Hilly Kristal, CBGB founder, dies at 75

CBGB founder Hilly Kristal died Tuesday at age 75 from complications related to lung cancer he'd been battling since June 2006. According to the Associated Press, Kristal was using a cane and showing the effects of chemotherapy during his Bowery, New York club's final concert last October. Headlined by Patti Smith - a regular at CBGB when it was the mainstay dive for seminal acts like the Ramones, Television, Blondie and Talking Heads - the last hurrah (or last "yeah, yeah!") ended 33 years of Kristal-led, career-starting rock shows.

"[Kristal] was our champion and in those days, there were very few," Smith was quoted as saying.

After managing the legendary Greenwich Village jazz club the Village Vanguard, Kristal originally opened CBGB to host country and bluegrass music. Calling it CBGB & OMFUG for "Other Music for Uplifting Gourmandisers," Kristal began booking punk acts due to lack of interest from anyone else. Gentrification in the late '90s caused rent on the property to skyrocket, peaking at $65,000/month shortly after Kristal's eviction.

Yet to find a new tennant, the boarded-up storefront is spray-painted with farewell messages. "There were also a dozen candles, two bunches of flowers and a foam rubber baseball bat - an apparent tribute to the Ramones' classic 'Beat on the Brat,'" notes the AP.

Kristal is survived by his daughter, Lisa Kristal Burgman, son Mark Dana Kristal, son-in-law Ger Burgman, two grandchildren and ongoing worldwide sales of CBGB merchandise.

Related links:
CBGB.com
CBGB on MySpace
Gadfly interview with Hilly Kristal

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