When I was an undergraduate, we were told by the seniors that Otis Redding died when his plane crashed into Lake Mendota. We used to toast to his memory when enjoying a few beers on the Union Terrace. Is it true or were the seniors pulling our leg?

The seniors were almost right. Otis Redding was on a chartered plane that crashed into Lake Monona on Dec. 10, 1967, killing Redding and four members of his backup band, the Bar-Kays while they were flying to a scheduled performance. A native of Georgia, Redding’s gritty vocals became the measure of 1960s great soul artists. His only number one single, “(Sittin’ on) the Dock of the Bay,” shot to the top of the charts in 1968 after his death at age 26.