One of the Carpenters’ greatest hits, permeating the airwaves then and conjuring up nostalgia now, is ‘Superstar’. The gentle ballad is about a girl falling for a rock star she rendezvouses with and never sees again but waits in hopeful delusion for his return. It was written by Leon Russell and Bonnie Bramlett who released it in 1969. They called it “Groupie (Superstar).” It didn’t catch Richard’s attention until Bette Midler performed it on ‘The Tonight Show’. He altered lyrics like, “And I can hardly wait to sleep with you again” to “. . . be with you again.”
Karen, for her part, didn’t like the song at first. In a 1981 interview, she said, “For some reason, that tune didn’t hit me in the beginning,” adding, “It’s the only one. Richard looked at me like I had three heads. He said: ‘Are you out of your mind?’. Karen went on to say that once she’d heard Richard’s arrangements, the song actually became one of her favorites.
The Karen A. Carpenter Memorial Foundation
The Carpenter family founded the Karen A. Carpenter Memorial Foundation after she passed in order to raise awareness about anorexia nervosa. The organization raises money that goes toward research and treatment. As the foundation has evolved, so has its name.
The name is now The Carpenter Family Foundation, and it funds a wide variety of initiatives that combat the wider issue of eating disorders. Programs include education, entertainment facilities, and even art programs.
A Domineering Mother
Karen and Richard’s upbringing seemed perfect. They came from a wholesome, close-knit family with conservative values and traditional appearance. It looked very loving, but for some reason, Karen felt unloved. Agnes was a domineering matriarch who caused Karen frustration and emptiness where the love she craved should have been.
She was often described as being stressed-out, controlling, and uptight with an inability to express love to Karen. A new book by Randy Schmidt, 'Little Girl Blue: The Life of Karen Carpenter', claims the mother-daughter relationship led to Karen’s death.
What was Karen’s Favorite Song?
Karen really hoped to fall in love, get married, and have a family, like many young women.
So, it might not be too much of a surprise to find that her favorite Carpenters song was their 1976 ballad, “I Need to Be in Love.”
Richard’s Addiction
It was during Richard’s recovery that Karen decided to try out a solo effort. His addiction started in the late ’70s with an affliction of insomnia, worsened by panic attacks and depression. He used Quaaludes to combat his suffering. Apparently, it was Agnes who offered him his first pill.
He took a year off to go to rehab. He made a full recovery and was back on the job by 1979. As if fame had taken its toll on the two, Karen’s anorexia nervosa was at its worst during the time of her brother’s affliction.