Linda Ramone (born July 24, 1960) is an American philanthropist and widow of Johnny Ramone. She is the co-owner and a president of Ramones Productions and was the subject of numerous songs by

the Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United S ...

, including " Danny Says", and " She's a Sensation". She is the founder and president of the Johnny Ramone Army, an organization acting on behalf of Johnny Ramone's estate which holds live events and charity fundraisers, preserving his legacy.

Relationship with the Ramones

Linda originally dated

Joey Ramone Jeffrey Ross Hyman (May 19, 1951 – April 15, 2001), known professionally as Joey Ramone, was an American musician, best known as the lead singer and a founding member of the punk rock band Ramones. His image, voice, and his tenure with the R ...

but later dated and married Johnny Ramone. Stories conflict whether Joey and Linda had broken up prior to Linda dating Johnny or if Linda left Joey for Johnny. Her relationship with Joey and Johnny was referred to as one of the ''Top 10 Love Triangles'' by ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

'' magazine and one of the ''10 Most Infamous Love Triangles in Music History'' by ''

Complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...

'' magazine. Joey and Johnny continued to tour as the Ramones, even after Linda married Johnny. Linda is the subject of numerous songs by the Ramones including " She's a Sensation", " Danny Says" and " Merry Christmas (I Don't Want To Fight Tonight)". Just before Johnny's death in 2004, he and Linda supervised the erection of an eight foot tall bronze memorial of Johnny at the

Hollywood Forever Cemetery Hollywood Forever Cemetery is a full-service cemetery, funeral home, crematory, and cultural events center which regularly hosts community events such as live music and summer movie screenings. It is one of the oldest cemeteries in Los Angel ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. Linda and Johnny were together for 20 years prior to his death. In 2012, Linda released the book ''Commando'', an autobiography written by Johnny Ramone. Linda did numerous television interviews to promote the release of the book.

Philanthropy

Linda is the founder and president of the Johnny Ramone Army, an organization dedicated to preserving the legacy of Johnny Ramone. She also founded the Johnny and Linda Ramone Foundation. She organizes an annual event entitled the Johnny Ramone Tribute at Hollywood Forever to benefit the Johnny Ramone cancer research fund at USC Westside cancer research center led by Dr.

David Agus David B. Agus () is an American physician and author who serves as a professor of medicine and engineering at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine and Viterbi School of Engineering and the Founding Director and CEO of th ...

. The events have been attended by celebrities such as

Lisa Marie Presley Lisa Marie Presley (born February 1, 1968) is an American singer-songwriter. She is the only child of singer and actor Elvis Presley and actress Priscilla Presley, as well as the sole heir to her father's estate. Presley has developed a caree ...

Priscilla Presley Priscilla Ann Presley ( Wagner, changed by adoption to Beaulieu; born May 24, 1945) is an American actress and businesswoman. She is the former wife of American singer Elvis Presley, as well as co-founder and former chairwoman of Elvis Presley ...

John Frusciante John Anthony Frusciante (; born March 5, 1970) is an American musician, best known as the guitarist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers across three stints since 1988. He has released 11 solo albums and 7 EPs, ranging in style from acoustic guitar to e ...

Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates elements of alternative rock, funk ...

Chris Cornell Christopher John Cornell (né Boyle; July 20, 1964 – May 18, 2017) was an American singer and musician best known as the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and primary lyricist and songwriter for the rock bands Soundgarden and Audioslave ...

, Eddie Vedder, Rob Zombie,

Kirk Hammett Kirk Lee Hammett (born November 18, 1962) is an American musician who has been the lead guitarist and a contributing songwriter for heavy metal band Metallica since 1983. Before joining Metallica, he formed and named the band Exodus. In 2003, ...

, Steve Jones, and

Traci Lords Traci Lords (born Nora Louise Kuzma; May 7, 1968) is an American actress and singer. She entered the adult film industry using a fake birth certificate to conceal that she was two years under the legal age of eighteen. Lords starred in adult f ...

. Additional celebrities who have taken part in the events include

John Waters John Samuel Waters Jr. (born April 22, 1946) is an American filmmaker, writer, actor, and artist. He rose to fame in the early 1970s for his transgressive cult films, including '' Multiple Maniacs'' (1970), '' Pink Flamingos'' (1972) and '' Fe ...

Rose McGowan Rósa Arianna "Rose" McGowan (born September 5, 1973) is an American actress. After her film debut in a brief role in the comedy '' Encino Man'' (1992), McGowan achieved wider recognition for her performance in the dark comedy ''The Doom Generat ...

Henry Rollins Henry Lawrence Garfield (born February 13, 1961), known professionally as Henry Rollins, is an American singer, writer, spoken word artist, actor, and presenter. After performing in the short-lived hardcore punk band State of Alert in 1980, Roll ...

Joe Dallesandro Joseph Angelo D'Allesandro III (born December 31, 1948) is an American actor and Warhol superstar. Having also crossed over into mainstream roles such as mobster Lucky Luciano in the film '' The Cotton Club'', Dallesandro was a sex symbol of g ...

and Johnny Depp.

Personal life

In 2017, Linda was named to ''Harper's Bazaars list of the 150 Most Fashionable Women Now. In March 2017, she was credited as an inspiration to

Gucci Gucci (, ; ) is an Italian high-end luxury fashion house based in Florence, Italy. Its product lines include handbags, ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories, and home decoration; and it licenses its name and branding to Coty, Inc. for fragran ...

's new line, designed by creative director

Alessandro Michele Alessandro Michele (; born 25 November 1972) is an Italian fashion designer who most recently served as the creative director of Gucci, the Italian fashion luxury house where he had been working since 2002. Known for his maximalist designs, Aless ...

, featuring a "Hollywood Forever" Jacket. She also appeared as herself in the season seven finale of ''

Portlandia ''Portlandia'' is an American sketch comedy television series starring Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein, set in and around Portland, Oregon, and spoofing the city's reputation as a haven for eccentric hipsters. The show was produced by Br ...

''. In a 2012 interview with '' Harper's Bazaar'', she showed off the Los Angeles home that she had shared with Johnny Ramone. She now shares the home with her partner, J. D. King. She also revealed that she collects fashion, music and movie memorabilia and maintains a museum-like house with an

Elvis Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

room,

Barbie Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by American toy company Mattel, Inc. and launched on March 9, 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration. ...

room, horror room,

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

room and rock and roll room.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramone, Linda 1960 births Living people American women philanthropists People from Rosedale, Queens