Jani Lane, front man for the band Warrant, was found dead at the age of 47 Thursday. His body was found in a Comfort Inn just off of Ventura Boulevard in California. The hotel and the area are both known for drug addicts and prostitutes. Lane had a history of substance abuse.
Lane had a meteoric rise to fame and a fall from the spotlight that was just as quick. Here is a look back at Lane’s life.
* Jani Lane, born John Kennedy Oswald, was born Feb. 1, 1964, in Akron, Ohio, to Eileen and Robert Oswald.
* According to Lane’s self-written bio, his parents changed his name to John Patrick Oswald after being harassed for naming the boy after the president.
* Lane’s first taste of musical success came while he was living in Florida. He was the drummer for a popular cover band named Dorian Grey. He also got his first taste of life on the road with the band.
* In 1985, Lane made the decision to move to the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles. The music scene in L.A. during the ’80s was the stuff of legends. Motley Crue, Guns n Roses, and Metallica all got their start there.
* Soon after his arrival, Lane joined Warrant as their lead singer. Their first major album, “Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich,” was released in 1989 and did surprisingly well on the charts. The album spent 65 weeks on the Billboard 200.
* What was supposed to be just a follow-up to their first album actually became the band’s biggest success. “Cherry Pie” made Warrant a household name.
* The video for “Cherry Pie” was in heavy rotation on MTV and featured a blond model named Bobbie Brown. In true rock star style, Lane got the girl. He and Brown were married and had a daughter together. The marriage did not last.
* The dawn of the grunge era meant the end for Warrant and many other hair bands from the Sunset Strip. Lane stated that when he heard Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” he felt “impending doom.”
* In 2005, Lane became a fan favorite on the popular VH1 series “Celebrity Fit Club.” The rocker’s alcohol problems were highlighted during the show, and many viewers were rooting for his recovery.
* After his reality show appearance, Lane reunited with his former Warrant bandmates. The reunion was shirt-lived; the band separated from Lane a short time later, according to Pop Eater.
* Lane’s appearance on “Celebrity Fit Club” did not mean he was to have a “Happily ever after” ending to his career. In 2010, Lane was arrested for two separate DUI charges .
* Though the cause of death has not been officially determined, TMZ reports there is much speculation that Lane’s death was caused by alcohol or drugs given his history of addiction.