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On February 3, 1959, the music world was shocked when American rock and roll stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and JP 'The Big Bopper' Richardson were killed in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa, along with pilot Roger Peterson. The event eventually became known as 'The Day the Music Died', after Don McLean's classic 1971 song 'American Pie'. Today (February 3) marks 61 years since the disaster. Here, we look back at who the tragic stars were and the legacy they left behind:

09/16/1989 - Boris Yeltsin and a handful of Soviet companions made an unscheduled 20-minute visit to a Randall's Supermarket after touring the Johnson Space Center. Between trying free samples of cheese and produce and staring at the meat selections, Yeltsin roamed the aisles of Randall's nodding his head in amazement. A post earlier this year on Houston’s Reddit that mentioned late Russian president Boris Yeltsin’s wide-eyed trip to a Clear Lake grocery store led to a trip to the Houston Chronicle archives, where a batch of photos of the leader were found. It was September 16, 1989 and Yeltsin, then...

OTTUMWA -- Two of Wapello County's largest indoor events happened on the same day -- and in the same place. "That's one of the biggest days in our history," confirmed Scott Hallgren, executive director at Bridge View Center. Though numbers varied by source, his counter clicked nearly 2,100 for the appearance of Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump on Saturday afternoon. Ticket sales for the evening's '80s tribute band Hairball approached 2,400. "So we are looking at about 4,500 through our doors today," Hallgren said. Visitors to the campaign stop at 1 p.m. may not have been giving much thought to...

The 1991 Oakland Hills fire, which consumed 2,900 structures, would likely still rank No. 1. Four members of a Cal Fire helicopter crew were burned Saturday when they were overrun by flames in the initial attack and are recovering at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento. Berlant said two had been moved out of the burn unit. The fire consumed the beloved Harbin Hot Springs, where few buildings were left standing Monday, and damaged cooling towers, communication equipment and power distribution lines at The Geysers geothermal energy complex. The project’s main operator, Houston-based Calpine, generates about 60 percent of the...

... be hailed a hero for trying to avert disaster' An investigation into the 1959 plane crash that killed Buddy Holly and three others could now be reopened after a respected pilot brought forward new factors as to how the aircraft may have gone down. At the time of the crash, the Civil Aeronautics Board ruled the probable cause of the crash was error by the pilot, Roger Peterson, who took off from Mason City to Moorhead, Minnesota, in inclement weather, even though he was qualified. The chartered plane crashed in Iowa not long after takeoff, killing Holly, Peterson, and...

Clear Lake, TX – On Sunday, April 15th the Clear Lake Tea Party will be holding their fourth annual Tax Day Rally. The event will be held from 2:00 PM to 5:00 at Texas Avenue Park, 17100 Texas Avenue, Webster, TX 77598. Guest Speakers include leading U.S. Senatorial candidate Ted Cruz and local conservative talk radio host Matt Patrick. Several Clear Lake Tea Party endorsed candidates will also be on hand to talk with voters. There will be free hotdogs...

Click 'Show more' to see all Herman Cain links. Herman Cain addresses over 3,000 Conservative voters at the Clear Lake Tea Party Rally on October 25th, 2011. He addressed foreign policy, rebuilding the economy, rebuilding the tax code, energy independence, illegal immigration and national security.

La Marque, Texas - Republican Presidential Candidate Herman Cain will be headlining the Clear Lake Tea Party's annual Fall rally at Gulf Greyhound Park just south of Clear Lake. The event starts at 5:30 p.m. and will be emcee'd by Galveston County Tax Collector Cheryl Johnson. There will be live music and a $5.00 entrance fee for adults and children under 18 are free. Speakers include: CLTP Founder Lisa Gonzalez - Opening Remarks - 6:55 p.m. Pastor Ron Hindt Invocation & Pledge - 6:57 p.m. Raging Elephants Founder Apostle Klaver - 7:15 p.m. U.S. Senate Candidate Lela Pittenger - 7:35...

Vintage airplane buffs can get a close-up look at a B-17 Flying Fortress, a B-24 Liberator and a P-51 Mustang at Ellington Airport this week. The Collings Foundation, a non-profit group that's been taking its Wings of Freedom planes on tour for the last two decades, will have its rare birds on display at the Clear Lake airport 2-5 p.m. Monday, 9 a.m to 5 p.m. on Tuesday and 9 a.m. to noon on Wednesday. Visitors can explore the World War II aircraft inside and out or take a tour. A donation of $12 is requested for adults, $6 for...

...In his first public comments since the release of President Barack Obama's proposed NASA budget last week, Mike Coats said the space center will have to find new missions besides the International Space Station to replace the waning space shuttle program and the seemingly doomed Constellation program... Of the 17,000 civil servants and contractors who are funded through Johnson Space Center's programs, 7,000 work under the shuttle and Constellation programs. ...Obama's proposed wholesale cancellation of Constellation — NASA's next-generation exploration program that entailed development of rockets to carry humans to orbit, the moon and beyond as well as a versatile...

Clear Lake Tea Party Tax Protest RallyClick on highlight photos to see the rest of the photos.

Accusations traded during only debate for 22nd District race Democratic U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson pleaded for bipartisanship and compromise, and Republican challenger Pete Olson delivered a withering criticism of Lampson's legislative votes Monday night in their only debate over a seat that has drawn the national spotlight. (snip) Monday night's campaign match-up was the only one Lampson agreed to attend with Olson before the Nov. 4 election.

LAKE COUNTY -- Two recent convictions highlight the issues of drugs and gangs in the county, according to information from the Lake County District Attorney's Office. Mendocino County resident Anthony Scott Cape, 42, faces the possibility of 14 years in prison after he was convicted Sept. 9 of five felonies in connection with a December 2004 drug-related incident at a Clearlake home. In another case, Lake County Superior Court Judge Arthur Mann sentenced Nice resident Donald Kirk Horne, 32, Aug. 25 to seven years and four months in prison for Horne's involvement in a June 2006 gang-related assault in Lakeport....

7 people vying to succeed DeLay answer questions in closed sessions Republican leaders from Harris County met in Pasadena Saturday to interview potential candidates for the 22nd District congressional seat that will be vacated by outgoing Rep. Tom DeLay sometime in May or June. The day drew seven hopefuls, who filled out a questionnaire detailing their political history and philosophies, including Houston City Councilwoman Shelley Sekula-Gibbs, state Rep. Robert Talton of Pasadena, lawyer Tom Campbell, who came in second to DeLay in the March primary, state Rep. Charlie Howard of Sugar Land, state Sen. Mike Jackson of La Porte, businessman...

LEAGUE CITY — Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, a staunch supporter of the Ten Commandments display at the capital grounds and whose chief focus during his administration has been on cracking down on child predators, will be the guest speaker at the annual Galveston County Republican Party 2006 Lincoln Day Dinner. The fund-raising dinner, which includes a silent auction, will be at 6 p.m. Thursday at the South Shore Harbour Resort and Conference Center, 2500 South Shore Blvd. in League City. State Rep. Larry Taylor of Friendswood will be master of ceremonies and Texas Supreme Court Justice Don Willett will...

Police testimony at hearing for surviving suspect describes home invasion By GLENDA ANDERSON THE PRESS DEMOCRAT CLEARLAKE - Two men killed during a home-invasion robbery last month were shot from behind, police testified Wednesday during a preliminary hearing for the lone surviving suspect. Shannon Edmonds of Clearlake, who police say shot the two men seven times, hasn't been charged with a crime. Investigators say Edmonds opened fire with a 9mm handgun after three men smashed a glass door, entered his home, punched his girlfriend and hit her 17-year-old son on the head with a metal baseball bat. Police believe the...

Up to a million Houstonians living in low-lying and flood-prone areas might need to evacuate if Hurricane Rita threatens the region, Mayor Bill White said today. He cautioned that it's too early to predict any evacuation details, but he urged residents — especially those who might need help leaving the city — to get ready now. "I'd like to ask all Houstonians to begin thinking about their own evacuation plans if there was a request — or order — to evacuate," White said at a City Hall news conference. "If the storm continues on its current trajectory, based on the...

She makes a symbolic visit to DeLay's office, attends anti-war rally at a church Cindy Sheehan, now internationally known for her crusade to get President Bush to explain her son's death in Iraq, swung through the Houston area Thursday with a busload of anti-war protesters. She went to U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's office in Stafford and an evening anti-war rally at a local church. At DeLay's office, she asked to meet with the Republican power broker and supporter of the Iraq war. But DeLay wasn't there to hear her plea. "We didn't get an appointment. We were told...

CLEARLAKE -- Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were on the job at Clearlake City Hall last week. FBI agents spent two hours questioning Interim City Administrator Sharon Goode about several city administration procedures. Although representatives at the FBI field office in Santa Rosa could not confirm or deny that an investigation has been launched on the City of Clearlake, agents were in town July 18 inquiring about city operations. "They would not tell me what they were investigating or what the complaint was about," Goode stated. "(The city) cooperated; I answered their questions and they left. They...

The numbers are in, and what they show is that Bay Area residents prefer President George W. Bush over U.S. Sen. John Kerry by nearly 2 to 1. Over sixty-eight percent of the 50,000 ballots cast by Bay Area voters were for Bush, while Kerry took less than 32 percent of the votes. The election results were remarkably consistent in every Bay Area city; 70 percent of Kemah voters chose Bush, as did 70 percent in Houston's Clear Lake precincts, League City, Nassau Bay, Seabrook and Taylor Lake Village. Presidential election results by city* Bush Kerry Clear Lake 13,874 6,763...