The son of the 1950s rock 'n' roll star "The Big Bopper" has hired an forensic anthropologist to dig his father out of the grave to determine exactly how he died in the 1959 plane crash that also killed Ritchie Valens and Buddy Holly.

Jay Richardson said he's having his father exhumed to determine whether there is any truth to rumors that a gun might have been on the plane, and to see if he may have survived the impact of the crash and died while trying to find help.

Richardson, who gives tribute concerts as "The Big Bopper Jr.," never met his father - his mother was pregnant with him when the crash occurred.

"The Big Bopper," whose real name was J.P. Richardson, is buried in Beaumont Texas. He will be re-buried in the same spot after his remains are studied and will have a life-size statue erected beside his grave.

The plane crashed on Feb. 3, 1959, after taking off from Mason City, Iowa. The three were on tour and had been traveling by bus, but Holly chartered a plane because the bus was cold and in poor condition.