Maria Elena Holly

MARIA ELENA HOLLY. Puerto Rican widow of American rock and roll pioneer Buddy Holly. As a receptionist at Peermusic, she met with Holly (and his band the Crickets) on June 19th 1958. Buddy Holly proposed to her after just five hours on their first date. The couple married on August 15th 1958 in Lubbock Texas. On February 3rd 1959, Buddy Holly tragically died in a plane crash along with fellow musicians Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper outside Clear Lake Iowa. After learning of her husband's death from the television news, she suffered a miscarriage the following day and could not attend Holly's funeral in Lubbock. In 1963, she married Puerto Rican government official Joe Diaz with whom she had three children. They eventually divorced. As Buddy Holly's widow, she owns the rights to his name / image / trademarks and other intellectual property