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Bill Gazzarri was born on June 16, 1924. He was an actor, known for Number One with a Bullet (1987), Gabriella, Gabriella (1972) and The Decline of Western Civilization (1981). He died on March 13, 1991 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
In 1991, Bill Gazzarri known as the “Godfather of Rock n’ Roll” named Al Bowman the “Godson of Rock n’ Roll” and Gazzarri asked Bowman to produce a music awards show for independent artists and bands requesting that he “Make it about the music. Just ‘cuz people buy it, don’t make it good,” Gazzarri said.
Bowman promised Gazzarri that he would produce an annual awards show in his honor and Gazzarri gave Bowman his famous white Fedora hat. Three days later, Gazzarri passed away.
On December 17, 1991 the Los Angeles Music Awards held its first ever awards ceremony and it was dedicated to the memory of Gazzarri. We are now celebrating 24 years.
For three decades, Gazzarri, was known as Sunset Boulevard’s white-hatted “Godfather of Rock n’ Roll,” because his night clubs on The Strip provided a stage and amplification for a myriad undiscovered rock stars, and he unabashedly claimed credit for launching the careers of Jim Morrison and The Doors, Sonny and Cher, Motley Crue, Tina Turner, Van Halen, David Lee Roth, The Byrds, Poison, Guns N’ Roses and Warrant to name a few.