Jon and Marsha Zazula’s Private Rock Collection Is Ready For Auction
Metallica's history and success will forever be tied to the lives of Jon and Marsha Zazula.
Jonny and Marsha Z founded Megaforce Records together in 1982. Among many, many other accolades, they are credited with, essentially, discovering Metallica. Or at the very least, they were the ones who loved what they heard on Metallica's No Life 'Til Leather demo tape and they knew the rest of the world would love it, too.
Megaforce would go on to release Kill 'Em All and Ride the Lightning.
Marsha passed away on Jan. 10, 2021, and nearly one exact year later, her husband and partner followed. Now, about six months after the world said goodbye to Jonny Z, The Zazula Estate has announced an auction that culls from the metal legends' personal, private collection.
There are dozens of items that will be auctioned off online, from Anthrax's original 1988 "Not Man" mascot head to a portrait of Jonny Z painted by Ministry's Al Jourgensen. The collection covers many other bands, including the Grateful Dead, Anvil, King's X, Kiss, Raven, Testament and Venom.
The auction also features some collectibles from the Zazula's record store, Rock N' Roll Heaven, as well as a few things from their label. The Zazulas were also known as experts, fans and collectors of all things related to The Nightmare Before Christmas, so there are plenty of things related to the movie found in this collection, too.
For Metallica fans, there are some unbelievable mementos that will be part of the estate auction, including Jonny Z's personal copy of the Megaforce pressing of Kill 'Em All, a button and pin from their '83 Kill 'Em All tour, an invoice from 1984 that features Metallica's U.K. booking agency and the RIAA-certified gold video award for Metallica's Cliff 'Em All presented to Jonny Z. There are plenty of photos, a "Creeping Death" cassette tape, some magazines and even a U-Haul truck "Metalli-key" that will all be up for grabs, too.
The preview for the auction is live now. The auction will open on Friday Sept. 2 and closes on Sunday Sept. 11. You can find details on how to bid, understand the auction process and get more information on what items are being offered at BackstageAuctions.com.