Classic rock guitarist, ‘Real American' singer Rick Derringer dies at 77
Classic rock guitarist and 'Real American' singer Rick Derringer has died. He was 77 years old.
His longtime wife, Jenda Derringer, told TMZ he died 'peacefully' at a hospital in Ormond Beach, Florida, after being taken off life support following a medical emergency involving his heart. He reportedly underwent triple bypass surgery two months ago.
The Ohio native first gained fame with his band the McCoys, whose 'Hang on Sloopy' was a No. 1 hit in 1965. He went on to work with Edgar and Johnny Winters in their bands, playing on classic rock radio staples like 'Frankenstein,' another No. 1 hit.
He also collaborated with Steely Dan, 'Weird Al' Yankovic, Todd Rundgren, Alice Cooper, Barbara Streisand and toured several times with Cyndi Lauper. He played the guitar solo on Bonnie Tyler's 'Total Eclipse of the Heart,' written by frequent partner Jim Steinman.
Derringer had a solo hit of his own with 'Real American,' a song recorded for a soundtrack for the World Wrestling Federation that became Hulk Hogan's theme music for several years. Lauper provided backing vocals on the tune.
Richard Dean Zehringer was born in Celina, Ohio, on Aug. 5, 1947. He began playing music with his brother Randy in the late 1950s. Their band the McCoys was chosen by a set of record producers to record 'Hang on Sloopy,' which has since become a popular in-stadium anthem at Ohio State football games and Cleveland Guardians games.
Later in his career, he joined star-studded lineups on tours with Ringo Starr and Peter Frampton while ultimately releasing more than 25 albums, including several blues and jazz LPs.
Following a late-in-life conversion, he and his wife produced several Christian-themed albums.
___
© 2025 New York Daily News.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Buzz Feed
7 hours ago
- Buzz Feed
Jayne Mansfield's Death, Missing People, And More Horror
Do you love all things weird, dark, and creepy? Subscribe to the That Got Dark newsletter to get your weekly dopamine fix of the macabre delivered RIGHT to your inbox! Hello, and welcome to That Got Dark! I'm Crystal, and I'm guilty of spending way too much time going down dark rabbit holes. Yes, I know it's not the ~smartest~ thing to do late at night, but sometimes (OK, every time) I just can't help myself. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The thing is, much like walking into a haunted house, I don't like doing it alone. So, every week, I'll gather the darkest and creepiest things I find on the internet (and beyond) to share just with you, my spooky-loving friend. So, tuck yourself in tight and get out that flashlight…it's about to get dark. Recently, I found out that in 2019, a man in the UK died after eating a sample of a fish cake that was so hot it burned his throat. And it turns out the burn was so bad it actually caused his throat to swell up to the point where he choked to death less than 12 hours later. Just to really hammer home how nasty the burn was, a pathologist who performed a post-mortem examination on the victim said that this case was so incredibly rare that he'd only seen that kind of damage in people who had breathed in smoke in house fires. And now I'm avoiding fishcakes for the rest of my life. Occasionally, I like to ask the BuzzFeed Community to tell me about the most mysterious, cult-like, bad-vibes towns in the United States they've ever been to. And you'd be shocked at how many responses I get each time (or maybe not). This week's spotlight: Harrison, Arkansas. 'There used to be several billboards on the main highway. Lots of white pride radio saying things like, 'Is it wrong to love your kind?' There is only one billboard now. It says, 'Let's Go Brandon' by the Christian radio network. I think it is a KKK stronghold. There are YouTube videos of people protesting the old signs. Local people warning the protesters to watch their backs, etc."—Anonymous Wikipedia is like the Wild West. It's vast, seemingly endless, and sometimes you can find some extremely weird (and horrifying) things out there. This week's spotlight: the Disappearance of Tara Calico. Tara Calico, a 19-year-old from Belen, New Mexico, disappeared on Sept. 20, 1988, while riding her bike along the highway. Despite extensive searches and media coverage, including episodes of Unsolved Mysteries and America's Most Wanted, Tara was never found. But what makes the case extra creepy is the fact that in July 1989, a horrifying Polaroid photo of a young woman (who looked like Tara) and a child, both with their mouths duct-taped and seemingly tied up in the back of a van, showed up in a parking lot in Florida. The photo was analyzed several times, including by the FBI, but the results were inconclusive as to whether it was actually Tara in the photo. In 1998, Tara was declared legally dead, and her presumed death was ruled a homicide. Recent investigations have identified potential suspects, but the case still remains unsolved. Jayne Mansfield — Died: June 29, 1967. Cause of Death: Traffic collision How she died: Mansfield was traveling in a 1966 Buick Electra with her driver, her lawyer/boyfriend Sam Brody, and three of her children (including actress Mariska Hargitay) when their car crashed into the back of a tractor-trailer. The Buick went under the trailer, destroying the top of the car and killing Mansfield, Brody, and the driver instantly. The children in the backseat miraculously survived with only minor injuries. There's a popular urban legend that Mansfield was decapitated in the crash, and while she certainly sustained severe head trauma, she was not decapitated. The accident famously led to the creation of "Mansfield bars,' which are guards now required on the rear of semi-trailers to prevent similar accidents. The Ugly Stepsister (2025) What it's about: A clever and extremely twisted body horror retelling of the classic fairytale you should watch it: This satirical, dark, and gory retelling from the perspective of one of the 'ugly' stepsisters will make you scream and cringe in pain alongside the characters. Seriously…it's A. you can watch it: Streaming for free on AMC+ or for rent for $3.99 on Prime Video Aileen Wuornos Known as "The Damsel of Death," Wuornos was a serial killer who murdered and robbed six men (and possibly a seventh) while doing sex work in Florida from 1989 to 1990. Although Wuornos initially claimed she acted in self-defense, she later recanted and said she wasn't a victim and that she simply robbed and killed her victims for money. Wuornos was executed on Oct. 9, 2002. Her last meal: Wuornos declined the last meal option and instead opted for a cup of coffee. Well, I hope I didn't make your Sunday scaries more…scary?! In the next issue, I'll talk about the truly messed-up thing that happened to Mariska Hargitay after the car crash with her mom (Jayne Mansfield, like we talked about above), a plane crash that was completely preventable, and a Disney Channel star who died too young. Until then, stay safe, keep the lights on, and I'll see you for another horrifying trip down the rabbit hole… Love this kind of content? Subscribe to the That Got Dark newsletter to get a weekly post just like this delivered directly to your inbox. It's a scary good time you won't want to miss.
Buzz Feed
15 hours ago
- Buzz Feed
Awkward And Outrageous Celebrity Stories June 29 2025
Cruz Beckham (the one in the middle) shaded Brooklyn Beckham (the one on the right) about the latter's various career pursuits. Miley Cyrus was accused of ignoring a fan during a meet-and-greet alongside Naomi Campbell. Martin Kove was kicked out of a fan convention after biting Cobra Kai costar Alicia Hannah-Kim. 'I deeply regret and apologize for my actions regarding the incident with Alicia (Hannah-Kim), a genuinely kind and wonderful person who didn't deserve to be put in this position,' Martin said in a statement to TMZ. 'I've always respected her and considered her a highly professional and talented co-worker on Cobra Kai. I was being playful in the moment but went too far and there is absolutely no excuse for my behavior. I regret my actions for which I take full responsibility for what I did, and again I apologize to her and her husband. I'm committed to learning from this and it will never happen again.' Marge Simpson died (kind of) in the season finale of The Simpsons. Kelly Clarkson got caught staring at Allison Williams' Botox on The Kelly Clarkson Show. 'You looked at my forehead. There's Botox in there,' Allison said, pointing out that Kelly glanced at her forehead after the actor mentioned Botox. (They both had a nice laugh about it.) Andrew Garfield came face-to-face with a fan who once said she wanted him to "smash a laptop on my tits" as part of our Thirst Tweets video series. "Honestly, one of the more creative sex acts I can imagine," he said to the fan during a Q&A at the Glastonbury festival. "I haven't imagined participating in that. I'm not. I refuse. But happy to meet you, and you're very sick. You're sick [laugh]." Will Smith seemingly referenced slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars as part of a new freestyle. 'If you talking crazy out your face up on the stage and disrespect me on the stage, expect me on the dish it out, cry foul when it's time to take it/ City full of real ones, wasn't raised to fake it," he rapped during an appearance on Apple Music's Fire in the Booth series. Matty Healy seemingly referenced his ex Taylor Swift during the 1975's Glastonbury headlining performance. 'What this moment is making me realize is that I probably am the best," he said, before gesturing towards the title track of Taylor's album The Tortured Poets Department. "I'm probably the best songwriter of my generation. The best, what do we say… A poet, ladies and gentlemen, is what I am.' And finally, Katie Couric shaded Lauren Sánchez's bridal styling.
Black America Web
19 hours ago
- Black America Web
Dillon Brooks Files For Restraining Order Against Ex After Threatening To Cut Off His Fingers, Social Media Ties It Back To Drake Lyrics
We're only a few days into the offseason, and it's already been pretty eventful for Dillon Brooks, who was not only traded to the Phoenix Suns but also faced some surprising legal action. Brooks has now filed for a restraining order against Heather Andrews, the mother of his children, according to TMZ . He claims that he started dating Andrews back in 2018 after meeting her in Las Vegas. The courtship moved fast, and within months, she was pregnant with their first child, which is when he says the harassment started. He even alleges that she'd send him 'emotionally abusive' messages, only to send screenshots of his response to gossip blogs to paint him as the bad guy. But he proceeded to ignore the red flags and had a second child with her, and she became 'increasingly more aggressive and threatening.' In the lawsuit, he includes alleged screenshots of the violent threats she sent him, including an attempt to end his NBA career. 'I'll habe [sic] someone cut each one of your f-cking little fingers off one by one… So you can never play basketball LOL… And actually now I understand why people are racist.' In her purported texts, she also threatened to hurt his mother, and while a member of the Memphis Grizzlies, she vandalized his home. 'You suck b-tch,' she wrote on his outdoor fireplace mantle alongside his No. 44 jersey number. He added that she tried to further paint him as the aggressor by hacking into his account on the coparenting app Our Parenting Wizard and sending herself threatening messages. This is only the most recent happenings in their relationship falling apart since last year, when she filed for a restraining order against him, alleging similar threatening and harassment tactics. Somehow, within the serious allegations, Drake's name has been invoked on social media. The Canadian rapper name-dropped Brooks, his countryman, on the 2023 song 'Just Another Late Night,' even mentioning the finger-removing threat. ' Shawty rinsin' Dillon Brooks, can't believe this n-gga talkin', ' he raps and a few bars later says , ' Or send a finger to your mama in some FedEx boxes .' Brooks nor Andrews has spoken publicly on the nasty legal battle or Drake's alleged involvement. See how social media is reacting below. Dillon Brooks Files For Restraining Order Against Ex After Threatening To Cut Off His Fingers, Social Media Ties It Back To Drake Lyrics was originally published on
