Childhood
Richard Lynn Carpenter was born to parents Agnes Reuwer Tatum and Harold Bertram Carpenter at Grace-New Haven Hospital (now called Yale-New Haven Hospital) in New Haven, Connecticut, the same hospital where Karen was later born. He was named after his father's younger brother, Richard Lynn Carpenter. Carpenter and his uncle both married women named Mary.
He frequently played the piano while his sister, Karen, played baseball outside. He and Karen also liked to listen to the children's records his father bought for him when he was young. He was introduced to Perry Como and Ella Fitzgerald, among many others, and by age 12, he knew he wanted to be in the music industry.
The Carpenter family moved from New Haven to Downey, California, in June 1963. They wanted Richard to further his music career, and the family was fed up with the cold New England winters. At the time, Richard was 16 years old. Richard studied music at the California State University at Long Beach. There, he met Frank Pooler, a conductor and composer. Pooler wrote the lyrics to the Christmas classic "Merry Christmas Darling" in 1968. He also met good friend John Bettis, who co-wrote songs with Richard.
Read more about this topic: Richard Carpenter (musician)
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