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All the United States Ohio Cleveland Grave of Alan Freed

Grave of Alan Freed

A jukebox headstone marks the grave of the Cleveland disc jockey credited with coining the term “rock 'n' roll."

Cleveland, Ohio

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Thomas Harper
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Alan Freed memorial at Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland.   Tim Evanson
The jukebox design was suggested by Steven Van Zandt.   Thomas Harper
Steven Van Zandt at the dedication of the memorial in Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, 2016.   Tim Evanson
Grave of Alan Freed   Thomas Harper
Alan Freed was so popular he even had a bubble gum card.   1957 Topps Gum Cards
The Jukebox side of Alan Freed’s grave.   Jamie Fellrath / Atlas Obscura User
  gingr777 / Atlas Obscura User
The story of Alan agreed   Jamie Fellrath / Atlas Obscura User
  michaelamiller / Atlas Obscura User
  SemiruralYeti / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Known as the "father of rock 'n' roll," Cleveland's own Alan Freed was the disc jockey credited with first using the term to describe the emerging music of the early 1950s. As a local radio star and concert promoter, he helped introduce R&B music to the masses during a time of segregation, but the payola scandals of the late 50s would end his musical career, heading Freed into a spiral of alcoholism. He died from cirrhosis of the liver at the young age of 43.

Freed’s influence expanded beyond his Cleveland roots, bringing him at the height of his career to the New York powerhouse station WINS. He featured the music of Bill Haley and the Comets, Little Richard, Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis, catapulting his show to a national audience through syndication. He ended up at the wrong end of the notorious pay-for-play scandal known as “payola” (promoters accepting bribes to play particular records), a charge he denied, but he couldn’t outrun his damaged reputation.

Freed was cremated and initially interred in a Westchester County, New York, mausoleum. His remains were then moved to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame where they stayed for 12 years, and then to his final resting place here at Cleveland's Lake View Cemetery. His new contemporary gravestone tells his story, illustrated with a big ol’ jukebox on the back—a design suggested by musician and Freed fan Steven Van Zandt.

Alan Freed's ashes were re-interred on May 7, 2016, and Van Zandt spoke at the ceremony. As a local boy with wide-spread influence, he is buried near other Cleveland natives: G-Man Eliot Ness and cartoonist Harvey Pekar, and just a short walk from the Haserot Angel.

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Music Memorials Gravestones Cemeteries History Graves

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Follow the white line in the cemetery road to the Wade Chapel. Take the road to the right to the next intersection and look for the jukebox. The above GPS coordinates will take you virtually to the spot.

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Added By

thomasharper

Edited By

MagnumPI, Jamie Fellrath, michaelamiller, SemiruralYeti...

  • MagnumPI
  • Jamie Fellrath
  • michaelamiller
  • SemiruralYeti
  • gingr777

Published

April 17, 2017

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Sources
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Freed
  • http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2016/05/alan_freed_father_of_rock.html
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcEnxdDSN6E
Grave of Alan Freed
12500 Forest Hill Ave
Cleveland, Ohio, 44112
United States
41.514125, -81.592822
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The Haserot Angel

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