Starwood Contact Talks About Dom’s Demise At Nash’s


I was going to wait until Monday before dropping a new post, since the interview with Nils Grevillius was so top notch, but this is too juicy. I asked Lee from the Starwood to give me some more of the scoop and boy did he deliver. Thanks Lee!  He is also writing a book about his life in Rock. Everyone is writing a damn book, even Julia Negron. I better get off my ass!

This Dominic kid was the young man whom Nils and I talked about in the interview, and whose death sparked the second raid on Nash’s house in November of 1981. I had speculated that this kid was mafia connected, only because he and his family were all born in Italy and were still Italian citizens upon his death, according to public records.

The old Starwood manager, Gary Fontenot, is dead too.

Here’s what Lee had to say:

Ok then. Dominic was the soundman at the Starwood. Not a bad job at ALL! Hobnobbin with the Rock-stars and all the ‘Perks’ that come along with that sort of access. Now the Wonderland thing was the dark ugly thing that I really had nothing to do with. I was more involved with the Starwood and the Rock n Roll side. I certainly knew all it seems were involved with that terrible thing, and heard it all out of the mouths of  those same people.

Dominic ‘s best friend was Micheal Mazzechelli. Dom’s G/F was Desi. They all originally came from Danbury Conn. After the Starwood closed not long after the crime (Wonderland). Everyone who worked there scattered. Fear was in the air. Dom and Mike and Des all went back to Conn. but who can stay away long from the scene we lived in? I myself went to work at the Troubadour after the Starwood. I’m sure that Dom and Micheal were certain that they could come back after a few months. Things had calmed down. They all 3 of ’em came back in Dom’s red van and tried to set up shop.  Things were tough though. Not many people were really looking for sound guy’s who were willing to pay what they were used to making. I was after all only 17 at the time and willing to work for CHEAP!  Gary Fontenot (Starwood mgr) made a call on my behalf to Doug Weston and I got lighting work for I think it was $20.00 a night. Dom and Mike couldn’t do that cause they were used to a LOT more. Ed Nash was good to us all.

So Dom and Des and Mazzechelli were broke and addicted to coke then evicted from their motel room and so it goes same old story. So the Danbury crowd stayed in the van in Fontenots driveway (in Studio City) for a 2 or 3 weeks. Everyone was partying and what not.  Gary set up Dom with an Colombian dealer named Orlando (Not the same person as the Orlando who did ‘buisness’ with Ed). Gary was trying to get them a situation to get them out of the driveway. Dom got fronted 4 oz’s and it got smoked up. They only let me have a couple of hit’s cause the drug is like that and their excuse was cause I was so young. Ed pulled that same crap with me later. C”mon guy’s! They knew how tough I was.  Assholes.  Anyhoo, when Dom and Micheal couldn’t come up with the money, They tried to tell the Colombian that the coke had been “Poison” and they just flushed it.    Well,,,,,   This did not go over very well with the dealer.  Nor with Gary. I watched Gary kicking that red van and throwing stuff around untill they left. Gary was good with histrionics.   Tell you what John..  It’s late and I’m tired. So do you want me to keep this up?? I Don’t know anything about East Coast mobsters. Dom and Mike and Desi were guido-trash pretty much.  I Know that Dom’s Mother actually Bronzed his bass guitar after his death. Just like baby-shoes. Then hung it over the fireplace.  And Dominic couldn’t play that thing for shit!!!   Truth is truly stranger! In a day or two I’ll tell you how Dom ended up living at Ed’s. and his unfortunate demise. Now why dont you give me something??  I’ll leave it up to your imagination..    Boy the Colombian did not take it well. The 1st time I ever heard an automatic weapon fired. A REAL Machine gun. Bullets flew everywhere. 10 minutes later the phone rang.  The Hispanic voice said: ‘Give that frog-faced fucker my message”  I’ll tell you the rest (maybe) soon Goodnight.