SnogBlogy

Ritchie Valens, identified for "La Bamba" and "Donna" had real a female friend named Donna to whom he devoted the music. What ever happened to them? Their tale is tragic.

Ritchie Valens was born in 1941 and skyrocketed to stardom at a shockingly young age. You in all probability acknowledge his iconic hit, "La Bamba," which came out in 1958, when Ritchie was only 17. Born in the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles in an area referred to as Pacoima, he was once invited to sign up for a band called The Silhouettes. He got here on as a guitarist, but then took at the position of lead vocalist after the primary one left the gang. Back then, he was once known as Ritchie Valenzuela. 

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Bob Keane, the a Del-Fi file label exec, discovered him and had Ritchie's alternate his final title to make it extra "radio friendly" (aka, whitewash his id — however that is a special story). 1958 was once the 12 months Ritchie's occupation really took off. Along with "La Bamba," "Come On, Let's Go," Ritchie also wrote the famous tune "Donna," which was once a tribute to his highschool sweetheart, Donna Ludwig.

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What ever happened between Ritchie Valens and Donna?

Ritchie and Donna dated in high school, and their romance was once portrayed within the 1987 biopic La Bamba. Although Movie Donna was once more demure, according to The Washington Post, who interviewed the actual Donna (who now is going through Donna Fox-Coots), real-life Donna had an "independent streak" that led her to date Ritchie. Donna's father didn't approve of the connection, because, keep in mind, this was the '50s:  Donna was white, and Ritchie was Latino. 

According to The Post, Donna "regularly sneaked out of her bedroom window to meet Valens at San Fernando hangouts like the Rainbow Roller Rink or Bob's Big Boy." Donna first learned about "Donna" when Ritchie known as her and instructed her that he wrote a song for her. He sang her the primary part of "Donna" and, Donna told ABC during a special, "of course I cried. It was just very, very touching. He didn't tell me he was going to record it."

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"I was attracted to him because he was such a nice man, er...I mean, because he was a nice boy. He didn't swear. He didn't get drunk." When he left high school to pursue his tune career, they made up our minds to stay an open dating, essentially. Whenever he'd be back in town, they might get together. Donna told The Post that he would even allude to them getting married sooner or later.

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Unfortunately, Ritchie never had the danger to suggest. On Feb 2, 1959, 17-year-old Ritchie died in a plane crash, together with Buddy Holly and J.P. "The Big Bopper." Eerily enough, it was recognized that Ritchie had an incredible worry of flying after witnessing two planes collide when he was younger. "Going back to school after he died was so hard. I was devastated. I cried all the time and everyone pointed their finger at me. I didn't want a big thing made about it. It was rough," Donna instructed The Post. She was once simplest Sixteen when Ritchie died.

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Looking again on it now, Donna is frequently asked if Ritchie was once the "love of her life." Her reaction? "I was 15 years old, for heaven's sakes. Who knows? I liked Ritchie a lot, I really cared, but I can't say I loved him. I was a kid. I loved my mother and sister and brother." Donna and her father had a falling out after he driven Donna to report "Lost Without You" and "Now That You're Gone" as some way to doubtlessly capitalize off of Ritchie loss of life, and Donna by no means forgave him for that.

Donna now lives in a small community near Sacramento with her 3rd husband. She has two daughters.

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