It was three years ago today (September 15th, 2019) that Ric Ocasek, the guitarist and leader of the Cars, was found dead in his Manhattan apartment at age 75. Although he suffered from both a hypertensive heart and coronary artery disease, it was reported he officially died from natural causes.
Ocasek is survived by six sons, two from each of his three marriages. At the time of his death he was estranged from his third wife, supermodel Paulina Porizkova — who has since revealed, unbeknownst to her, that prior to her husband’s death, she had been erased from his will.
Ric Ocasek, who was born Richard Theodore Otcasek in Cleveland, is responsible for some of the most timeless and important pop/rock/new wave classics recorded between 1978 and 1985; literally writing every hit the Cars scored during their original eight-year run. Ocasek, who played rhythm guitar, shared lead vocal duties with late-bassist Benjamin Orr, and wrote such instant radio staples as “Just What I Needed,” “Shake It Up,” “Since You’re Gone,” “You Might Think,” “Good Times Roll,” “Touch And Go,” “Drive,” “Moving In Stereo,” “Tonight She Comes,” “Heartbeat City,” “Let’s Go,” “Magic,” and “My Best Friend’s Girl.”
The Cars split in 1988 and reunited in 2011 for their first album in 24 years, titled Move Like This. In 2018 the band was finally inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame. Between 1982 and 2005 Ocasek released seven solo albums.
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