On This Date (April 1, 2008) Sam Gesser / Canadian Concert Producer
themusicsover Sam Gesser
January 7, 1930 – April 1, 2008
Sam Gesser was a Canadian concert promoter who brought the likes of Joan Baez, Pete Seeger and Janis Joplin to Montreal in the ‘60s. With a career that spanned over 50 years, Gesser started as radio and television writer, later joining the Folkways label as their Canadian representative. While with Folkways, he produced over 100 albums. He switched to concert promotion in the ‘60s and produced shows and tours by Harry Belafonte, Van Cliburn, Peter, Paul & Mary, Janis Joplin, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger and many more. Gessar died of cancer on April 2, 2008 at the age of 78.
Selena Quintanilla was a Texas-born Tejano star who was quickly becoming a worldwide superstar when her life was tragically cut short. Known simply as Selena, she began building a following within the Spanish-speaking community in and around the Houston area in the mid ’80s and by 1987, she was at the top of her field when she won Best Female Vocalist at the Tejano Music Awards which she would continue to rule over the next several years. Signed to EMI Records in the States, Selena was soon being groomed to cross over much the same way Gloria Estefan had before her. By the early ’90s, Selena was approaching superstar status, designing her own clothing line, opening boutiques in Texas and appearing in Spanish novellas and alongside Johnny Depp, Faye Dunaway and Marlon Brando in Don Juan DeMarco. In 1994, her Amor Prohibido was nominated for a Grammy, and she began work on an English language album. And by 1995, she was drawing upwards of 65,000 to her concerts in Texas. Around this time, her family discovered that Yolanda Saldivar, the president of her fan club and manager of one of her clothing stores was embezzling from the company. After being fired, Saldivar agreed to meet Selena at her hotel in Corpus Christi to return some financial paperwork. Instead, Saldivar shot Selena in the back as she was exiting the room. She died later that day.
Caresse Henry was an artist manager who helped guide Madonna’s career for several years. After parting ways with her in 2004, Henry went on to serve as manager for the likes of Joss Stone, Ricky Martin, Jessica Simpson, Andrew Dice Clay and Paula Abdul. Caresse Henry was 44 when she died suddenly on March 31, 2010. Cause of death was not immediately released.