Tom Verlaine

Famed for his trailblazing work as the singer and guitarist of the seminal New York punk band Television, Tom Verlaine also carved out an acclaimed and eclectic solo career. Born Thomas Miller in Wilmington, Delaware in 1949, Verlaine (who borrowed his name from the French symbolist poet) was trained as a classical pianist but gravitated toward rock music after an encounter with the Rolling Stones' "19th Nervous Breakdown." In 1968, he and bassist Richard Meyers (later Richard Hell) moved to New York's Lower East Side, where they and drummer Billy Ficca formed the group the Ne...