Tony Martell, whose T.J. Martell Foundation raised more than $270 million for leukemia, cancer and AIDS research, has died at the age of 90. He passed away Sun. Nov. 27 at his home in Madison, NJ.
Martell was a longtime label exec and A&R man who worked with Electric Light Orchestra, Joan Jett, Ozzy Osbourne, Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Isley Brothers and others over a career that spanned from the 1960s to the 1990s; his highest post was president of CBS International Records, Billboard reports.
He launched his foundation in 1975 as a promise to his 19-year-old son T.J., who died after a two-year battle with leukemia. Contributions were given to hospitals across the country for scientific research. The organization ultimately became the music industry’s largest foundation of its type, with an annual ceremony that has been a “longtime staple of the industry calendar,” Billboard wrote.
A statement on the organization’s website says, “Tony’s smile, energy and incredible devotion will be missed beyond words. We will work even harder now to keep his memory and dream alive and one day finding a cure for the diseases that he spent his life fighting. He never gave up on his fight to find a cure for cancer…through his passion, energy and perseverance.”