Early Life
Born Jeffry Ross Hyman to parents Charlotte (née Mandell) and Noel Hyman, they lived in Forest Hills, Queens, New York, where Jeffry and his future Ramones bandmates attended Forest Hills High School. Though happy, Jeffry was more of an outcast. When he was 18 years old he was diagnosed with OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder). He grew up with brother Mickey Leigh. His mother divorced and remarried three times.
Jeffry was a fan of The Beatles, The Who, David Bowie and The Stooges among other bands (particularly oldies and the Phil Spector-produced "girl groups"). His idol was Pete Townshend of The Who (with whom he shared a birthday). Jeffry took up drums at 13, and played throughout his teen years. Before he joined the Ramones, he was the singer in a band called Sniper.
Read more about this topic: Joey Ramone
Famous quotes containing the words early life, early and/or life:
“... goodness is of a modest nature, easily discouraged, and when much elbowed in early life by unabashed vices, is apt to retire into extreme privacy, so that it is more easily believed in by those who construct a selfish old gentleman theoretically, than by those who form the narrower judgments based on his personal acquaintance.”
—George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)
“Parents ... are sometimes a bit of a disappointment to their children. They dont fulfil the promise of their early years.”
—Anthony Powell (b. 1905)
“Ill bet your father spent the first year of your life throwing rocks at the stork.”
—Irving Brecher, U.S. screenwriter, and Edward Buzzell. J. Cheever Loophole (Groucho Marx)