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Ric Ocasek Net Worth and His 56 Years of Remarkable Career

Fans of the famous rock band, the Cars, probably know how much Ric Ocasek net worth from years of making music.

Having started his career in 1963, the rockstar had accumulated a pretty hefty net worth up to the day his career is halted.

Do you want to catch up with the latest news and info regarding Ric Ocasek net worth and legacy? Read on to find the answer.

Summary table
Stage Name Ric Ocasek
Legal Name Richard Theodore Otcasek
Date of Birth March 23, 1944
Gender Male
Height 6′ 4″ (1.93m)
Net worth $5 million
Salary / earning / income per year $250,000 – $500,000
Profession American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer

Who is Ric Ocasek? (Biography)

Before we dig deeper into anything regarding his works and wealth, let’s first know if you have known his complete background information.

Legal Name & stage name

Ric Ocasek was the stage name of Richard Theodore Otcasek.

Date of Birth

He was born on March 23, 1944, in Baltimore, Maryland.

Gender & Height

The Cars’ frontman is a  6′ 4″ (1.93m) male.

Nationality

Ric Ocasek is an American.

What is Ric Ocasek Best Known for?

Ric Ocasek was a multi-talented musician who led the Cars while also maintaining his own solo career. Besides from singing, songwriting,  and playing music in general, Ric Ocasek net worth also came from producing records for some artists and bands such as No Doubt, Suicide, Weezer, and Guided by Voices.

ric-ocasek-net-worth-guitarist
(guitarplayer..com)

Early life of Ric Ocasek

Ric Ocasek was born and bred in Baltimore, Maryland. However, he and his family moved to Cleveland, Ohio, in 1960 to follow his father who worked at the Lewis Research Center in Nasa as a system analyst.

Education

Ric Ocasek was a student at Maple Heights High School and graduated in 1963. Before he pursued his career in music, he briefly attended Antioch College and Bowling Green State University but he dropped out without finishing his education.

Personal life (family, spouse, kids)

Ric Ocasek had been married to three women throughout the course of his life. His first wife, Constance, met and separated while he was still residing in Ohio. Not long after they were separating, Ric Ocasek married her second wife, Suzanne Otcasek, in 1971. The marriage lasted for 17 years. They divorced in 1988 and a year later he married a Czech-born supermodel Paulina Porizkova. Ric Ocasek and Paulina Porizkova met the year before during the filming of the Car’s music video for the song Drive. 

Ric Ocasek had two sons from each marriage.

 ric-ocasek-net-worth-exwife
(people.com)

Ric Ocasek’s Career

His ventures in the music industry had resulted in a quite fantastic amount of Ric Ocasek net worth, considering how long it had been since he started making music. Here is a brief summary of Ric Ocasek career.

Ric Ocasek music career

Ric Ocasek met his friend and future bandmate Benjamin Orr back in Cleveland in 1965. The two friends began to perform together a few later in Columbus, Ohio, in a band called ID Nirvana in 1968.

After performing around Ohio State University, Columbus, and Ann Arbor, Ric Ocasek and Benjamin Orr moved to Boston to form another folk-rock band called Milkwood. In the following years, they continued to reshuffle and reform the band, from the name Richard and the Rabbits, Cap’n Swing, to finally became the Cars in 1976.

As the founding member of the band, he played as the rhythm guitarist and became the lead vocalist for most of the songs, while Benjamin Orr fill-in as the vocalist for the rest of them. In 1982, Ric Ocasek net worth was also increased from his individual works, as he also started to release his solo albums.

Ric Ocasek as record producer

Ric Ocasek net worth also came from his work as a music producer. From his own band, The Cars, to many newcomer bands and singers from different genres including Bad Brains, Guided by Voices, Black 47, and Weezer. For the latter, he produced their Blue Album and Green Album, which both were multi-platinum, and their ninth studio album Everytthing Will Be Alright in the End. 

Ric Ocasek popular songs and album

His famous solo songs and albums also became one of the resources of Ric Ocasek net worth. He played a more experimental variation of music compared to his own band’s style. In his 1986 album, This Side of Paradise, there was one hit single Emotion in Motion featured in the album.

ric-ocasek-net-worth-album
(people.com)

Ric Ocasek awards

Rick Ocasek was inducted in 2018 to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, as one of the members of The Cars.

Ric Ocasek Net worth

As of 2022, Ric Ocasek net worth is reported around  $5 million. There were some other resources of his wealth and fortune other than the music industry.

Businesses

Ric Ocasek net worth probably also came from his ventures in any other area. But there were no further details regarding this information.

Real estate (Mansion / house / home / apartment)

One of Ric Ocasek net worth in the form of materials possession is his $10 million NYC Townhouse, which was sold in 2020.

ric-ocasek-net-worth-house
(ultimateclassicrock.com)

Sport cars / yatch / vehicles

There were no further resources that mentions this information.

How much Ric Ocasek make per year? (Salary / Earning / Income)

With the total amount of Ric Ocasek net worth, it is predicted that he received an annual salary of around $250,000 – $500,000.

How does Ric Ocasek make money?

To sum up, Ric Ocasek net worth was generated from his contract in the music industry, as a singer, singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer.

Ric Ocasek net worth at the time of death

Some resources mentioned that Ric Ocasek net worth by the time of his death reached $50 million. However, due to a dispute with his wife at that time — who was actually in the middle of the divorce process — his net worth was said to be declined to $5 million.

Is Ric Ocasek Retired?

Ric Ocasek passed away on September 15, 2019. His body was found by his estranged wife, Paulina Porikova, in their New York City townhouse. The medical examiner reported that his death was caused by a heart problem. He previously went through surgery due to his hypertensive heart and coronary artery disease.