George Bolotin is the father of singer and songwriter Michael Bolton born Michael Bolotin. George’s son Michael performed in the hard rock and heavy metal music genres from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s, both on his early solo albums and those he recorded as the frontman of the band Blackjack. He achieved peak recognition as a pop ballad singer in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
George Bolotin: Bio Summary
| Name | George Bolotin |
| Other name | George L. “Bullet” Bolotin |
| Famous as | father of Michael Bolton |
| Date of birth | February 05, 1912 |
| Place of birth | New Haven, New Haven County, Connecticut, USA |
| Died | 25 April 1981 (aged 69) |
| Parents | Oscar Bolotin and Sophie Bolotin |
| Spouse | Helen Bolotin |
| Children | Michael Bolton, Orrin Bolotin, and Sandra Bolotin |
| Grandchildren | Isa Bolton, Holly Bolton, and Taryn Bolton |
Who Was Michael Bolton’s Father, George Bolotin?
George Bolotin was born on February 05, 1912, in New Haven, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. He was also known as George L. Bolotin or “Bullet”. Oscar Skishe Bolotin and Sophie F. Bolotin were his parents. His father Oscar was a Russian Jewish immigrant, from Starodub, Bryansk Oblast. His mother Sophie was also a Russian-Jewish immigrant. He was not the only child of his parents.
George Bolotin was the brother of Rose Bolotin and Harriet Sklar. It is unknown if he has other siblings or not. Information about his education is not available. He became a local official in the Democratic Party. He married Helen Bolotin. Helen was a homemaker. George and Helen became the parents of sons Michael Bolotin, and Orrin Bolotin, and a daughter Sandra Bolotin.
Their children were brought up in a liberal family. They grew up in a Russian-Jewish household. George and Helen’s son Michael has described his childhood home as decorated with both a Hanukkah menorah and a Christmas tree. Their son Orrin became a musician who released his recordings on his own Rock N Hood Records label including the 2011 album Livin’ Like A Man and 2013 single ‘Ain’t About Love’. Their daughter Sandra plays the clarinet.
George and Helen’s son Michael Bolotin aka Michael Bolton was a high schooler when he was offered a contract by Epic Records. “I got a record deal with Epic when I was 16. My mother had to actually sign my contract. I was not legally old enough,” Michael recalled. “It was a band called Joy. I was the singer/songwriter. I got a $400 advance for signing my publishing deal with April Blackwood.”
“I was so excited I went and bought a red Rickenbacker guitar and it was the nicest thing I’d owned in my life. Within a year we got a letter [from Epic] that we were now free to sign with anyone you would like to, which is like getting a message from your girlfriend to feel free to whomever you want to date, anyone but me. But in that year I’d been bitten.” He got married in his 20s and had three daughters with his wife.
ALSO, READ: Helen Bolotin: What Happened To Michael Bolton’s Mother?
Michael Bolton struggled during the early stage of his career before he got his breakthrough. He had difficulties paying bills while raising three daughters. “I remember sitting at the kitchen table in depression about the food money that we needed and the rent check that was probably going to bounce,” he told Billboard. “If a gig got snowed out in Connecticut that was my food and rent money.”
“By the time I was 27, I had three daughters. I know that I couldn’t let the kids know how bad it was. My wife knew. The hardest of times never leaves you and it’s amazing how close to the surface it is.” However, his father George Bolotin still believed in him and once said that he was “going to be big”. “My father used to stare at me and just go, ‘big, big, big. You’re going to be big.’ I said, ‘I hope so, because my rent checks are bouncing.’”
Reaching this success was “an 18-year climb,” he said. “My first record deal was at 16, and I didn’t have a hit until I was 34.” Michael Bolton has a successful career as a singer and songwriter. During his early career, he achieved success as a songwriter, co-writing hits like “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You” for Laura Branigan. He was a member of the rock band Blackjack and was performing under his real name, Michael Bolotin.
Michael Bolton gained fame for his covers of soul classics, including Otis Redding’s “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay” and Percy Sledge’s “When a Man Loves a Woman”. He has sold over 75 million records and recorded eight top-10 albums and two number-one singles on the Billboard charts. He has performed with several successful and well-known artists including Celine Dion, Patti LaBelle, and B. B. King among others.
Where Is Michael Bolton’s Father Now?
George Bolotin passed away on April 25, 1981, in Middletown, Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States, at the age of 69 years old. The cause of his death is unknown. He was laid to rest at Hebrew Burial and Free Loan Association Cemetery, East Haven, New Haven County, Connecticut, USA. The mother of his children Helen Bolotin died on July 19, 2015, at age 95, in West Haven, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States.
ALSO, READ: Taryn Bolton: All About Michael Bolton’s Daughter
My brother, my mentor, my introduction to my love of music. We've shared songs, sports, long hair and the stage. Forever the traveler, I know your music guides you into your next journey. RIP pic.twitter.com/sSdWyQBRH1
— Michael Bolton (@mbsings) March 6, 2023George Bolotin’s son Orrin Bolotin passed away in 2023. Orrin’s brother Michael Bolton announced his death on social media. “My brother, my mentor, my introduction to my love of music, he wrote on X. “We’ve shared songs, sports, long hair and the stage. Forever the traveler, I know your music guides you into your next journey. RIP”
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