Hundreds paid their respects to Johnny Ramone at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery
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On Saturday night, hundreds flocked to the Hollywood Forever Cemetery to honor guitar legend Johnny Ramone.

In 2004, Ramone died after a five-year battle with prostate cancer. Every year on his birthday, there has been a fundraiser for the Johnny Ramone Research Fund at USC Westside Prostate Cancer Center.

The Ramones working-class, Queens upbringing is what made their music so relatable. From what I've heard from my parents, the Ramones' sound represented an alternative to the decadence of the disco era. They created a new genre of music, one that Tommy Ramone said was "30 years ahead of its time."
 
To say I was excited to cover this event is an understatement.

After I got my press pass and parked, I noticed that this night wasn't like any other night at Hollywood Forever, which is hardly a standard cemetery. On Saturday nights during the summer, they show classic movies on the mausoleum wall, while people picnic on the lawn. It's a cool place to catch a movie, but on this Saturday night, the atmosphere was even more electric.

There was a tent to play video games, a booth selling Johnny Ramone swag, a food and beverage booth and an art display that featured the work of original bassist Dee Dee Ramone.

Two movies were to be shown: the Ramones concert film 'It's Alive' from 1978 and a colorized, 3-D version of Johnny's favorite film, 'The Night of the Living Dead." According to his wife Linda, Johnny was a horror movie aficionado. "He had over 200 horror movie posters in the house," said indie filmmaker Vincent Gallo, one of Johnny's closest friends.

The atmosphere at the cemetery was like a rock concert.

Former band member C.J. Ramone and original drummer Tommy Ramone were on hand to sign autographs for the hundreds of fans who showed up. When asked about the success of the event, Tommy said, "this is something Johnny definitely planned before he died. He was always 15 steps ahead of everyone."

Also on hand were many members of the Ramones "family" including P.J. Soles (who played the lead character in the Ramones-inspired film, 'Rock 'n' Roll High School'), Rose McGowan, Rosanna Arquette and the incomparable Gallo.

At one point, as I was walking towards Johnny's grave, I noticed a slightly disheveled guy giving an interview to a broadcast crew. Not knowing who he was, I asked a bystander, Ryan Ginley (who came from Memphis for the event), who told me it was Vincent Gallo.

As I was nudging up to try to get an interview with the acclaimed director, Ginley approached Gallo and suddenly I was in the right place at the right time to hear a classic story about Johnny Ramone.

I overheard the conversation between the two and which Ginley confirmed, he bought a replica guitar from the acclaimed director on eBay that Johnny had personally given to Gallo. Ginley bought the guitar for $10,000 and flew from Pennsylvania to meet Johnny at his house in the Hollywood Hills.

For Ginley, it was worth every penny to meet his hero. "I mean come on, how many opportunities would I have to meet Johnny fucking Ramone," he said. "Besides, I had some left over money from a settlement of a car accident, so I thought this was the best way to spend it."

What he didn't know was that Gallo was playing a prank on Johnny. Apparently the guitar was a Christmas gift that he gave to Gallo, who was less than thrilled with the replica guitar, and subsequently put it on the auction site with the promise that the guitar would be signed in person by Johnny. Once the bidding reached four figures, Johnny realized he shouldn't have let his friend put the guitar on eBay. "Johnny didn't know the value of his signature and legacy," Gallo said smiling. "So he felt like I duped him." And he let Gallo know about it for months to come.

 "We would be watching TV and Johnny would be asking me about when he is getting his share of the money," Gallo said with a smile. "That was Johnny alright, never letting anyone forget anything."

After he was done telling the story, the mood became somber. I asked what the event to meant to him and he said, "tonight is a great night, but at the same time it makes me sad because it makes me realize how much I miss my friend."

But, as I was leaving the cemetery, I saw the packed area in front of the screen and watched people were scream as if the band was performing live, and I couldn't help but smile. It felt like a celebration of life.

When I asked his widow, Linda, to describe in two words how Johnny would describe the night, she responded: "fucking cool."