Episode #292 | 11.10.26

Buddy Holly: Did the Rock ‘n’ Roll Pioneer Shoot Down His Own Plane?

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In this episode

“The day the music died” refers to February 3, 1959, as that was the day the plane carrying Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper crashed, killing everyone on board. The official cause of the crash points to a young, inexperienced pilot and poor weather conditions. But two months later, when the snow melted and Buddy Holly’s gun was discovered at the crash site, a new theory emerged: Did Buddy Holly shoot down his own plane?.

Sources

The Day the Music Died: The Last Tour of Buddy Holly, the “Big Bopper,” and Ritchie Valens, by Larry Lehmer

In Flanders Field: The Curious Death and Rebirth of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and JP Richardson, by Ryan Vandergriff and Kevin Terry

Sh-Boom Magazine, Issue 1, 1989

The Last Days of Buddy Holly (Rolling Stone)

Buddy Holly plane crash : officials consider reopening 1959 probe (The Guardian)

Buddy Holly plane crash: U.S. safety officials reject petition to re-open case (CBC News)

Buddy Holly’s Pistol (Robert A. Waters)

Gary James' Interview with Bill Griggs (ClassicBands.com)

Big Bopper Rumors Put To Rest (CBS News)

New book gives insight into plane crash that killed Buddy Holly (KCBD)

RIP Jerry Dwyer, a man haunted by the Buddy Holly crash (Des Moines Register)

The Untold Story of Buddy Holly’s Fatal Plane Crash (Pilot Debrief)

Buddy Holly's Texas (Rolling Stone)

NTSB may reopen Buddy Holly plane crash investigation (KCBD)

The Buddy Holly Story (OC Weekly)

64 years later: 'The Day the Music Died' (KAAL)

Jim Collison’s Memories as a Reporter of the Buddy Holly Plane Crash (KCMR)

Bill Griggs (Rockin’ 50s)