Latest news with #MotownRevue
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Francis Charles ‘Frank' Cicero, former co-owner of Globe Poster Printing, dies
Francis Charles 'Frank' Cicero, co-owner of his family's poster printing business that created a show business buzz with bold black type and fluorescent color, died of heart disease March 7 at his Mays Chapel home. He was 80. His firm, Globe Poster Printing, produced the placards for generations of R&B artists. Its work for the Motown Revue packed the names of the Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Martha and the Vandellas and the Four Tops on sheets of cardboard that found their way onto telephone poles and vacant buildings, creating an effective, but cheap, word-of-mouth sales campaign for the performers. 'Tina Turner used to phone in her orders all the time,' said his brother, Robert J. Cicero Sr. 'Our posters were a cheaper way of advertising, especially for artists on their way up.' Born in Baltimore and raised in Parkville, he was the son of Joseph J. Cicero, who bought the poster business in 1975, and his wife Marie. He attended St. Ambrose and Immaculate Heart of Mary schools before graduating from Towson Catholic High School in 1962. He earned a psychology degree from the University of Baltimore. Mr. Cicero worked briefly in his father's poster printing business in the early 1960s but became a worker in the Baltimore City Department of Social Services. There he met his future wife, Debra 'Debbie' Rice. They married in 1975. That year, he joined his father and brothers at Globe Poster, an old Baltimore firm that moved from South Hanover Street to the Candler Building, Byrd Street in South Baltimore and then to Highlandtown. 'Frank worked the front counter and was the epitome of cordiality and helpfulness,' said Milton A. Dugger Jr., a customer. 'In the Black community, his posters spoke loudly. If you didn't have a poster, nobody knew your event would happen. His posters brought life to your affair.' It was not all show business. Over the years Globe Poster announced candidates for city council and summer street carnivals. The late Baltimore Orioles owner Peter G. Angelos used Globe for his 1960s City Council campaign, as did Spiro T. Agnew for his various electoral ambitions. But they were best known for the fluorescent color behind the typefaces for James Brown, Aretha Franklin, B.B. King and Bobby 'Blue' Bland. 'We actually did most of our work for customers out of Baltimore,' said his brother, Robert. 'We worked closely with the clubs in D.C. for the 'Go-Go' funk sound and hip-hop artists. We also worked for rhythm and blues artists in Kansas City, Saint Louis, Louisiana and Texas. We were simply the cheapest form of advertising.' The firm had a minimum order of 50 posters; for a large traveling show, such as the Motown Revue, Globe would produce 5,000 posters, with the name of the performing venue left blank, so that it would be added later. The firm once had eight presses running four hours a day. The posters found their way into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and the National Museum of African American History and Culture. News Obituaries | Anthony McCarthy, former City Hall spokesperson and policy expert, dies at 57 News Obituaries | Kim Domanski, passionate advocate for Baltimore artists, dies News Obituaries | Thomas E. Mullinix Sr., oldest Maryland State trooper, dies News Obituaries | Caitlin Cross-Barnet, a child and maternal health issues specialist, dies News Obituaries | Angela 'Angie' Barmore Huso, Calvert School staff member, dies His wife said Mr. Cicero designed many of the posters from the mid-1970s to 2010, when Globe closed its doors. The family then donated Globe's printing materials to the Maryland Institute College of Art. Mr. Cicero was a student of Baltimore history and a Baltimore Streetcar Museum member. He also cultivated a love for Italian cooking and made meatballs, pasta, and Italian cookies. 'His childhood was full of laughter,' said his daughter, Sarah Cicero. 'He loved to tease. He developed many friendships in youth which remain strong to this day.' Survivors include his wife of more than 49 years, Debra 'Debbie' Rice Cicero, a former social worker who also worked in the family business; three daughters, Sarah Cicero, Julia Cicero and Mary Cicero, all of Baltimore County; a brother, Robert J. Cicero Sr., of Cockeysville; and six grandchildren. A Mass was held March 15 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Towson.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Tony Howard's Revue Concert to benefit Safe Homes of Augusta
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – Four months after Hurricane Helene, many nonprofits in the area are still feeling the impacts the storm left behind. Safe Homes of Augusta is looking to the community for support post-Hurricane Helene. One local legend will bring the tunes to Columbia County with the goal of raising funds for the nonprofit. Like many, the impacts of Hurricane Helene are still lingering for Safe Homes of Augusta. 'Unfortunately, due to the hurricane, we had to cancel our largest annual fundraiser which is 'Fake it to make it…,' Safe Homes of Augusta Development Director Jennifer Frantom said. But while one fundraiser is being put on hold for next year, local legend Tony Howard has a way to support the nonprofit. 'One of the ways that our community is involved, and this is actually an annual event, is the Tony Howard Motown Revue, and this is something we look forward to every year. It's a third-party event for Safe Homes and it will take place, actually, this upcoming Saturday, February 8th at the Columbia County Performing Arts Center,' Frantom said. Frantom says the work they do impacts many. 'One in four women and one in seven men experience domestic violence, physical, domestic violence during their lifetime. And I'm sure that that number goes even higher as a lot of that goes unreported,' she said. Leaders at Safe Homes say it's the community's help that allows them to provide the resources they do. 'It's definitely made this year all the more important for our community to come together and support. So, we've been really fortunate that we've had a lot of individuals and businesses reach out to see how they can help, how they can plug in because everything counts,' Frantom said. Motown Revue tickets are currently on sale for $29 and can be purchased at the performing arts center box office or online here. Doors open at 6 p.m. If you or someone you know is in need of more information from Safe Homes, you can contact their hotline at (706) 736-2499. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
