Rick Springfield
I’ve done everything for you. You’ve done nothin’ for me! That’s what I think of when someone mentions Rick Springfield. I was a mild fan of his in the 80’s but my sister Lisa was crazy about him. I think she still is. He’s been around for a long time and is still going strong.
Richard Lewis Springthorpe was born on August 23, 1949 in Australia. Springthorpe? Does anyone know when he changed that name? Seems like you’d get beat up with a name like that. Anyway, he dropped out of high school to become a musician. Bad boy. You should ALWAYS finish school, kids.
Rick moved to Hollywood in 1972 which is about the time he started showing up in the teen magazines. Yes, he was a teen idol in the 70’s. I think most people who started liking him in the 80’s have no idea that it was his second time around at being an idol. He was a triple threat with being a songwriter, a singer, and an actor. Some of the TV shows he has appeared in are:
- Mission: Magic!
- The Six Million Dollar Man
- Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries
- The Rockford Files
- Battlestar Galactica
- The New Adventures of Wonder Woman
- The Incredible Hulk
- California Fever
Working Class Dog was released in 1981 but he thought it would be a flop (yay for positive thinking!), so he signed on as Dr. Noah Drake on General Hospital. The recording took off and so did General Hospital. GH fans bought the record and fans of the record started watching General Hospital. Everyone wins.
Trivia
- Rick has been married to Barbara Porter since 1984.
- He won a Grammy in 1982 for Jessie’s Girl.
- He received his first guitar for his 13th birthday.
- His first love was Linda Blair. There was a ten year age difference (she was only 15 when they hooked up). They lived together for a while. Isn’t that illegal?
- He was in a band called Zoot with Beeb Birtles who later co-founded The Little River Band. Friday night, it was late, I was walking you home, we got down to the gate and I was dreaming of the night…..
- Rick and his wife have two sons, Liam and Porter.
- He suffers from depression and tried to commit suicide when he was 17.
- He admitted last year that he contemplated suicide in 2017.
- His best friend is Doug Davidson from The Young and the Restless. I love him!
- He is a closet toy freak and has many original Star Wars toys still in the package.
- His first crush was Hayley Mills.
Even though he will turn 70 in August, Rick Springfield is still going strong. He released an autobiography in 2010 and a novel in 2014. Both were on the New York Times Best Seller list. He’s still acting with his most recent credit last year [2018] on an episode of The Goldbergs. He released a new album this year (his 17th studio album) called Orchestrating My Life. It sounds like a Greatest Hits album with orchestral arrangements. I saw him sing Jessie’s Girl on The Talk a month or so ago. He was just getting over an illness and barely had a voice, but he sounded great. So yeah, Rick Springfield is still quite active. I hope he can continue to calm his demons and continue making music. Check out my Rick items available in my eBay store.