Tommy Lee

Lee in 2006, photo by s_bukley/Bigstock.com

Birth Name: Thomas Lee Bass

Place of Birth: Athens, Greece

Date of Birth: October 3, 1962

Ethnicity:
*father – English, some Irish and French
*mother – Greek

Tommy Lee is an American musician. He is a founding member of, and drummer for, heavy metal band Mötley Crüe. Other members of the band are Vince Neil, Nikki Sixx, and, previously, Mick Mars.

Tommy was born in Athens, Greece, and was raised in California, U.S. His mother, Vassiliki “Voula” (Papadimitriou), was Greek, from Athens. His father, David Oliver Bass, was an American, who was born in Taconite, Itasca, Minnesota, and had English, and some Irish and French, ancestry.

Tommy is married to actress and internet personality Brittany Furlan. He has two children, models Brandon Thomas Lee and Dylan Lee, with his former wife, Canadian-born actress and model Pamela Anderson.

Tommy’s paternal grandfather was John S. Bass (the son of Joseph Josiah Bass and Alice Eva Oliver). John was born in Florence, Florence Co., South Carolina. Joseph was the son of John Calvin Bass and Nancy/Nannie S. McLeandon/McLeanon. Alice was the daughter of Samuel Preston Oliver and Harriett Rebecca Bates.

Tommy’s paternal grandmother was Julia/Juliet Esther Sanders (the daughter of Henry Sanders and May Esther Patrick). Julia was born in Milwaukee, Milwaukee Co., Wisconsin. Henry was born in New York, the son of James F. Sanders, who was born in France, and of Julia Sullivan, who was Irish. May was the daughter of Harvey S. Patrick and Esther Elizabeth Edwards.

Tommy’s father is descended from John Bass, who was born in Suffolk, Virginia. John was the son of William Basse and Catherine/Katherine Lanier/Lanyere. William was the son of John Basse, an English immigrant, and of Elizabeth Nansemond, who was Native American, and a princess of the Nansemond tribe. Catherine’s ancestry is disputed. Some sources state that she too was a Nansemond Native American, while others say that she was born to English immigrants. While some genealogies list her as the daughter of John Lanier and Lucreece Bassano, this is not the case, as their only daughter, Katherine, died as an infant.

Sources: Genealogy of Tommy Lee (focusing on his father’s side) –

Genealogy of Tommy’s paternal great-great-great-grandfather, Josiah Bass –

Genealogy of Tommy’s paternal great-great-great-great-great-grandfather, Arthur Bass –