Don Van Vliet (, born Don Glen Vliet ;

Noted for his powerful singing voice with its wide range, Van Vliet also played the harmonica, saxophone and numerous other wind instruments.

During his teen years in Lancaster, California, Van Vliet developed an eclectic musical taste and formed " a mutually useful but volatile " friendship with Frank Zappa, with whom he sporadically competed and collaborated.

Van Vliet has been described as " one of modern music's true innovators " with " a singular body of work virtually unrivalled in its daring and fluid creativity ".

Known for his enigmatic personality and relationship with the public, Van Vliet made few public appearances after his retirement from music ( and from his Beefheart persona ) in 1982.

Van Vliet died in 2010, having suffered from multiple sclerosis for many years.

Van Vliet was born Don Glen Vliet in Glendale, California, on January 15, 1941, to Glen Alonzo Vliet, a service station owner of Dutch ancestry from Kansas, and Willie Sue Vliet ( née Warfield ), who was from Arkansas.

He claimed to have as an ancestor Peter Van Vliet, a Dutch painter who knew Rembrandt.

Van Vliet also claimed that he was related to adventurer and author Richard Halliburton and the cowboy actor Slim Pickens, and said that he remembered being born.

For some time during the 1950s Van Vliet worked as an apprentice with Rodrigues, who considered him a child prodigy.

Van Vliet later admitted personal hesitation to take the scholarship based upon the bitterness of his parents ' disencouragement.

Van Vliet remained interested in art ; his paintings, often reminiscent of Franz Kline's, were later featured on several of his own albums.

Van Vliet claimed that he never attended public school, alleging " half a day of kindergarten " to be the extent of his formal education and saying that " if you want to be a different fish, you've got to jump out of the school.

While attending Antelope Valley High School in Lancaster, Van Vliet became close friends with fellow teenager Frank Zappa, the pair bonding through their interest in Chicago blues and R & B.

Van Vliet is portrayed in both The Real Frank Zappa Book and Barry Miles ' biography Zappa as fairly spoiled at this stage of his life, the center of attention as an only child.

After Zappa began regular occupation at Paul Buff's PAL Studio in Cucamonga he and Van Vliet began collaborating, tentatively as " The Soots ".

" In a 1970 interview with Rolling Stone, Van Vliet requests " don't ask me why or how " he and Zappa came up with the name.

Van Vliet enrolled at Antelope Valley Junior College as an art major, but decided to leave the following year.

" After managing a Kinney's shoe store, Van Vliet relocated to Rancho Cucamonga, California, to reconnect with Zappa, who inspired his entry into musical performance.

Van Vliet was quite shy but was eventually able to imitate the deep voice of Howlin ' Wolf with his wide vocal range.

Harlan Ellison ( who began reading van Vogt as a teenager ) wrote, " Van was the first writer to shine light on the restricted ways in which I had been taught to view the universe and the human condition.

His career revival began when the young Italian director Sergio Leone boldly cast Van Cleef, whose career was still in the doldrums, as one of the two protagonists, alongside Clint Eastwood, in Leone's second western, For a Few Dollars More.

Van Steenoven and the other bishops were excommunicated and thus began the Old Catholic Church in the Netherlands.

His fortunes began to improve when John Van Voorst, the leading publisher of naturalist writing, agreed, on the recommendation of Thomas Bell, to publish his Canadian Naturalist ( 1840 ).

Van C. Smith, a businessman from Omaha, Nebraska, and his partner, Aaron Wilburn, constructed two adobe buildings in 1869 that began what is now Roswell.

References to the show in popular culture began during its original broadcast when it was parodied in an episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show, fittingly titled " The Man from My Uncle ", References in other televison shows have continued over the years, including a 2011 episode of Mad Men, " The Chrysanthemum and the Sword ".

Van Gogh began to draw as a child, and he continued to draw throughout the years that led up to his decision to become an artist.

Shortly after Lowery's former group Camper Van Beethoven finished in 1990, he began demoing material along with his boyhood friend, the guitarist Johnny Hickman.

It was not long after her arrival in Weimar that Johanna began to publish her writings, some articles on paintings with an emphasis on those by Jan Van Eyck.

Tamalpais Festival ( June 10 / 11 ) shortly before the scheduled Monterey Festival ( June 16 / 18 ), the band began to play " Electricity " and Van Vliet froze, straightened his tie, then walked off the ten – foot stage and landed on manager Bob Krasnow.

Soon after, Van Vliet retired from music and began a new career as a painter.

Towards the second half of the 19th century Van began to play an increased role in the politics of the Ottoman Empire due to its location near the borders of the Persian, Russian and Ottoman Empire, as well as its proximity to Mosul.

The Magic were also the only NBA team to wear black sneakers and socks in all their games, a tradition that began upon the hiring of Stan Van Gundy in 2007 ; however they wore white sneakers and socks at home in all of the 2008 – 09 season and early in the 2009 – 10 season before switching back to black sneakers and socks.

From 1950 to 1956, Morrison, who began to be known as " Van " during this time, attended Elmgrove Primary School.

The decade began with the release of The Best of Van Morrison ; compiled by Morrison himself, the album was focused on his hit singles, and became a multi-platinum success remaining a year and a half on the UK charts.

After a week of Los Angeles Times ads, and special excursion trains from Los Angeles to a bare townsite, lot sales began at the new town of Van Nuys on Washington's Birthday, February 22, 1911.

It began with Juan Formell, the former director for Orquesta Revé ( 1968 ), and the founder and current director of Los Van Van.

He then began campaigning to become Jackson's running mate, but Jackson favored Martin Van Buren instead.

However, the group later realized Van ' n Intraktus was a traitor after they discovered that he enslaved his home planet with his ring and began invading other worlds.

It began on land owned by Matthew and John Van Vleck.

In 1907 the company of Pitman and Henry began a motorboat passenger service up and down the Current River between Van Buren and Doniphan