Today’s Video: We still miss you, Ritchie

Today marks the fiftieth anniversary of "The Day the Music Died". On this day in 1959 a plane crash in Iowa claimed the lives of musicians Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly and J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson.

Valens’ professional career lasted a mere eight months before his life was cut short on that snowy, windswept day in Iowa. Yet as la Macha wrote in Vivirlatino, his legacy extends far beyond the world of music:

His legacy (especially as it was remembered by the movie, La Bamba) represents all the tensions that so many Latin@s go through--growing up in extreme poverty, dreaming of assimilation AND retaining your cultural identity, being forced continuously to admit those things can only happen to a certain degree, the tragedy of lost potential.

(Video link):

By the way, did you know that Buddy Holly’s widow- Maria Elena Holly- is originally from Puerto Rico and owns the rights to Buddy’s name, image, trademarks, and other intellectual property?

Online Sources- Vivirlatino, Paste Magazine, imdb.com, YouTube, Wikipedia