Raleigh Lancaster's Timeline

1949
January 4, 1949
Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey, United States
2001
July 28, 2001
Age 52
Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA, United States
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Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA, United States