Ringo Starr was born in a working-class district of Liverpool in 1940 as Richard Starkey. His nickname "Ringo" was a result of his passion for very visible rings. His grandfather gave him his first drums. As a teenager, Ringo was part of several skiffle groups. In 1958, he turned professional as a member of Rory Storm's the Hurricanes. Starr remained with Storm, who had the unrealistic ambition of becoming the English Elvis, for four years. In August 1962, Brian Epstein sacked Pete Best and engaged Ringo Starr in his place on drums for the Beatles, just before the band was about to take off. In 1965, he married the hairdresser Maureen Cox. The same year, his son Zak was born. Starr was the entertainer within the Beatles. He did not try to have an impact on the Lennon/McCartney dispute over musical matters and was no creative part of the Beatles.
In 1970, Ringo Starr played a dumb, Mexican gardener in the French-Italian movie Candy. The same year, he convinced in The Magic Christian as the adoptive son of the world's richest man, played by Peter Sellers. Starr also released his album Sentimental Journey (US#20, UK#15), a nostalgic trip through 1940s music. The October 1970-album Beaucoups of Blues (US#38) was a curious mix of Country & Western and pop music. Among his successes were the singles It Don't Come Easy (US#1, UK#5, Germany#5) and Back of Boogaloo (US#8, UK#2, Germany#12). The album Ringo, released in 1973, reached US#1, UK#6, Germany#28. It was recorded with Dr. John, Elton John and members of the Band. The album's singles did well too: Photograph (US#1, UK#4, Germany#5) and You're Sixteen (US#1, UK#4, Germany#19). His simple, uncomplicated and cheerful sound produced more hits in the United States in 1974/75: Oh My My (US#5, Germany#34) and No No Song (US#3). In Autumn 1975, Starr founded his own label, Rong 'O Records. He played in the studio for his friend Keith Moon of the Who, Manhattan Transfer and others, but he had no more solo successes. In 1981, he married the actress Barbara Bach, whom he had met on the set of the film Caveman. He had parts in several movies, television films and documentaries. His All Star Band, created in 1990, was a failure.
