Remembering Whitney One Year Later

On Saturday, music mogul Clive Davis held his annual pre-Grammy party, the same party that proceeded last year only hours after Whitney’s death.  Clive Davis sent an invitation to this year’s event to Whitney’s mother, singer Cissy Houston, who is still angry at Clive for hosting last year’s party while Whitney’s body was still lying only a few stories above the festivities in her hotel room.  Cissy declined the invitation, saying “I got an invitation to the party – which is the most obscene thing. I don’t know why they would want me to come to the party in which she died, you know? Unheard of.” However, Cissy’s son and daughter-in-law Pat Houston, who was also Whitney’s manager, ignored Cissy’s boycott and attended the party anyway.

This is only one sign of a family in turmoil.

– When photos of Whitney laying in her coffin were sold to The National Enquirer, it was discovered that a distant relative was responsible for breaching the family’s trust and selling the pics for a quick buck.

– Only 3 months after Whitney’s death, the Houston family was criticized for their choice to produce a reality TV show “The Houston’s: On Our Own.”  The show exposed a wild and disrespectful side of Whitney’s under aged daughter, Bobbi Kristina, who was frequently seen drinking liquor, having a fast-paced romance with a young man who grew up in the same household with her as a brother — all the while turning a deaf ear to adults and authority.

– Within months of Whitney’s death, Cissy Houston decided to write a tell-all book about her own daughter, addressing Whitney’s drug use, the lesbian rumors and more.  When “Remembering Whitney” was published, Bobbi Kristina was furious and went public with anger at her grandmother for airing Whitney’s “dirty laundry,” tweeting:

“ANYTHING concerning my grandmothers Book. I and Nick Gordon OF COURSE personally have NOTHING 2 do with. I ask you [please] RESPECT that. Haven’t read and won’t. I find it [to be] Disrespect 2 MY MOTHER and me being HER DAUGHTER won’t tolerate it.”

All of this has happened within the 12 months since Whitney’s death.

The obvious family discord appears to be an “every man for himself” attempt to cash in on Whitney’s legacy before the other.  But their head-butting comes as a former Chicago police officer and current private detective is asking authorities to reopen the case of Whitney’s death, claiming he has evidence that Whitney didn’t simply drown in a partially filled bathtub, but was murdered.  A record executive who was staying in the hotel room just below Whitney’s last year, has reiterated that he heard an extremely loud thud come from her room at what was the time of her death, which sounded like someone had fallen or was thrown.

With so much family controversy, it’s probably hard for Whitney Houston to rest in peace.  But with questions still swirling about her death, it may be time to revisit her passing.