Holly, Richardson, and Valens were thrown from the wreckage; Peterson was found entangled in what was left of the plane. She received her Bachelors of Arts in history and her Masters of Arts degree in history both from the University of Western Ontario in Canada. Thanks for your help! That was a rough day, Munson says. Holly decided to charter a plane for himself and his musicians for the trip out of Clear Lake, Iowa, to their next gig in Minnesota they'd have a good night's sleep and a chance to do laundry before the next show. Valens was only 17 years old. The emotional gravity of the situation led to an emotional breakdown. Morales, brother of 1950s rock star Ritchie Valens, should have had his picture in the dictionary under "nice guy.'' August 28, 2018. They are a blessing to me and my family. This is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. The action you just performed triggered the security solution. He was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. Ritchie noticed it and sat down for a lesson more about that in a minute. The record took off, and after that, Ritchie was gone all the time, Munson says. WATSONVILLE, Calif. . Info. Ritchie had told Donna that he was In January 1959, Ritchie Valens set out with Buddy Holly, Dion and the Belmonts, The Big Bopper J.P. Richardson, and Frankie Sardo on a 24-day tour of the mid-Western United States. In February 1959, he died with Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper when their small plane crashed into a farmer's field near Clear Lake, Iowa. Weird scenes in Clear Lake - Piece of Mindful Buddy Holly's glasses, lost since his death in 1959, are found in Mason car radio - she couldnt believe it. His debut, "Come On Let's Go," peaked just outside the top 40 in late 1958, while his most familiar tune, "La Bamba," peaked at No. Ritchie was away that day at his grandfathers funeral. This is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons. By early 1959, Ritchie Valens was emerging as a rock n' roll superstar, thanks to attention-grabbing singles like "Come On, Let's Go," "Donna," and "La Bamba." 9. The body of Jiles P. Richardson was clothed in a red checked flannel shirt and light blue cotton pants. Pictured from left to right: Olga Jurado-Zubick, Ritchie's cousin; Gail Smith, Ritchie's classmate and president of the Ritchie Valens Memorial Fan Club; Paulina Lozano, sister of Ritchie's aunt Ernestine; Ritchie's mother Connie, better known a "Concha"; Donna . Not among them was Valens, who was absent from school that day to attend a burial service for his recently deceased grandfather. Apparently no one ever found out. Born in Sabine Pass, Texas, his father worked as a driller in the oil fields. A Detailed Look At The Tragic Death Of Ritchie Valens. Peter Peter95. She is passionate about Princess Diana, the Titanic, the Romanovs, and Egypt amongst other things. Keane had Valens record a rock n' roll version of "La Bamba," a Mexican folk song he'd been playing on the guitar since he was a child. February 3, 1959, has gone down in history (and a Don McLean song) as the day the music died. Rock and roll musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper J.P Richardson were killed in a plane crash alongside pilot Roger Peterson on this fateful day. Colombia Pictures / Via youtube.com. The tour aimed to play 24 small venues around the Midwest in just about as many days, which the group of musicians traveled to in an unheated tour bus prone to breaking down. SPONSORED. Valens, of course, was the pioneering Chicano rocker who managed to write and record La Bamba, Come On, Lets Go and Donna as a high school sophomore during a career that lasted only eight months. Ronnie Brann (13) and Robert Zallan (12) were struck by wreckage and killed immediately. Resend Activation Email, Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox, If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map. Owing to the sad circumstances of his untimely death, Valens is not one of the most prolific hitmakers in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, landing a scant five singles on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart. The film opens with the Valenzuela family, a group of Mexican . Ritchie's heartfelt lyrics, vocal exuberance, and the infectious beat of his music are all displayed in a diverse musical style that continues to touch generations of fans around the world all these years later. I still remember his aftershave, Old Spice. Ritchie Best remembered for his hit song Chantilly Lace (1958), he was killed in the same plane crash that also killed early rock-n-roll icons Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens in an event that became known as The Day The Music Died. You are only allowed to leave one flower per day for any given memorial. He figured a good way to get around that would be by translating it into English, until he sat down to do it and realized that there were around 500 verses of "La Bamba" to address. Afterward, Keane asked what they thought and if theyd noticed a mistake toward the end. Valens apparently became proficient on drums, I told Munson. There are no volunteers for this cemetery. The Big Bopper. Valens went to 'Pacoima Junior High School' and music was his passion from an . Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized. During this time, he had several hits, most notably "La Bamba", which was originally a . The Valenzuelas approved of the project, and filmmakers thanked them by casting several family members in small roles. The single did well and he released two more singles: 'Donna' for his high school sweetheart, Donna Ludwig and 'La Bamba' which was reworking of a traditional Mexican folk song. "Man on the Moon" by R.E.M. According to the Los Angeles Times, Valens' sisters Connie Lemos and Irma Padillaplay farm workers in the movie's opening sequence, while their daughters, Gloria and Kristin, play their own mothers as children in other scenes. Three students were killed that day, and another 90 sustained injuries. Morales left the tough-guy image behind - Voices of Monterey Bay "The Big Bopper," Ritchie Valens, and Buddy Holly. A retired firefighter and water plant operator, Munson has lived out here since the mid-1970s. The plane never made it to Minnesota. Her response? Since then, the legend of Valens and his love for his girlfriend, Donna, have grown. Ritchie was living with his moms sister in Panorama City because of school district boundaries, Munson recalls. About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features NFL Sunday Ticket Press Copyright . The first Hispanic rock star, Ritchie Valens will forever be known as one of the two musicians (along with the Big Bopper) who perished with Buddy Holly in 1959, when their private plane crashed in the midst of a Midwest tour. Bob had a learners permit to drive. Another photo has Ritchie standing next to a car at the Munson curb. Ritchie Valens Net Worth | Celebrity Net Worth This is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. Bob Keane, the a Del-Fi record label exec, discovered him and had Ritchie's change his last name to make it more "radio friendly" (aka, whitewash his identity but that's a different story). ". "If we hadn't gone to my grandfather's funeral, Ritchie would have been out there, in the playground," the singer's brother, Bob Valenzuela, said in a retrospective about the film La Bamba. He didn't tell me he was going to record it.". Resend Activation Email. His phobia developed after two airplanes collided mid-air over his junior high school in Pacoima, a Los Angeles neighborhood, in 1957. Valens was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. He remembers the day at junior high Jan. 31, 1957 when two planes crashed in mid-air and some of the wreckage hit the schools playground, killing three students. Ritchie Valens Biography, Songs, & Albums | AllMusic Donna's father didn't approve of the relationship, because, remember, this was the '50s: Donna was white, and Ritchie was Latino. This is grassroots, where he started: the Packard, ditching school, the girls, Munson says with a laugh. When it comes to impact on the nascent genre of rock and roll, Buddy Holly's influence is nearly insurmountable. Please contact Find a Grave at [emailprotected] if you need help resetting your password. young woman. La Bamba | Opinion | The Harvard Crimson Email dallen@scng.com, phone 909-483-9339, visit insidesocal.com/davidallen, like davidallencolumnist on Facebook and follow @davidallen909 on Twitter. J.P. "Big Bopper" Richardson (1930-1959) - Find a Ludwig asserts that she and Valens had broken up long before he became famous, leaving him free to indulge in the more carnal elements of the rock n' roll lifestyle. Ritchie was away that day at his grandfather's funeral. cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. According to The Washington Post, the film took a few creative liberties, particularly in regards to Valens' romantic life. Copyright 2023 Distractify. purchased just a few months earlier. On Feb. 3, 1959, a Tuesday, Bob and some friends had just pulled into a hamburger stand on their lunch break when the radio broke the news about the plane crash. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. There is a problem with your email/password. An estimated 75 students suffered from both major and minor injuries. The Ritchie Valens family would like to acknowledge Alan Clark

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