Not So Happy Father's Day: Elon Musk Reminisces About His Estranged Dad, And His 'Bleak' Childhood

Fathers are a very special in anybody's life, and words often fall short when we attempt to describe the kind of inspiration they provide and the support they lend to our lives.

It's a no secret that billionaire and Tesla, Inc. TSLA chief executive officer Elon Musk had a strained relationship with his father Errol Musk. In the past, Elon has termed his father as a "terrible human being" capable of carrying out evil deeds.

Grew Up In Austere & Bleak Environment: On Father's Day, a social media influencer from the Caribbean tweeted that Elon's father attributed his son's ambitious disposition to the austere education he received.

"I was a strict father," Errol was quoted as having said.

Elon responded to the tweet, which reflected his mixed emotion concerning his father. He agreed that his father did teach him a lot of engineering and physics while growing up. This apparently has given Elon a solid foundation in science and technology, the main reason behind his successful business endeavors.

Elon went on to add that all this education from his father happened in an environment that was "austere and often bleak."

Related Link: 'I'm Doing My Part': Why Elon Musk Says He's 'Unusual' When It Comes To Having Children

A Troubled Relationship: Elon's parents, who initially lived in South Africa, divorced when he was eight years old, and he chose to live with his father. The senior Musk was an engineer and was credited with being the youngest to get a professional engineer's qualification in South Africa at that time.

When Elon chose to go to Canada at the age of 17, his father reportedly told him he was an idiot and will be back in three months. Elon proved his father wrong and went on to become one of the most successful businessmen of his time.

Elon, however, projects himself as being a better father himself. While greeting his followers on Father's Day, he also said, he loves all his kids so much. Musk has five sons from his first marriage, and a son and daughter with ex-girlfriend Grimes.

Photo: Created with an image from Steve Jurvetson on Flickr