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Day the Music Died. What to Know About 1959 Crash that Claimed Icons
The anniversary honors the musicians who died in a 1959 plane crash amid poor weather, with tributes held at the Surf Ballroom and crash-site memorial in Iowa.
- On Feb. 3, 1959, the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J.P. Richardson and the pilot is commemorated in Iowa with tribute events at the Surf Ballroom.
- Federal investigators blamed poor weather and pilot disorientation after the Beechcraft entered heavy snow within five minutes of takeoff, with the pilot lacking radar or satellite imagery.
- Hours earlier the trio performed at the Surf Ballroom, then the Beechcraft took off around 1:00 a.m. in a light snowstorm and crashed minutes later near Clear Lake.
- The deaths entered American cultural history and inspired Don McLean's `American Pie`, which popularized the phrase `The Day the Music Died`.
- Local historians say the crash's impact still resonates more than six decades later, with a stainless-steel monument and four memorial trees marking the crash site, and the City of Lubbock restoring a historic building as the Buddy Holly Center.
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Tuesday marks 67 years since 'The Day The Music Died'
(CBS, KYMA) - On February 3, 1959, rock 'n' roll singers Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. "Big Bopper" Richardson were killed when their small plane crashed near Clear Lake, Iowa. Pilot Roger Peterson was also killed, and the day was coined as "The Day The Music Died." The three rising stars had just finished playing for about a thousand teens in Clear Lake, Iowa and were on their way to Fargo, North Dakota for another performance. The four…
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Total News Sources15
Leaning Left1Leaning Right1Center7Last UpdatedBias Distribution78% Center
Bias Distribution
- 78% of the sources are Center
78% Center
11%
C 78%
11%
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