Air Canada walks back new seat selection policy change after backlash
Air Canada has paused a new seat selection fee for travellers booked on the lowest fares just days after implementing it.
The white paint is scratched off and worn away along the sides of Johnny Ramone's electric guitar, the one he used on stage for nearly 20 years to make some of punk rock's most distinctive chords with the legendary Ramones.
But it's no wonder. Johnny Ramone was known for his fast downstroke chords -- he never strummed upward -- and he played them aggressively on that guitar until the day he retired in 1996.
The black and white Mosrite guitar is now up for auction along with other punk memorabilia, including Johnny's early on-stage amp and a set of his bandmate Joey's microphones. They were collected over the years by a close friend of the band, musician and songwriter Daniel Rey.
Ramone, who was born John Cummings, bought the 1965 Mosrite Ventures II guitar in 1977. After that, he played it in every Ramones performance for the next two decades -- about 1,985 shows, according to the auction house, RR Auction. It was also used on all 15 of the band's albums from that time period, the auction house says.
"Most guitarists have dozens of guitars they play and they change over different tours every year," Rey told CNN. "Johnny used the same guitar from Day One to the end, and I think that's kind of unique."
And the guitar still plays "perfectly," Rey said. "It's indestructible. It played 2,000 shows with the Ramones, so it can handle anything."
The Ramones kicked off the punk rock movement in New York in the 1970s with their fast beat, short songs and loud guitar riffs immediately recognizable from such songs as "Blitzkrieg Bop," "Sheena is a Punk Rocker" and "I Wanna Be Sedated."
The band members adopted the surname Ramone, along with the same look of black leather jackets, canvas shoes, jeans and long dark hair over their faces.
They were practically the house band at the famed New York club CBGB, where they were joined by other legendary acts of the era like Television and the Patti Smith Group.
The signed amplifier from the auction was used by Johnny in some of the Ramones' early CBGB shows, in 1974 and 1975, RR Auctions says. And while it was only used in those first years -- Rey said the band bought new amps as soon as they got a record contract -- the amp would have blared a signature sound.
"That really introduced the world to the brutality of the Ramones' guitar sound, which was the beautiful balance of the pop sensibility -- the Beach Boys' (type of) pop -- and the brutal guitar sound which made the magic happen," Rey said.
He recalled how Johnny, who died in 2004, never liked to play minor chords, though he would if he had to.
"Joey would write songs that had minor chords in it sometimes," Rey said, "and Johnny would always refer to them as 'those funny chords.' He'd say to me, 'Daniel, Joey's song has one of those funny chords in it, doesn't it?'"
The auction is scheduled for September 25 at RR Auction in Boston, and online bidding is already open.
The four original members of the Ramones are gone now -- Joey Ramone, born Jeffrey Hyman, died in 2001, and bassist Dee Dee Ramone, born Douglas Colvin, died a year later. Drummer Tommy Ramone, real name Tom Erdelyi, died in 2014.
Rey said the time just felt right to sell the items and share them with other fans. And he said he's not surprised at the interest: "The Ramones are the greatest band of all time."
Air Canada has paused a new seat selection fee for travellers booked on the lowest fares just days after implementing it.
An ongoing municipal strike, court battles and revolt by half of council has prompted the province to oust the mayor and council in Black River-Matheson.
Three officers on a U.S. Marshals Task Force serving a warrant for a felon wanted for possessing a firearm were killed and five other officers were wounded in a shootout Monday at a North Carolina home, police said.
A Calgary elementary school principal has been charged with possession of child pornography, authorities announced Monday.
The Vancouver Island Health Authority is downplaying what staff describe as a cockroach infestation in a medical unit of Saanich Peninsula Hospital.
Toronto police say 12 people are facing a combined 102 charges in connection with an investigation into a major credit fraud scheme.
One of the winners of a historic US$1.3 billion Powerball jackpot last month is an immigrant from Laos who has had cancer for eight years and had his latest chemotherapy treatment last week.
Britney Spears and her father Jamie Spears will avoid what could have been a long, ugly and revealing trial with a settlement of the lingering issues in the court conservatorship that controlled her life and financial decisions for nearly 14 years.
The clock is ticking ahead of the deadline to file a 2023 income tax return. A personal finance expert explains why you should get them done -- even if you owe more than you can pay.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.
The lawyer for a residential school survivor leading a proposed class-action defamation lawsuit against the Catholic Church over residential schools says the court action is a last resort.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.