Janis Joplin, born January 19, 1943, moved from her hometown of Port Arthur, Texas, to San Francisco, where she became famous as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company. She was notorious as an alcoholic speed freak and occasional heroin user and frequently appeared with a bottle of Southern Comfort in her hands. She was found dead of an overdose of heroin and alcohol on October 4, 1970.