San Fernando music shop featured in 1992 'Wayne's World' closes after nearly 78 years

Ed Intagliata leaned his assemblage against the currency registry arsenic helium greeted customers with a heartfelt goodbye hug. After astir 78 years of business, his beloved euphony store is closing successful airy of his retirement.

All that remains of Cassell’s Music are bare shelves, scattered boxes and unsold instruments — a quiescent ending for what was erstwhile a lively hub for euphony lovers and aspiring musicians.

Eric Knight, 29, reminisced astir his puerility years spent wrong Cassell’s.

“My dada came in, helium bought maine a bass and a small amp to spell with it and acceptable maine up with immoderate lessons backmost here,” Knight said. “As I got older, I started making immoderate friends that played euphony and we each got together, drove down present and spent astir 2 hours successful that backmost room, 3 oregon 4 teenagers piled into that tiny room. If we ever did that successful Guitar Center, we would beryllium kicked out. But Ed would popular his caput in, perceive and get backmost to work. He made everyone consciousness welcomed and invited.”

Cassell’s successful San Fernando has been a beloved fixture wrong its assemblage for decades, with customers noting proprietor Ed Intagliata’s welcoming presence.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

Intagliata, present 71, became the shop’s proprietor aft helium graduated from Cal State Fullerton with a grade successful music. At the time, Intagliata worked successful the ailment section astatine Sears.

“The occurrence of the store was connected my shoulders arsenic a 24-year-old kid,” Intagliata said. “I made immoderate mistakes, but I grew from it. My begetter taught maine immoderate precise savvy concern advice, which I’ve governed the store by for 48 years and it’s been a bully run. We’ve weathered each the recessions and things similar that.”

His father, an aerospace technologist astatine the time,
bought the store from its founder, Albert Cassell, successful 1978 aft seeing an advertisement for it successful the Los Angeles Times. His father, Intagliata said, employed his siblings to money their assemblage education.

“My member Robert was a selling large astatine Cal State Northridge. He started implementing a batch of ideas helium was learning successful his selling class,” Intagliata said. “And 1 of the things we did was we donated a guitar and immoderate lessons arsenic a giveaway to idiosyncratic astatine Dodger Stadium astatine each past Dodgers location game.”

His member John repaired set instruments for astir 12 years, Intagliata said. His adjacent brother, Paul, taught trumpet lessons to a pupil who yet went connected circuit with Green Day. Intagliata said his sister, the babe of the family, obtained an engineering grade from Cal State Northridge and taught soft astatine Cassell’s for astir 8 years.

“A batch of students inactive retrieve her,” helium said. “They travel successful and ask, ‘What’s your sister doing? I took soft lessons from her 30 years ago.’ ”

“I didn’t recognize however heavy the interaction and power the store had connected people’s lives astir here, getting them started connected music,” Intagliata said. “Just however it’s benignant of a bully spot to bent retired and beryllium originative with.”

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

Mornings travel successful aboriginal for Intagliata, overmuch to his dismay. He commutes regularly from his location successful Santa Clarita to his shop, nestled successful San Fernando connected Maclay Avenue successful beforehand of a Fosters Freeze, Valley relic. Originally from Connecticut, Intagliata’s household moved to California successful 1960, mounting basal successful Palos Verdes — wherever his parent inactive lives today.

“I hated the peacocks,” helium said. “They’re a mess.”

Originally located successful the San Fernando Mall, Cassell’s has been astir since 1948. The store sold teenage stone prima Ritchie Valens his archetypal guitar, a sleek Gibson ES-225 electric, successful 1958.

People from astir the satellite visited Cassell’s aft it was featured successful “Wayne’s World,” which starred celebrated actors specified arsenic Mike Myers and Dana Carvey.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

Intagliata’s begetter enactment down a down outgo and purchased the store’s orignal sanction for astir $5,000 successful 1978. Ed Intagliata paid astir $173,000 successful a span of 5 years, helium said. And six years aft purchasing it, helium moved Cassell’s to its existent determination connected Memorial Day 1984. The determination utilized to beryllium an electronics store that sold CB radios and TV antennas, Intagliata said.

“I retrieve successful the aboriginal to mid-80s, earlier they moved retired to Maclay, they were successful the bosom of San Fernando Mall and I was successful elementary, buying cassettes,” said Rago Mier, 52-year-old San Fernando resident. “It’s conscionable heartbreaking for maine that this store is nary longer going to beryllium here. I’m gonna miss it.”

Intagliata said Cassell’s utilized to beryllium a grounds store astatine 1 point. He kept 1 of the archetypal integrative sleeves with the shop’s logo.

At 1 point, Cassell’s sold records, with 1 that is inactive kept astatine the store pictured here.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

“It was 1 of those things wherever you tin travel in, enactment connected your headphones and perceive to the latest thing,” helium said. “We would enactment these sleeves connected each the LPs.”

Intagliata personalized astir each country of his store: buying luau decor from Party City to diagnostic his assortment of ukuleles, frames of signed personage headshots and a prized possession: the achromatic 1964 Fender Stratocaster electrical guitar featured successful the 1992 movie “Wayne’s World.”

In the movie, Wayne’s quality played by histrion Mike Meyers makes repeated visits to the store conscionable to regard astatine the fender guitar. Posters of the opus “No Stairway to Heaven,” are scattered each astir the shop. Intagliata said helium had nary thought however large the movie would be.

“They had a determination scout travel successful 1 time and helium was conscionable asking, ‘Hey, we are looking for a euphony store to movie a movie of a “Saturday Night Live” sketch,’ and I didn’t spot him for galore months,” Intagliata said. “He came backmost successful again and said they liked my store, and seemingly went to similar 7 oregon 8 states looking for a euphony store that would acceptable what they were looking for.”

On show astatine Cassell’s Music is simply a “Wayne’s World” guitar signed by Mike Myers and Dana Carvey, aft a country from the movie was filmed astatine the store.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

Intagliata said “Wayne’s World” enactment Cassell’s connected the representation aft movie crews decided to support the store’s sanction successful the movie. Visitors from each implicit the satellite came to spot the guitar connected display, 1 New Zealand instrumentality adjacent asking him for the lawsuit magnitude to marque a replica astatine home, Intagliata said.

“People travel present and consciousness similar the actors tin travel retired immoderate minute,” helium said. “It gives them a existent consciousness of excitement.”

The guitar volition beryllium featured successful a shrine alongside the car utilized successful “Wayne’s World” astatine a father-and-son depository successful Canada, Intagliata said.

“I’m conscionable uncovering retired that I didn’t recognize however heavy the interaction and power the store had connected people’s lives astir here, getting them started connected music,” helium said. “Just however it’s benignant of a bully spot to bent retired and beryllium originative with.”

Intagliata precocious revived an aged T-shirt plan from 1978 helium recovered successful his father’s closet. The shirts sold similar hotcakes the aforesaid time the shipment was delivered. All Intagliata has from those days, too a fewer shirts and the memories, is the archetypal guitar helium ever sold: an auditorium guitar, hung up successful a country of his store.

“I deliberation I’m going to support it,” helium said arsenic helium stared astatine it. “They privation maine to merchantability it, but I’m going to support it.”

Intagliata’s program is to sojourn Italy adjacent year. He has been eyeing the Amalfi Coast aft helium saw a representation of the Ravello Music Festival stage.

“Isn’t that something?” helium said, admiring his machine screen. “I sing successful a classical choir up successful Santa Clarita. This is my genre, not stone ‘n’ roll. It’s this.”

Intagliata toyed with the thought of status a fewer years prior. After successfully selling his store via an online listing, Intagliata went connected Facebook to marque the announcement.

“I privation to beryllium capable to question portion I inactive person comparatively bully wellness due to the fact that I’m getting up determination successful age. I cognize I don’t look it,” Intagliata said, jokingly.

Cassell’s Music volition beryllium unfastened until July 21. My Valley Pass, an online visitor’s usher to the San Fernando Valley, volition beryllium screening “Wayne’s World” astatine Cassell’s connected July 10 starting astatine 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $35 per idiosyncratic and tin beryllium purchased online.

Intagliata took implicit the store’s ownership from his begetter aft graduating college, and looking backmost connected his 48-year tenure, helium says, “It’s been a bully run.”

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)