source: the Inquisitr

When Holly learned that Jennings wasn’t going to fly, he said, “Well, I hope your old bus freezes up.” Jennings responded, “Well, I hope your plane crashes.” This friendly banter of friends would haunt Jennings for years.

Allsup told Valens, I’ll flip you for the remaining seat. On the toss of a coin, Valens won the seat and Allsup the rest of his life.

The plane took off a little after 1 A.M. from Clear Lake and never got far from the airport before it crashed, killing all onboard.

A cold N.E wind immediately gave way to a snow which drastically reduced visibility. The ground was already blanketed in white. The pilot may have been inexperienced with the instrumentation.
One wing hit the ground and the small plane corkscrewed over and over. The three young stars were thrown clear of the plane, leaving only pilot Roger Peterson inside.
Over the years there has been much speculation as to whether a shot was fired inside the plane which disabled or killed the pilot. Logic suggests that encased in a sea of white snow, with only white below, Peterson just flew the plane into the ground.
Deciding that the show must go on at the next stop, Moor head, MN, they looked for local talent to fill in. Just across the state line from Moor head, in Fargo ND, they found a 15 year old talent named Bobby Vee.
The crash that ended the lives of Holly, Valens and Richardson was the break that began the career of Vee.
Tommy All sup would one day open a club named “The Head’s Up Saloon,” a tribute to the coin toss that saved his life.

Waylon Jennings would become a hugely popular Country singer.

Dion di Mucci would enjoy a long lived solo career.

Inscribed on Ritchie Valens’ grave are the words, “Come On, Let’s Go.”

source: www.fiftiesweb.com

The fact that there is no body, only body parts, is not hard to understand, although conspiracy theorists will probably never let it go.

source: nowpublic.net

Death
During the early morning of October 16, 2007, at 6:20 a.m., Proeski died in a car accident on the Zagreb–Lipovac highway near Nova Gradiska, Croatia. He was a passenger along with his manager Ljiljana Petrovic in a Volkswagen Touareg driven by Georgij Georgijevski. The Touareg crashed into the back of a truck and then into the median barrier, killing Proeski instantly, crushing the third vertebrae of the neck, although the truck sustained no damage. Proeski was asleep in the front passenger seat at the time of the crash.Proeski’s body arrived at midnight in Skopje by helicopter of the Macedonian army, and was transported by car to his home town Krusevo. Grieving citizens gathered to pay their last respects at the airport and also in Macedonia Square. The Embassy of the United States of America, the USAID and the Diplomatic mission of the European Union published official statements on the death of Tose Proeski.After his death, the government of the Republic of Macedonia, gave him the title “Honorable citizen of Macedonia”

Prior to her solo career, Thorton led the dance act La Bouche to a series of hit CDs including “Sweet Dreams,” and “S.O.S.” Ms. Thornton left the group in early 2000 for an independent career. At the time of her death, she was on tour to promote her solo album “Ready to Fly”. The CD, which included the single “Heartbeat,” had been scheduled for release two days after the crash. Another single, “Wonderful Dream,” had also been chosen for a Coca-Cola TV commercial.

The aircraft was on an unscheduled domestic flight from Austin, TX to Jackson, WY and was operating under Federal Regulations Part 135. According to the captain they could see runway 18 from 9,000 feet mean sea level and 5 nautical miles away from the field. The flight crew was unable to get the runway lights turned on before their landing attempt. The NTSB also indicated that the flight crew landed the aircraft below weather minimums.

The NTSB reported that the airplane first contacted the ground approximately 195 feet (59 meters) left of the runway center line, and 3,500 feet (1066 meters) along the runway from the threshold. The airplane settled into approximately two feet of snow (60 cm), and left a track in the snow for approximately 600 feet (183 meters). Both the nose gear and nose cone were completely separated from the aircraft, the right wing was partially separated from the airplane, and the left wing was bent and badly damaged. The NTSB determined that the probable causes included the pilot’s failure to follow appropriate approach procedures and perform a missed approach when the runway was not in sight below approach minimums. Contributing factors were the copilot’s failure to follow current approach procedures and use the correct frequency to turn on the runway lights. Weather and visibility conditions were also factors.

The NTSB has sent a team of investigators to New York from its Washington, DC headquarters and the team has yet to report any findings about the circumstances that led this crash, including whether the parachute system was activated. Although the aircaft did not have either a flight data recorder or cockpit voice recorder, there were numerous witnesses to the final stages of the flight, as well as radar information and video footage of the final phases of the flight.

The crash and subsequent fire killed both flight crew members and two of the four passengers. The two survivors, Barker and Goldstein, escaped the aircraft but suffered severe burns. Goldstein is also the former fiance of television personality Nicole Ritchie. Barker and Goldstein had performed at a concert earlier in Columbia, and the two passengers who did not survive were support staff for the artists.

The aircraft was operated by Global Exec Aviation of Long Beach, California. Less than an hour before the accident, the plane had arrived in South Carolina from Teterboro, New Jersey. The FAA and NTSB online incident and accident databases showed no other events involving this aircraft, or the aircraft operator.

The Learjet 60 first flew in 1991 and was certified in 1993. This was the second fatal Learjet 60 crash, with the first occurring in 2002 in Brazil. According to the NTSB, there were six other Learjet 60 accidents and serious incidents, including one during flight testing in 1992. The FAA lists 23 less serious incidents since 1996.

Meanwhile, near Paso Robles, 23 year-old Cal Poly student, Donald Turnupseed was heading home in his 1950 Ford Tutor. He made a left turn at the intersection of Highways 41 onto State Route 466 (later State Route 46) unaware of the Spyder approaching. As James Dean yelled to his friend seated next to him “He’s Got to See Us.” (Some sources cite the quote as, “That guy’s gotta stop… He’ll see us.”)

Contrary to the reports that have since stated Dean’s speed in excess of 80 miles per hour, California Highway Patrol officer Ron Nelson (one of the first law enforcement officers on the scene) said “the wreckage and the position of Dean’s body indicated his speed at the time of the accident was more like 55 mph.”

“Little Bastard” plowed into the broad side (check out this claim that the two vehicles collided driver’s door – to driver’s door) of the Ford Tutor. “Little Bastard” and its occupants would come to rest near a telephone pole fifteen feet off the road.

Rolf, thrown from the car, survived with a broken leg and serious head injuries, but he would survive. Donald Turnupseed, escaped the accident with only a gashed forehead and bruised nose. But James Dean, America’s rebel without a cause, would suffer fatal injuries, including a near decapitation. His body would be taken via ambulance to Paso Robles War memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival by Deputy Coroner Paul E. Werrick. The Coroner’s report would list Dean’s death as broken neck, multiple fractures of upper and lower jaw, multiple fractures of left and right arm and other internal injuries caused by a 2 car collision. James Dean was but 24 years old.Kuehl’s Funeral Home in Paso Robles, California would prepare the badly mangled body for its return back home to Indiana. His funeral would take place at the Back Creek Friends Church on October 8, 1955.

James Dean is buried in Fairmount Park Cemetery where his tombstone has been stolen 3 times, the last in July of 1998.

Ironically, Rolf Weutherich would be killed in a car accident in 1981, after surviving several failed suicide attampts. Donald Turnupseed would die in 1995 of lung cancer.

Strathclyde police said in a statement: “Four people were on board the helicopter,” adding “The bodies were found within the helicopter which is owned by Mr Colin McRae of Jervis wood House, Lanark. It is believed he was on board the helicopter.”

McRae became Britain’s first World Rally champion in 1995. He was one of the country’s most successful sportsmen, achieving 25 wins in World Rally events and 42 podium places. He was a flamboyant driver, inspiring one the world’s best-selling computer rally games. The helicopter came down within half a mile of McRae’s 16th-century home, which has an adjacent helipad. The weather had been overcast, with southwesterly winds gusting to 30 knots and good visibility. Officers with dogs and torches continued to comb the woodland near the crash into the night.

McRae’s wife, a childhood sweetheart and his former co-driver, was taken back to the house under police escort shortly after 6pm.

McRae’s friend the rally journalist Jeremy Hart, who flew with him several times, described him as a “very good, very measured pilot”.

“Colin regularly flew all over the UK and into Europe,” said Hart. “He knew the terrain and conditions at Jervis wood very well.

“As a sportsman he was a true hero. As a driver Colin was misunderstood slightly as being reckless but everything you saw with him came from pure raw talent as opposed to being learned. He was the Michael Schummacher of rally driving.

“It’s so ironic that he should die in a helicopter crash when he had competed and had brushed with death so many times as a rally driver.”

Additional reporting: Paul Lamarra

With squeeking tyres he accelerated away. He drove faster and faster. Henri Paul took the fast road at the harbour of the river Seine, raced then into the tunnel under the Place de Alma. The speed limit is 80 kilometres, he drove a full 180. Shortly after the entrance to the tunnel he completely lost control of the heavy car. The car skidded, lurched from side to side and finally crashed at high speed into the 13th concrete post! An explosion happened on impact. It was exactly 0:25. The driver was dead at the scene.

The bodyguard lay in a critical position on the passenger side. He was unconscious, but alive. Dodi like Henri Paul, lost his life at the scene of the accident. Diana, who was sitting next to her lover, lay crunched up in the back, her head clamped between the two front seats. She was still breathing. Miraculously she had hardly any bleeding wounds. By chance on the opposite carriageway a doctor was driving. He saw the car accident and stopped his car at once. Dr. Frederic Maillez reached for his emergency bag and ran to the crashed car. He didn’t know who the passengers were. But he recognized that the driver and the man sitting in the rear of the car were both dead. The external injuries of the second man at the front appeared the worst to him, so he first gave the bodyguard medical attention. Diana made rowing movements with her arms, when injured people do this it means that they are not receiving enough oxygen. The medic laid an oxygen mask over the unconscious Princess’s mouth. The ambulance was meanwhile underway. It took almost an hour until the victims could be taken out of the wreck. The car had to be first cut open using metal shears.At half-past one in the morning Diana came into the La Pitié-Salpêtriére hospital: emergency operation. The surgeons opened her ribcage “and discovered a torn vein. Massive inner bleeding! They managed to close the vein. But suddenly her heart stopped. The medics tried to bring the Princess back to life using heart massage. The fight lasted until shortly before four o’clock in the morning. Then the doctors had to agree that they had lost the fight.
Diana was dead!
The Princess of Wales died on 31st August 1997 at 3.57 am. After the initial shock at the tragic death of the Princess many questions were raised. How could it have come to this pointless death? Then the photographers were blamed for not giving the car enough room, following the car, and therefore being responsible for the accident.
The paparazzi had certainly not played a laudable role in this drama, but one cannot give them the complete guilt. As Henri Paul, the chauffeur was completely drunk! He had exactly 1,75 millilitres of alcohol in his blood. That is the same as about eight whiskies. Henri emerged as a dry alcoholic, his liver readings were normal.
In spite of this he must have been pointlessly drunk on this evening. But this was not all. The medics could also detect traces of drugs in his blood. A hellish combination when together with alcohol. How was it possible that a drunken security guard would place himself behind the wheel of a car?
How did no-one notice his condition? Mohamed Al-Fayed released the video from the security cameras at the hotel. One can recognize Diana as well as Dodi and Henri Paul. The security guard didn’t sway! The car photographer reported after the accident that on the night in question in front of the Ritz Paul had told them: “You won’t catch us tonight”. Did he over judge himself, and did Henri want to organize a race?
Perhaps even impress the Princess? It is also strange that only the bodyguard had worn a safety belt. Would it not have been his duty to have at least move Diana and Dodi to put it on? And why had the lovers not tried to get the driver to keep the speed down? It is so unbelievable for the entire world that Diana is no longer alive. Wild speculations soon took hold: late witnesses claimed to have seen a white Fiat Uno, which was supposedly caught up in the accident, it could however also have been a white Citröen. There were also splinters of glass on the concrete post and on the Mercedes which prove this.

Mike and Mike in the Morning

Joe Buck explains what things were like around the clubhouse when the Cardinals lost Daryl Kile and Josh Hancock while they were on the team.
The impact spun around both vehicles, and one then struck another car but that driver was not hurt, police said.
The minivan driver fled the crash on foot and was captured about 30 minutes later. Police identified him as Andrew Thomas Gallo, 22, of Riverside, and said he had a suspended license because of a previous drunken driving conviction.
Preliminary results indicated Gallo’s blood-alcohol level was “substantially over the legal limit” of .08 percent, police Lt. Kevin Hamilton said.
Gallo was interviewed by investigators before he was booked in jail. Thursday on three counts of murder, three counts of vehicular manslaughter, felony hit-and-run and felony driving under the influence of alcohol, Hamilton said.
Gallo is being held without bail and is scheduled to be arraigned Monday at North Justice Center in Fullerton. It is not known if he has an attorney.
On Friday, the Orange County district attorney planned a 5:30 p.m. ET news conference, during which charges will be announced.
Adenhart died in surgery at the University of California, Irvine Medical Center. Henry Nigel Pearson of Manhattan Beach, a 25-year-old passenger in the car, and the driver, 20-year-old Courtney Frances Stewart of Diamond Bar, were pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
Enlarge Nick Adenhart
Nick Adenhart was a passenger in the Mitsubishi that was broadsided; two others were killed, and a fourth is in critical condition.
Stewart was a student at nearby Cal State Fullerton, where she was a cheerleader in 2007-08.
Another passenger, 24-year-old Jon Wilhite of Manhattan Beach, was in critical but stable condition Friday at UC Irvine Medical Center, and doctors believe he will survive, hospital spokesman John Murray said.
Murray said Wilhite, who played baseball from 2004 to 2008 at Cal State Fullerton, was being medically sedated.
Stewart’s mother said her daughter and Adenhart had known each other since last season but were not dating as far as she knew, Hamilton said.
The mother said Adenhart and the others had gone dancing at a club about a block away from the crash site, although the crash scene appeared to indicate the car was heading in the direction of the club, Hamilton said.
At the ballpark Wednesday night, Adenhart did his job. He gave up seven hits in six scoreless innings and escaped twice after loading the bases in just his fourth major league start.
“I battled early and it felt good to get out of some jams,” he said.
Adenhart left with a 4-0 lead before the bullpen gave away what would have been his second major league victory.
During Thursday’s closed-door session, “we were just kind of reminiscing about what Nick brought to the team, to the clubhouse,” Hunter said as he drove out of the players’ parking lot.

All nine on board, including Aaliyah were either died at the scene or shortly after the crash. Aaliyah had been in the Bahamas for the production of one of her music videos and was returning to the U.S. at the time of the crash. The plane crashed at the end of the airport’s runway at 6:50 p.m. EDT (2250 GMT). The aircraft was owned by Skystream, a company based in Pembroke Pines, Florida.