Ringoīs real name is Richard Starkey. He is the oldest of the Beatles, born just after midnight on July 7th, 1940. His home environment was poorer than the other Beatlesī, both his parents came from common working class homes. His mother Elsie was 26 and his father Richard was 28 when he was born. They named their first, and only child Richard after the father. That is a tradition in the British working class.

When Ringo was a little older than three years old his parents got divorced. It seems to have been a very calm and undramatic divorce. Elsie had to take a job in order to make ends meet. Ringo started in Sunday school at the age of four and school a year later.

When he was six years old he got very ill with appendicitis. His appendix burst and he was really ill. He had to be operated on. When he was wheeled in to the operatingtheatre he asked for a cup of tea. After the operation when you wake up again, was the reply. That took ten weeks. He was kept at the hospital over a year and his parents were not even allowed to visit.

After spending a year in the hospital he was, of course, far behind his class. He couldnīt read or write, but he got help from a four years older girl, a daughter of a friend of his mother. She taught him how to read and write. When he was 11 he started school again, but his interest in schoolwork was on and off. Heīd skip classes when he didnīt want to do the work. At this time his mother started to socialize with a man named Harry Graves. He and Ringo got along fine, and when Harry wanted to marry Elsie, Ringo had no objections.

When Ringo was 13 he got ill again. He got pneumonia and stayed in the hospital for two years. When he got out he was 15 years old and his schooldays were over, even though heīd hardly been to school at all. No one at school even remembered him when he came to get his certificate.

When he was well enough he went looking for a job. His first one was as a delivery boy at the railroad. He only stayed for 6 weeks because he didnīt pass the medical examination. Later he got a job on a boat between Liverpool and north Wales, but he got fired for some reason, I donīt know why. Not many people that knew him at this time thought itīd work out for him, because of his lack of school knowledge.

As a boy Ringo never showed any musical interest whatsoever. When he started working as a fitter the skiffle music took over England. He became the drummer of the new skiffle group "Eddie Clayton Skiffle Group" who entertained the others at lunchtime.

His first set of drums was an old set that cost Ģ10. When he bought his first new set it cost Ģ100, and he had to borrow money from his grandfather. I donīt think the old man really knew what good it would do, but he could never say no, and Ringo payed him back, Ģ1 a week.

Ringoīs way to success was much like the others. Playing in different groups at local talentshows and private parties. Then he became a member of Rory Stormīs group. The band got an offer to play at a club called Butlinīs for a season. Ringo had to decide if he wanted to keep his work or go with the band. But he would be payed better in the band than at work so, thankfully, he decided to keep up music. And this is when Richard Starkey becomes Ringo Starr.

Rory Stormīs time at Butlinīs was very successful, the band even turned down their first Hamburg offer. Instead they began touring American Air bases in France, and Ringo hated it.

Then they came to Hamburg and started alternating with the Beatles at "Kaiserkeller". Later Ringo returned alone to Hamburg because of a nice offer heīd gotten earlier. Very nice offers if heīd stay and play there. But he decided to keep playing with Rory Stormīs group at Butlinīs.