Ric Ocasek, frontman and lead singer for new-wave icons The Cars, has been found dead in New York.
New York Police Det. Martin Brown confirmed to USA TODAY that police were called to Ocasek’s residence around 4 p.m. EDT Sunday. “Upon arrival, police found a 75-year-old male unresponsive in bed,” Brown said. “He was pronounced dead at the scene.”
Brown said a family member found Ocasek’s body. “It doesn’t appear criminal at this time.”
The band, famed for hits like “Drive” and “Just What I Needed,” broke through in 1978 and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018.
Ocasek and his wife of almost 30 years, supermodel Paulina Porizkova, split last year and have two sons together.
“Our family has always been — and still is — a well-built car. When the four of us are together, we can go wherever the road takes us,” she wrote on Instagram in announcing their breakup. “But as a bicycle, my husband and I no longer pedal in unison. So, we’re ditching the bicycle.”
