Johnny Cash is a Friend of Mine
At age 20, Henry Vaccaro's passion for all things construction lead him to establish, The Henry V. Vaccaro Corporation, in his Jersey Shore hometown of Asbury Park, New Jersey. Through decades of hard work and dedication, his company thrived and he found himself as one of New Jersey's premier contractors, building over $ 1 Billion worth of projects.  Fate brought Vaccaro to develop his own warehouse industrial park in nearby Neptune, which soon housed the newly-formed Kramer Guitar Company. With Vaccaro’s investment and guidance, Kramer became the leading American-made guitar manufacturer in the world through the 1980’s with endorsements from Rock and Roll greats Eddie Van Halen, Bon Jovi and Motley Crue and top country artists Hank Williams JR ,The Oak Ridge Boys, Kenny Rogers and the band behind his idol, Johnny Cash's Tennessee Three. Through this introduction Cash would become a close friend to Vaccaro for decades to come. This friendship lead to business partnerships and fishing trips, as they purchased and restored the Berkeley Carteret Hotel in Asbury Park. The families often went to Bimini in the Bahamas for Big Game Fishing. Their hotel opened to rave reviews and won numerous awards and  jump started Asbury Park's Beachfront Redevelopment which Vaccaro spearheaded. While their friendship flourished, in  the late 1980’s the real estate market crash left Vaccaro bankrupt. With Johnny’s support, Vaccaro eventually returned to church and back to his first love, construction, now demolishing the deserted, distressed buildings of the past to clear the way for Asbury Park's new beachfront development. Vaccaro, perhaps almost single-handed, brought Asbury Park back to life once again, decades later working tirelessly behind the scenes negotiating a new redevelopment deal affording both the man and the city a second chance. Vaccaro after losing Kramer Guitar from a failed venture with the famous Jackson Family, prevailed in court, that resulted in Vaccaro obtaining the largest collection of Michael Jackson memorabilia in the world including rare master recordings, photographs, and films. Today Vaccaro’s passion leads him to visit World War II battlefield sites around the world to pay  homage to those who have fought and died for his country; the home that allowed him to become a successful businessman, sport fisherman, contractor, father, equipment operator, Johnny Cash fan, patriot and history buff and now author with "Johnny Cash is a friend of Mine"