Entertainment
Jon Bon Jovi’s mom Carol Bongiovi dead at 83: ‘A force to be reckoned with’
Jon Bon Jovi is mourning the death of his beloved mother who died Tuesday at age 83.
The rocker’s mom, Carol Biongovi, died at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, N.J., just three days before she was set to turn 84.
“Our mother was a force to be reckoned with,” the “Livin’ on a Prayer” hitmaker, 62, told People in a statement on behalf of his family. “Her spirit and can-do attitude shaped this family. She will be greatly missed.”
Her cause of death was not immediately announced.
Carol, who was born in Erie, Penn., founded the official fan club for her son’s rock band, Bon Jovi, in the 1980s.
Before that, she served as a US Marine, where she met her future husband, John Bongiovi, Sr.
The pair later moved to Sayreville, N.J. and welcomed three boys: Jon, Anthony and Matthew.
Speaking to The Big Issue in November 2020, the “You Give Love a Bad Name” hitmaker credited his parents with giving him “the ability to make the dream reality.”
“Even if you truly weren’t any good at your craft, if you believed you were, you could work on it,” he said at the time.
“As I got older I realized that was a great gift that I got from my folks. They truly believed in the John Kennedy mantra of going to the moon. ‘Yeah, of course you can go to the moon. Just go, Johnny.’ And there I went.”
The rocker also praised his parents for supporting his dream of becoming a rock star.
“They were always supportive of me, which in retrospect, was incredible,” he said. “Because I could get home at one or two in the morning, and have to still be in school by eight o’clock. They just said, show up on time for school, you know that is your responsibility, but pursue your dream.”
Carol is survived by her three sons and their wives, as well as eight grandchildren.
Carol’s death comes less than two months after the rocker’s son, Jake Bongiovi, secretly tied the knot with “Stranger Things” actress Millie Bobby Brown.
Bon Jovi confirmed reports of the pair’s private nuptials during an appearance on BBC’s “The One Show” in May.
“They’re great, they’re absolutely fantastic, it was a very small family wedding and the bride looked gorgeous and Jake is happy as can be,” he shared.