Ric Ocasek Separated From His Wife of 28 Years Last Year, but She Was There for Him at the End

When emergency personnel were summoned to Ric Ocasek’s home in Manhattan on Sunday, there was some speculation about the call for help being made by his wife, model Paulina Porizkova, from whom Ocasek was separated at the time of his death.

Although the pair were together for 28 years, they announced their separation in May 2018.

Now, however, Porizkova has moved to clear up the details of what exactly happened, suggesting in a moving Instagram post that that she was staying at the home of The Cars frontman while he was recovering from recent surgery.

Another image posted showed floral tributes, and toy cars, left outside their Manhattan home by fans and neighbors.

The singer’s hits included “You Might Think” and “My Best Friend’s Girl,” and he went on to produce a number of respected rock albums, including Weezer’s so-called Blue Album. He was 75, and, according to the New York City Medical Examiner, the cause of death was “hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease,” or heart disease. “Pulmonary emphysema,” or lung disease, was also a contributing factor, The Daily Beast reported.