Ronald Wayne "Ronnie" Van Zant (January 15, 1948^[1] – October 20, 1977) was the lead vocalist, primary lyricist, and a founding member of the Southern Rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. He was the older brother of .38 Special founder and vocalist Donnie Van Zant and current Lynyrd Skynyrd lead vocalist Johnny Van Zant. is the 15th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jacksonville redirects here. ... This article is about the U.S. State of Florida. ... For other uses of terms redirecting here, see US (disambiguation), USA (disambiguation), and United States (disambiguation) Motto In God We Trust(since 1956) (From Many, One; Latin, traditional) Anthem The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City National language English (de facto)1 Demonym American... is the 293rd day of the year (294th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... Gillsburg, Mississippi, is best known as the location of the October 20, 1977, plane crash that killed several members of the band Lynard Skynard. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... For other uses of terms redirecting here, see US (disambiguation), USA (disambiguation), and United States (disambiguation) Motto In God We Trust(since 1956) (From Many, One; Latin, traditional) Anthem The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City National language English (de facto)1 Demonym American... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music. ... For the popular-music magazine, see Musician (magazine). ... A songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics to songs, the musical composition (chords) or melody to songs, or both. ... Lynyrd Skynyrd (pronounced lÄ•h-nérd skin-nérd) (pronounced ) is an iconic U.S. Southern rock band. ... is the 15th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 293rd day of the year (294th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music. ... Lynyrd Skynyrd (pronounced lÄ•h-nérd skin-nérd) (pronounced ) is an iconic U.S. Southern rock band. ... . ... Donnie Van Zant, right, with younger brother Johnny Van Zant The image above is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... Johnny Van Zant Johnny Van Zant (born February 27, 1959 in Jacksonville, Florida) is an American Southern rock vocalist. ...

Early life

Born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida to Lacy (1915-2004) and Marion (1929-2000) Van Zant. Van Zant aspired to be many things before finding his love for music. Notably, Ronnie was interested in becoming a boxer (as Muhammad Ali was one of his idols) and in playing professional baseball. Ronnie also tossed around the idea of becoming a stock-car racer. In fact, he would say that he was going to be the most famous person to come out of Jacksonville since Lee Roy Yarbrough. However, after seeing The Rolling Stones with his future bandmates, Ronnie decided on his future career path.^{[citation needed]} Jacksonville redirects here. ... This article is about the U.S. State of Florida. ... For other persons named Muhammad Ali, see Muhammad Ali (disambiguation). ... The tone or style of this article or section may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. ... Rolling Stones redirects here. ...

Lynyrd Skynyrd

Van Zant formed Skynyrd late in the summer of 1964 with friends and schoolmates Allen Collins (guitar), Gary Rossington (guitar), Larry Junstrom (bass), and Bob Burns (drums). Lynyrd Skynyrd's name was inspired by a gym teacher the boys had in high school, Leonard Skinner, who disapproved of students with long hair.^[2] Also Nintendo emulator: 1964 (emulator). ... Larkin Allen Collins, Jr. ... Gary Rossington (born December 4, 1951 in Jacksonville, Florida) is a founding member and lead guitarist of Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. ... Larry Junstrom (born June 22, 1949) is the bassist of American rock band . ... Lynyrd Skynyrd 1973 For other people named Bob Burns, see Bob Burns (disambiguation). ...

The band's national exposure began in 1973 with the release of their debut album, (pronounced 'lĕh-'nérd 'skin-'nérd), which has a string of hits and fan favorites including: "I Ain't The One", "Tuesday's Gone", "Gimme Three Steps", "Simple Man" and their signature song, "Freebird", which he later dedicated to the late Duane Allman of The Allman Brothers Band. For the song by James Blunt, see 1973 (song). ... (Pronounced lÄ•h-nérd skin-nérd), commonly referred to as Pronounced, is the debut album from Lynyrd Skynyrd, released in 1973 (see 1973 in music). ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Howard Duane Allman (November 20, 1946 – October 29, 1971) was an American lead guitarist and noted session musician. ... The Allman Brothers Band is a band from Macon, Georgia, labeled by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as the principal architects of Southern rock. ...

Lynyrd Skynyrd's biggest hit single, although "Freebird" was a close second, was "Sweet Home Alabama" which came off the album Second Helping. "Sweet Home Alabama" was an answer song to Neil Young's "Alabama" and "Southern Man". The common belief that Van Zant and Young were rivals is incorrect; they were actually fans of each other and considered collaborating on several occasions.^{[citation needed]} Young's song "Powderfinger" on the 1979 album Rust Never Sleeps was reportedly written for Skynyrd, and Van Zant is pictured on the cover of Street Survivors wearing a t-shirt of Young's Tonight's the Night. Second Helping is a 1974 (see 1974 in music) album by Lynyrd Skynyrd. ... Sweet Home Alabama is a song by Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd that first appeared in 1974 on their second album, Second Helping. ... This article is about the musician. ... Harvest is an album by Neil Young, which was the best-selling album of 1972. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... For the episode of the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon, see Rust Never Sleeps (TMNT 1987 episode). ... Original cover The original cover of Street Survivors, now seen today as the front cover Street Survivors is a southern rock album by Lynyrd Skynyrd, released in October 1977 (see 1977 in music). ... Tonights the Night is a 1975 album by Neil Young. ...

Personal life

Van Zant was married twice. His first marriage was to Nadine Inscoe and during this marriage Ronnie's first daughter Tammy Van Zant was born. During his second marriage to Judy, Melody Van Zant (his second daughter) was born. Van Zant was known to be superstitious; he hated snakes and hated to fly.^{[citation needed]} Despite his unflattering mention in "Sweet Home Alabama", he was a close friend of Neil young and the two admired each others work very much. He was also a huge fan of Jimi Hendrix. Many of his bandmates said of him that "he would give the shirt off his back to anyone".^{[citation needed]}

Death

On October 20, 1977, a Convair 240 carrying the band between shows from Greenville, South Carolina to Baton Rouge, Louisiana crashed outside of Gillsburg, Mississippi. The passengers had been informed about problems and told to brace for impact.^[3] Ronnie was found in his seat and seatbelt fastened.^{[citation needed]} Bandmates Steve Gaines, Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary and co-pilot William Gray were also killed. Remaining band members survived, although all were seriously injured.^[4] The Convair 240 was an American airliner produced by Convair from 1947 to 1956. ... For other places with the same name, see Greenville. ... For the Canadian restaurant, see Baton Rouge (restaurant). ... Gillsburg, Mississippi, is best known as the location of the October 20, 1977, plane crash that killed several members of the band Lynard Skynard. ... Steven Earl Gaines (September 14, 1949 – October 20, 1977) was an American musician. ... Cassie Gaines (July 5, 1948-October 20, 1977) was an American musician and member of the band Lynyrd Skynyrd. ...

Van Zant often told those closest to him he would never live to see 30 and he wanted to die with his boots on.^{[citation needed]} He died three months short of his 30th birthday.

Van Zant's younger brother, Johnny, took over as the new lead singer when the band reunited in 1987. Johnny Van Zant Johnny Van Zant (born February 27, 1959 in Jacksonville, Florida) is an American Southern rock vocalist. ... This article is about the year 1987. ...

Van Zant was buried in Orange Park, Florida in 1977, but was relocated after vandals broke into his and bandmate Steve Gaines' tombs on June 29, 2000. Van Zant's casket was pulled out and dropped on the ground. The bag containing Gaines' ashes was torn open and some scattered onto the grass.^[5] Their mausoleums at Orange Park remain as memorials for fans to visit. Orange Park is a town located in Clay County, Florida, USA. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 9,081. ... Steven Earl Gaines (September 14, 1949 – October 20, 1977) was an American musician. ... is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... A mausoleum is a large and impressive tomb, usually constructed for a deceased leader. ...

According to the cemetery listing website Find-a-Grave, Van Zant was reburied at Riverside Memorial Park in Jacksonville, near the grave of his mother Lacy and father Marion. Both his current resting place and the empty mausoleum in Orange Park are listed. The following statement was made on the Find-a-Grave entry of his current resting place in Jacksonville: "Due to the June 29th, 2000 vandalization of his original grave site, his casket was moved to this new location and buried in a massive underground concrete burial vault. To open the vault would require a tractor with a lift capability of several tons. It is also patrolled by security."^[6]

Quotes

Notes

References

• Anderson, R. Michael (2000-06-30). Van Zant's tomb defaced. The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved on 2008-07-05.
• Check-Six (2007-05). The 'Lynyrd Skynyrd' Crash. Retrieved on 2008-07-05.
• SKYNYRD HISTORY LESSONS - Name Changes and Ten Dollar Gigs. The Official Lynyrd Skynyrd History Website. Retrieved on 2008-07-05.
• Social Security Death Master Index (2007-05). Ronald Van Zant Social Security Death Index (#73220275). Retrieved on 2008-07-05.
• Soorus (2002-09-01). Current Find-A-Grave Record for Ronnie Van Zant. Find-A-Grave. Retrieved on 2008-07-05.
• US National Transportation Safety Board (1978-06-19). Aircraft Accident Report - L & J Company, Convair 240, N55VM, Gillsburg, Mississippi, October 20, 1977 (PDF) 23 pages. National Technical Information Service. Retrieved on 2008-07-05.

Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... is the 181st day of the year (182nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Era (or Anno Domini), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 186th day of the year (187th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Era (or Anno Domini), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 186th day of the year (187th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Era (or Anno Domini), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 186th day of the year (187th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Era (or Anno Domini), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 186th day of the year (187th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Era (or Anno Domini), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 186th day of the year (187th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 170th day of the year (171st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Era (or Anno Domini), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 186th day of the year (187th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• Official Lynyrd Skynyrd History site
• Ronnie Van Zant Picture
• NTSB Aircraft Accident Report for N55VM
• Original Find-a-Grave entry
• Current Find-a-Grave entry