The Big Bopper...Can You Dig It???
This is truly one of the most bizarre stories of the year. The son of "The Big Bopper" a.k.a. J.P. Richardson, Jay Richardson a.k.a. "The Big Bopper Jr." has hired a forensic anthropologist to find out how his father died in the infamous 1959 plane crash that took the lives of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and "The Big Bopper"...
Born shortly after the crash, Richardson never knew his father but he would like to dispel rumors of a gun being fired on board the plane just before it crashed. Would Richardson Sr. have survived the crash and did he die trying to go for help? His body was found 40 feet away from the wreckage while Holly, Valens and the pilot died at the site of the plane's wreckage. An autopsy was performed on the pilot's body but not on the others...
Dr. Bill Bass, nicknamed "The Body Farm" plans to study the remains in March. The University of Tennessee research facility founder is an expert in determining identities and causes of death. X-rays of the bones should be able to show if "The Big Bopper" was hit by a bullet because the lead in the bullet would leave debris. The cause of the crash was officially logged as "pilot error" but the owner of the flying service insists his pilot was not at fault but may have been "incapacitated". A gun, believed to belong to Buddy Holly was found by a local farmer two months after the crash. "Bopper Jr." doesn't believe his father was shot and doesn't buy the rumors, "That's what I hope it comes to". We'll find out in March. Stay tuned...
Our video link is a live performance of "The Big Bopper" singing "Chantilly Lace" on the "Dick Clark Saturday Night Beechnut Show". Unlike "American Bandstand" which had artists lip-sync their hits, some of the acts on the Saturday night show sang live: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GLrOTMSpC-Q Watch this video to the end and notice the "IFIC" buttons in the audience...
Happy Trails to a legendary early Rock and Roll voice that's been stilled, follows - in my Commentary...
Timeline Memories...
"Round and round she goes and where she stops nobody knows": 1948] The precursor of "American Idol", "The Original Amateur Hour" hosted by Ted Mack moves from radio to television where it will run until 1960...
"Under Cooked": 1778] English navigator Captain James Cook discovers the Hawaiian Islands but taking a page from the Earl of Sandwich, calls it the "Sandwich Islands" (but then again the Captain hadn't eaten in months. He'll make up for it by naming the real Sandwich Islands - Hawaii)...
"Ice, Ice baby": 1958] Boston Bruin Willie O'Ree becomes the 1st black NHL player...
Chart Debut: 1964] "I Want To Hold Your Hand" - Beatles...
#1 on this date: 1961] "Wonderland By Night" - Bert Kaempfert...1971] "Knock Three Times" - Dawn...1980] "The Wall" - Pink Floyd...1986] "That's What Friends Are For" - Dionne Warwick & Friends (Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, Elton John). All proceeds go to the "American Foundation for AIDS Research"...
"Guilty as Charged": 1967] Self-proclaimed "Boston Strangler", Albert DeSalvo is convicted in Cambridge (MA) of armed robbery, assault and sex offense charges and is sentenced to life in prison (DeSalvo is killed by a fellow inmate in 1973)...1980] Studio 54 owners Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager are sentenced to 3 years in prison for tax evasion and fined $20,000...1990] Washington (DC) Mayor Marion Barry is arrested for drug possession in an FBI sting (Barry is later convicted of a misdemeanor)...
"Happy Days are Here Again": 1965] Barbra Streisand and Bobby Darin perform at LBJ's presidential inauguration...
"So Sue Me": 1969] Ex-Beatle Pete Best wins his defamation suit against the Beatles. Asking for $8 million, he settles for considerably less (a Beatle library and Ringo Starr's drum case)...
"Spin-Off": 1975] "The Jeffersons" debuts. You may remember that George Jefferson was Archie Bunker's neighbor. The series runs 11 seasons...
"Soopuh": 1976] The Pittsburgh Steelers win their 2nd Super Bowl in a row, an exciting Super Bowl that goes down to the last play. The Steelers beat Dallas 21-17...2004] The Patriots beat the Colts 24-14 to win the AFC championship and advance for a date with Carolina in Super Bowl XXXVIII (and your blogger was in Houston to celebrate the SB win for the Pats)...
Chapter 11: 1980] Capricorn Records, home of Southern rock acts, files for bankruptcy...
"Going to Hall": 1989] Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Dion, the Rolling Stones, Otis Redding and Stevie Wonder...
The Final Curtain: 1991] Eastern Airlines shuts down after 62 years in business due to financial problems...
"Life's a Holiday": 1993] The Martin Luther King Jr. holiday is observed in all 50 states (even Arizona) for the 1st time...
"D-I-V-O-R-C-E": 1996] Lisa Marie Presley files for divorce from Michael Jackson after 20 months of marriage (and somewhere Elvis is smiling)...
"Hail To The Chief": 1998] The Boston Celtics retire Robert Parrish's #00 jersey...
"Love Child": 2001] Civil rights leader Jesse Jackson reveals an extramarital affair that results in the birth of a daughter...
[To ensure accuracy of dates and content, multiple reference sources are used in each timeline]...
Commentary...
"Happy Trails" to Thornton James Hudson a.k.a. "Pookie Hudson" who passed away on January 16th from cancer. Pookie was the great and hauntingly distinctive lead singer of the 50's early Rock and Roll group, The Spaniels who scored with such R&B hits as "Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight" (written by Hudson) "Stormy Weather", "Zing" and my favorite, "You Painted Pictures". They also went top 10 (R&B) with "Baby It's You". "Sweetheart" was their biggest pop chart hit, getting as high as #24 before the McGuire Sisters covered the song and had the pop hit but the tune was top 5 at R&B. An entire new generation discovered Pookie and The Spaniels when the song was featured in "American Graffiti" in 1973. In October Pookie Hudson recorded a new CD called "Uncloudy Christmas" which will be released this fall...R.I.P. Pookie Hudson...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
"Law & Order's" Jesse L. Martin (38), Mark Messier (46), Kevin Costner (52), Bobby Goldsboro (66) and Ray Dolby (inventor of the noise reduction system)(74)...
Timeline Countdown: 3 days until NFL Conference playoffs, 17 days until Super Bowl XLI and 28 days until 'pitchers and catchers'...
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