John Denver Dies In Crash -- Singer Killed While Piloting Single- Engine Plane Off California Coast

PACIFIC GROVE, Calif. - John Denver, whose songs "Rocky Mountain High" and "Take Me Home, Country Roads" gained him millions of fans worldwide, was killed yesterday when his experimental plane crashed into Monterey Bay. He was 53.

The identity of his body was confirmed from fingerprints sent from Colorado, Monterey County Sheriff Norman Hicks said today. An autopsy was planned.

"I heard from my sister that yes, he was on the plane. And he has perished," Teri Martell, whose sister Annie was Mr. Denver's first wife, said today from her home in Minnesota. "He loved flying. He died doing something he loved."

Early today, a Coast Guard helicopter circled over the crash site, apparently looking for more debris from the crash. A Coast Guard ship also searched the site.

The plane, which Mr. Denver owned, was made of fiberglass with a single engine and two seats. It was considered an experimental aircraft, said Pacific Grove police Lt. Carl Miller. It took off from Monterey Airport shortly after 5 p.m. yesterday, with the first reports of a crash at 5:27 p.m. Only Mr. Denver was aboard.

The plane was flying about 500 feet in the air "when it just sort of dropped unexpectedly into the ocean," Miller said. "When it hit the water it broke into numerous parts."

Witness Carolyn Pearl told KCBA-TV that she saw a puff and heard a "popping" sound before the crash. The plane "kind of went up a little bit and absolutely straight down, not spiraling, just absolutely straight down," she said.

Mr. Denver, a licensed pilot, was in a previous plane accident, in April 1989. He walked away uninjured after the 1931 biplane he was piloting spun around while taxiing at an airport in northern Arizona.

He was born Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. when his father, an Air Force pilot, was stationed at Roswell, N.M. He took his stage name from the premier city in Colorado, where he eventually made his home.

In the mid-1960s, he was chosen from 250 other hopefuls as lead singer for the Chad Mitchell Trio as a replacement for the departing Mitchell. But the trio's best years were behind it by then, and he left in 1969 for a solo career. That same year, his song "Leaving on a Jet Plane" became a big hit for Peter, Paul and Mary.

Soon, Mr. Denver's own records - melodic, light folk-pop with touches of country - began climbing the charts as well.

He scored with songs like "Sunshine on My Shoulders," "Annie's Song" (written for his first wife), "Back Home Again" and "Thank God I'm a Country Boy." He was named Country Music Entertainer of the Year in 1975.

Fourteen of his albums went gold and eight were ranked as platinum, with more than a million units sold. The LP "John Denver's Greatest Hits" is still one of the largest-selling albums in the history of RCA Records, with worldwide sales of more than 10 million copies. He was named Country Music Entertainer of the Year in 1975.

His trademark wire-rimmed glasses and handsome smile - sort of a clean-cut hippie who could appeal to all generations - made him a winner on countless TV specials. He appeared with Itzhak Perlman, Beverly Sills, Placido Domingo, Julie Andrews, and even Kermit the Frog, in a Christmas special called "John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together."

He had a supporting role in the 1977 George Burns comedy "Oh God." He also appeared in a TV movie, "Foxfire," with Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn.

He had strong appeal to overseas audiences as well, with many gold and platinum records in other countries. In 1985, he toured the Soviet Union in the first performances by an American artist since the suspension, at that time, of cultural exchanges between the United States and the Soviet Union. He was the first artist from the West to do a multicity tour of mainland China, in October 1992, and similarly in Vietnam in May 1994.

"Music does bring people together," Mr. Denver once said. "It allows us to experience the same emotions. People everywhere are the same in heart and spirit. No matter what language we speak, what color we are, the form of our politics or the expression of our love and our faith, music proves: We are the same."

In 1976, Mr. Denver co-founded the Windstar Foundation, a nonprofit environmental education and research center. He also was active in fighting world hunger and had an avid interest in space exploration. He had volunteered to ride aboard the space shuttle.

Mr. Denver also had his troubles. He pleaded guilty in September 1993 to an Aug. 21, 1993, drunken-driving arrest. The charge was reduced to driving while ability impaired, and he received probation and a $372 fine.

The singer was arrested exactly a year later - Aug. 21, 1994 - on a second drunken-driving charge. The first trial ended in a hung jury; the second trial was set for Jan. 14.

He is survived by his second wife, Cassandra Delaney; their daughter, Jesse Belle; a son, Zachary, and daughter, AnnaKate, from his first marriage; his brother, Ron Deutschendorf; and his mother, Erma.

------------------------------------- Some of John Denver's memorable songs -------------------------------------

"Leaving on a Jet Plane."

"Take Me Home, Country Roads."

"Rocky Mountain High."

"Sunshine on My Shoulders."

"Goodbye Again."

"Starwood in Aspen."

"Mother Nature's Son."

"For Baby."

"Grandma's Feather Bed."

"Thank God I'm a Country Boy."

"Annie's Song."

"Fly Away."

"Calypso."

"Home on the Range" (with the Muppets).

"Wild Montana Skies" (with Emmylou Harris).

"Let Us Begin (What Are We Making Weapons For?)."

Associated Press