Marcelo Fromer

Early life and youth

Marcelo Fromer grew up in São Paulo in a house frequently visited by friends like Branco Mello, who he has met in 1974, in the Hugo Sarmento school. When he was 15 years old, he discovered The Beatles, Chico Buarque and the Tropicália, and started having guitar lessons with Luiz Tati, of the group Rumo. While studying at Equipe school, he met Tony Bellotto and formed the Trio Mamão. As he hated singing, he was the only one dedicated exclusively to the acoustic guitar.

Also at Equipe school, he, Mello and other classmates created the "Papagaio" magazine, featuring comics, poetry and texts about the internal decisions of the school. But he would never stop composing and playing. But music was not the only passion of Fromer. Soccer would also play an important role on his life. Trusty supporter of São Paulo, he managed to train for the young team of the club.

Once he finished school, he entered Linguistics at USP together with Mello, but both quit it two years later.

Works with Titãs

In 1981, Titãs made their first performance (under the name Titãs do Iê-Iê) at the event “A Idade da Pedra Jovem”. Fromer became a little excited and decided to play the electric guitar like an acoustic one, without a pick. At the end of the night, his fingers were seriously injured and there was blood at his white Giannini.

In 1984, with the releasing of Titãs first album, Fromer showed that he could also do outstanding works as a businessman, and he was chosen to be the manager the band. Shows, contracts, and all the bureaucratic decisions of the band would be carefully revised and negotiated by him. Another passion of Fromer, which appeared mostly during the first tours of the band, was the gastronomy. He would always choose the restaurants were the group should eat throughout the country. This passion would be clearly cited at the song As Aventuras Do Guitarrista Gourmet Atrás Da Refeição Ideal, featured at Como Estão Vocês?.

His "business-gourmet" life would join each other at Rock Dog (word play with Hot Dog), a snack bar specialized in hot dogs that he opened in 1989, in São Paulo, with the partnership of his brothers Thiago and Cuca, and the band members Mello and Bellotto. In 2000, he became partner of the Campana, a Pizza shop also located in São Paulo. A year before, he showed his gastronomy skills at the book “Você Tem Fome de Quê?”, in which he listed cookery recipes from many restaurants of Brazil, along with tablatures and curiosities of Titãs main hits.

Other works

Fromer left unfinished a biography of former football player and TV commentator Walter Casagrande, his personal friend. The project was resumed in 2008 by Gilvan Ribeiro and released in 2013.

Death

On June 11, 2001, a day before the beginning of the recording of A Melhor Banda de Todos os Tempos da Última Semana, 13th album of the band, Fromer was crossing Europa avenue, southern São Paulo, when a Honda CG125 red motorcycle, piloted by Erasmo Castro da Costa Jr., rammed him. Erasmo called an ambulance, but ran away when the police arrived, fearing being arrested, as his driving license was not valid anymore. Two days later, Fromer died at the hospital. Presumably, his head hit Erasmo's helmet.

In July 2002, Erasmo was found by the police. He said he only got to know that the man he rammed was Fromer when he actually died. He also alleged that Fromer was the responsible for the accident, as there was a crosswalk 15 meters away, but Fromer decided to cross the avenue between the cars, making it impossible for Erasmo to see Fromer.

Fromer's family authorized the donation of his organs. His heart, liver, pancreas, kidneys, and his corneas were all donated.

On September 7, 2001, a skyway named after him was inaugurated over Avenida Juscelino Kubitschek, in São Paulo.

Personal life

Fromer lived in São Paulo. His first marriage with Martha Locatelli Fromer gave him Susy. The second one with Ana Cristina Martinelli, also known as "Tina", gave him Alice and Max.