Shady Past

Along with her first husband, Jim L. Townsend, she allegedly ran the Hawaiian Isle Nightclub in Memphis. The place was long reputed to be a den for illicit drugs and prostitution. After her husband was arrested and placed in prison for life without the possibility of parole for receiving his third strike, she quickly filed for a divorce and abandoned him.

Instead of leaving the criminal life in her past, she dove right back in by marrying another local drug lord, Donnell Woods of the infamous Woods brothers. Marjorie earned the nickname “Lady Heroin” due to her involvement in the Memphis drug trade. Donnell was soon also arrested and sent off to prison.

Famous Husband

Steve Harvey is a renowned comedian who has had a long career in entertainment spanning multiple media streams. Harvey began his career as a stand up comic and eventually moved onto television with the nationally syndicated Steve Harvey Show on the WB network. He’s since hosted a successful radio show, the television game show Family Feud, and his own daytime talk show, Steve Harvey. He even launched a dating website called Delightful, which seeks to “help women become more datable.”

Many critics were quick to discredit Marjorie as a habitual gold digger and felt that she was taking advantage of Harvey’s financial status. It was alleged that Marjorie and Steve had begun carrying on an affair while Steve was still married to his second wife, Mary Shackelford. Shackelford herself made many allegations during the divorce proceedings. As a result, Steve Harvey became the butt of many online jokes aimed at the hypocrisy of his infidelity and self proclaimed Christian values.

Steve and Marjorie have backgrounds that are similar to each other in one way. They both have been unlucky in love since they have both have been divorced twice. She and Steve became husband and wife in June of 2007. Steve has admitted many times that Marjorie is responsible for changing his life and inspiring him to become a better man than he was before.

When she was first dating Steve, her intention wasn’t to marry him because she didn’t considered him as someone to be her type. Another reason behind her hesitation was that she hated the way his lips looked. Those big lips kissed her many times so she eventually got used to it. Detractors immediately latched on, pointing to this as proof of her gold digging ways. They alleged that the only reason she finally accepted a relationship with Harvey was because she was getting older and her prospects of landing anyone better were quickly fading.

She had many challenging times and her life was full of ups and downs. Her story changed after she got married to Steve. Before they tied the knot, their relationship was off and on. They had a deep and complicated history but in the end, they finally got married. 

Whatever critics and naysayers may claim about Marjorie and her past associations, she has brushed it all off with grace. After marrying Harvey, she has become an exemplar of class, and has had a very positive influence on Steve overall. Since saying their vows in 2007, Steve has gone on to win numerous awards for humanitarian acts and NAACP Image Awards for providing the African American community with a positive role model.