Deana Richards was the mother of Frank Carlton Serafino Feranna Jr., better known as Nikki Sixx, the bassist and co-founder of the legendary rock band Mötley Crüe. She passed away on June 8, 2013, at the age of 74, leaving behind a complicated and unresolved relationship with her son. Here is what we know about Deana Richards’ cause of death and how it affected Nikki Sixx.
A Troubled Childhood
Nikki Sixx was born on December 11, 1958, in San Jose, California. His father, Frank Feranna Sr., left the family when Nikki was three years old, and his mother remarried several times. Nikki had a difficult childhood, as he was abused by his stepfathers and neglected by his mother, who was an alcoholic and a drug addict. According to Loudwire, Nikki’s most heartbreaking memory was when his mother called his grandparents and said, “Come pick him up.” He was six years old and she said, “I’m going to lock the door and I’ll just leave you in the porch.” She couldn’t wait until his grandparents got there. She left with this guy in a truck. That broke him.
Nikki moved in with his grandparents in Idaho, where he found solace in music. He later moved back to California, where he changed his name to Nikki Sixx and formed Mötley Crüe with Tommy Lee, Mick Mars, and Vince Neil in 1981. The band became one of the most successful and notorious acts of the 1980s, selling over 100 million records worldwide and living a lifestyle of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll.
A Failed Reconciliation
Despite his fame and fortune, Nikki still struggled with the emotional scars of his childhood. He developed a heroin addiction that nearly killed him several times. He also tried to reconnect with his mother, but their attempts were always traumatic and explosive. According to I Love Classic Rock, Nikki wrote in his autobiography The Heroin Diaries that he once confronted his mother about her abandonment and abuse. He said, “You know what you did to me,” and she replied, “No, what did I do to you that was so bad?” He then punched her in the face and left.
Nikki also revealed in The Dirt, the biopic based on Mötley Crüe’s memoir of the same name, that he once visited his mother in a hospital after she had a stroke. He hoped to find some closure, but she only blamed him for her condition and asked him for money. He left feeling angry and hurt.
A Final Goodbye
Nikki never got the chance to resolve his issues with his mother, as she passed away in 2013 without any warning. He announced the news via a simple tweet that read, “RIP Mom 5-5 1939 to 6-8 2013.” No further details are known about her cause of death at this time.
Nikki later admitted that watching The Dirt brought up a lot of pain around his relationship with his mother. He said in an interview with Pollstar, “The hard part of the film for me, which I didn’t expect, was seeing my relationship with my mother, who passed away a few years ago without us being able to resolve our issues. The movie brought up a lot of pain around that.”
Nikki also confessed that he still struggles with the fact that he and his mom were never able to have a normal relationship. He said in an interview with The Guardian, “I don’t understand why we couldn’t figure it out. I wanted a mom.”
Nikki Sixx has since found happiness in his music, his radio show, his photography, and his family. He is married to Courtney Bingham and has four children from previous marriages. He also has a fifth child on the way. He has said that he tries to be a good father to his kids and give them what he never had.
Deana Richards may have been a troubled woman who failed to be a good mother to Nikki Sixx, but she was also a human being who had her own struggles and demons. Her cause of death remains unknown, but her legacy lives on in her son’s music and memories.
