[1][2][3][4] Jones was relatively unknown outside of the film industry until 1970, when he publicly announced that he had been secretly married to actress Inger Stevens from 1961 until her death in April 1970.

[5] After the singer's death, Jones was hired as a producer on A Man Called Adam, a film starring Sammy Davis Jr.

Despite Jones being unable to produce a valid marriage license, Superior Court Commissioner A. Edward Nichols ruled in his favor and appointed him administrator of her estate in August 1970.

"[9] Jones announced that he would use a portion of Stevens' $171,000 estate to open a mental health care clinic in her name in Watts, Los Angeles, but that never happened.

[10] Jones died "of complications from a stroke and congestive heart failure"[2] in an assisted-living facility in Los Angeles on October 5, 2014.