For my parents' generation, the Kennedy assassination was one of those "I remember where I was when I heard" moments. For people my age, that day came 30 years ago today.
That was the day Mark Chapman murdered John Lennon in cold blood, at point blank range outside Lennon's residence, The Dakota on New York's upper west side.
I remember the shockwaves all the next day at my Brooklyn school, where some kids cried, others sleepwalked through the day in a daze. My brother's high school yearbook -- he graduated that school year -- has a photo of him sitting in one of the hallways reading a copy of the New York Post screaming the grim news across its front page.
I remember my neighbor Anthony Palma sharing his experience, as the first NYPD squad on the scene, loading the bleeding Lennon into his car and trying to reassure Yoko Ono on the way to the hospital.
Growing up in the '70s, I can't imagine a world without the Beatles. They are my classical music, my Elvis, my rock and roll foundation. By the time Lennon was shot, when I was 14, I had been a die-hard Beatles fan for more than five years.
It would have been bad enough to lose Lennon, who was younger then than I am now, to disease or accident. But for him to leave us in such a violent, senseless way shocked not just me, but all of New York, all of America, an entire planet.
I'd like to say that like many early departed rockers, Lennon became mythical in death, but that's not entirely accurate. He was already mythical -- occupying a place above most everyone else of his background and profession -- in life.
It's hard to say what would have become of John had he lived to celebrate his 70th birthday two months ago. I have no doubt that had Mark Chapman not gone to the Dakota that day, we would still revere Lennon as much as we do now.
His was an outspoken voice for peace. His was a talent that was larger than life. That it could all be taken away in a split second by one man reminded us of the fragility of this mortal coil.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
