Growing up, I was a little oblivious to a lot of the tragedies occurring around me, but some celebrity deaths and accidents have always stood out in my memory for one reason or another. Elvis Presley dying, John Lennon being shot, Razzle Dingly dying in a car crash with Vince Neil at the wheel, Kurt Cobain’s body being found…all of them made a lasting impression. I know where I was when I heard about all of these things for the first time.
I was sitting at our kitchen table, eating pancakes and listening to the radio when I heard about the plane crash that killed three members of Lynyrd Skynyrd. I knew it was a big deal because it was on the radio and I knew it was bad because I really liked the band’s music. My dad had an 8-Track that we listened to in the car all that summer, and I knew all the words to Freebird already. I’ve read a number of books on the band over the years and have always been amazed that they were able to carry on as Lynyrd Skynyrd after that tragedy. Seems that everything is movie worthy these days and the story of Lynyrd Skynyrd before and after the plane crash is coming to the big screen this June. It’s called ‘Street Survivors: The True Story of the Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash’. The story is told from the perspective of Artemis Pyle, drummer for the band, and the trailer makes it look really great. In a heart-wrenching, ‘wow that’s awful’, kind of way.
Check it out below:
