As you all surely know, it was 46 years ago today that rock’n’roll pioneers Buddy Holly and Richie Valens were killed in a Iowa plane crash. It’s also common knowledge amongst rock historians such as myself, that this tragedy was caused by the selfish, anti-social actions of the Big Bopper. The corpulent crooner ignored instructions from the flight crew to discontinue the use of his primitive mobile telephone, engaging in a vulgar, sexually explicit conversation with an anonymous, underaged female. The Bopper’s sickening exhibition of self-gratification may have temporarily satiated his pathological need to ejaculate in the prescence of strangers, but also served to interfere with the pilot’s controls, forcing the tiny aircraft into a fatal tailspain. For years, this incident has been covered up and in the case of the Lou Diamond Phillips/ Marshall Crenshaw star vehicle “La Bamba”, completely ignored as no one in Hollywood dared mess with the Bopper’s powerful family.

Also, today was the 26th Anniversary of Sid Vicious’ alleged heroin overdose at the Chelsea Hotel. Vicious, whose village idiot routine would pave the way for many lesser lights to follow suit (C.C.Deville, Scott Weiland, George W. Bush), was of course, murdered by Courtney Love, as we’ve all learned from Nick Broomfield’s excellent documentary film.


(death spared Vicious the indignity of seeing his name swiped by WCW’s Sid Eudy)