Real Peggy Sue, of 1958 Buddy Holly song fame, dies at 78

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — The Texas woman who inspired the 1958 Buddy Holly song “Peggy Sue” has died at a Lubbock hospital.

Peggy Sue Gerron Rackham of Lubbock died Monday at University Medical Center, according to UMC spokesman Eric Finley. She was 78. The family gave the hospital permission to confirm the death, but asked that no additional information be released, Finley said Tuesday.

Peggy Sue Gerron in 2008 released her autobiography “Whatever Happened to Peggy Sue?: A Memoir by Buddy Holly’s Peggy Sue” to mark the 50th anniversary of the song.

Gerron, while promoting her autobiography, said material for the memoir came from about 150 diary entries she made during the time she knew Holly. Gerron was born in Olton, Texas, but moved to Lubbock where she attended high school and met Holly and his friends.

“I wanted to give him (Holly) his voice. It’s my book, my memoirs,” she said about her book, according to a 2008 Associated Press story. “We were very, very good friends. He was probably one of the best friends I ever had.”

She married drummer Jerry Allison, from Holly’s rock ‘n’ roll band The Crickets. 

The couple later divorced.