The Big Bopper
Jiles Perry "J.P." Richardson Jr. (October 24, 1930 – February 3, 1959), better known by his stage name The Big Bopper, was an American musician and disc jockey. His best-known compositions include "Chantilly Lace," "Running Bear", and "White Lightning", the latter of which became George Jones's first number-one hit in 1959. He was killed in an airplane crash in Clear Lake, Iowa, in 1959, along with fellow musicians Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens, and the pilot, Roger Peterson.[1]
The Big Bopper
Jiles Perry Richardson Jr.
J.P. Richardson
October 24, 1930
Sabine Pass, Texas, U.S.
February 3, 1959 (aged 28)
Clear Lake, Iowa, U.S.
- Musician
- singer
- songwriter
- disc jockey
- Vocals
- guitar
1949–1959
Early life[edit]
Richardson was born on October 24, 1930, in Sabine Pass, Texas, the oldest son of oil-field worker Jiles Perry Richardson (1905–84) and his wife Elise (Stalsby) Richardson (1909–83). They had two other sons, Cecil (1934–89) and James (1932–2010). The family soon moved to Beaumont, Texas. Richardson graduated from Beaumont High School in 1947 and played on the "Royal Purple" American football team as a defensive lineman, wearing number 85.[2] Richardson later was a radio disc jockey while at Lamar College,[3] where he studied prelaw and was a member of the band and chorus.
Career[edit]
Radio[edit]
Richardson worked part-time at Beaumont, Texas radio station KTRM (now KZZB). He was hired by the station full-time in 1949 and quit college. Richardson married Adrianne Joy Fryou on April 18, 1952, and their daughter Debra Joy was born in December 1953, soon after Richardson was promoted to supervisor of announcers at KTRM. In March 1955, he was drafted into the United States Army and did his basic training at Fort Ord, California. Richardson spent the rest of his two-year service as a radar instructor at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. In March 1957, following his discharge as a corporal, Richardson returned to KTRM radio, where he held down the "Dishwashers' Serenade" shift from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Monday to Friday.
One of the station's sponsors wanted Richardson for a new time slot, and suggested an idea for a show. Richardson had seen college students doing a dance called The Bop, and he decided to call himself "The Big Bopper". His new radio show ran from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m., and he soon became the station's program director. In May 1957, Richardson broke the record for continuous on-air broadcasting by 8 minutes. He performed for a total of five days, two hours, and eight minutes from a remote setup in the lobby of the Jefferson Theatre in downtown Beaumont, playing 1,821 records[4] and taking showers during 5-minute newscasts.[3] Richardson is credited for creating the first music video in 1958, and recorded an early example himself.[4]
Personal life[edit]
Richardson was married to Adrienne Joy "Teetsie" Wenne (1936–2004) and had a daughter, Debra (1953–2006). His son, Jay Perry Richardson, was born two months after his death, in April 1959. Richardson had been building a recording studio in his home in Beaumont, Texas, and was planning to invest in a radio station. He had written 20 new songs that he planned to record himself or with other artists. His son also followed a musical career and was known professionally as "The Big Bopper, Jr.", performing around the world. He toured on the "Winter Dance Party" tour with Buddy Holly impersonator John Mueller on some of the same stages where his father had performed.
In January 2007, Jay Richardson requested that his father's body be exhumed and an autopsy be performed in response to an internet rumor about guns being fired aboard the aircraft and Richardson initially surviving the crash.[9] The autopsy was performed by William M. Bass, a forensic anthropologist at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Richardson was present throughout the autopsy and observed the casket as it was opened; both men were surprised that the remains were well enough preserved to be recognized as those of the late rock star. "Dad still amazes me 48 years after his death, that he was in remarkable shape," Richardson told the Associated Press. "I surprised myself. I handled it better than I thought I would."[10] Bass's findings indicated no signs of foul play. "There are fractures from head to toe. Massive fractures…. [Richardson] died immediately. He didn't crawl away. He didn't walk away from the plane."[10]
Richardson's body was placed in a new casket made by the same company as the original and was reburied next to his wife in Beaumont's Forest Lawn Cemetery. Jay Richardson allowed the old casket to be displayed at the Texas Musicians Museum. In December 2008, he announced that he would be placing the old casket up for auction on eBay, donating a share of the proceeds to the Texas Musicians Museum,[11] but he downplayed the suggestion in later interviews.[12] He died of heart failure in 2013.[13]
The family announced "It is with great sadness that we must tell you that Jay P Richardson has passed away. After a long hard fight, JP succumbed on the morning of August 21, at the age of 54".[14]
C3 Entertainment handles the rights to the Richardson estate, through an agreement with Jay's widow Patty.[15]
Book, film, and stage[edit]
In Not Fade Away, a turbulent road novel taking place at the end of the fifties, Jim Dodge narrates an eventful trip to the Big Bopper's grave.[21]
Richardson was portrayed by Gailard Sartain in The Buddy Holly Story, Stephen Lee in La Bamba, and John Ennis in Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story.
"Chantilly Lace" is used in the movies True Romance and American Graffiti as well as "High Spirits" and "Cocktail".[22]
In the animated series The Venture Bros., it is implied that the elderly villains Dragoon and Red Mantle are actually Richardson and Buddy Holly, who were recruited into the supervillain organization the Guild of Calamitous Intent on the night of their supposed deaths.
In 2016, the rock and roll legend was immortalized by software studio Realtime Gaming in a slot game named appropriately - The Big Bopper.[23]