BILLY SAVAGE WAS BORN IN ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA IN 1964. HE STARTED
RIDING BICYCLES WHILE STILL IN DIAPERS.
As BMX BIKES TOOK OVER SUBURBAN ORANGE COUNTY, BILLY BUILT TRAILS AND JUMPS WITH HIS PRIENDS. DIVIDING HIS TIME BETWEEN BMX AND SKATEBOARDS, BILLY SPENT MANY HOURS IN THE
HOSPITAL WAITING ROOMS OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
BILLY MOVED TO NOVATO, IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA’S MARIN COUNTY IN 1976. HE CONTINUED TO RIDE BMX BIKES AND SKATEBOARDS IN HIS NEW ENVIRONMENT. IN 1977, AFTER CRUSHING AN ELBOW IN AN EMPTY SWIMMING POOL WHILE SKATEBOARDING, BILLY DECIDED TO MAKE BIKES HIS MAIN FOCUS. THE TRAILS OF BIG ROCK AND MOUNT BURDELL BECKONED AND BILLY OFTEN SPENT ENTIRE DAYS PUSHING HIS 20-INCH BMX BIKE UP THE FIRE ROADS BEHIND HIS HOUSE. BILLY BOUGHT HIS FIRST MOUNTAIN BIKE, A SPECIALIZED STUMPJUMPER, IN HIS SENIORYEAR OF HIGH SCHOOL, IN 1983.
BILLY’S FIRST JOB OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL WAS FOR SKYWALKER DEVELOPMENT, GEORGE LUCAS’S CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, AT THE SKYWALKER RANCH. BILLY OFTEN RODE HIS BICYCLE TO THE RANCH. WHILE THERE, BILLY GOT HIS FIRST TASTE OF WORKING ON FILMS AND TELEVISION PROJECTS SUCH AS EWOKS: THE BATTLE FOR ENDOR AND HOWARD THE DUCK. ADMITTEDLY NOT MR. LUCAS’S FINEST WORKS, BILLY WAS UNDETERRED. HE LEFT SKYWALKER IN 1986 TO WORK FOR TOP MODELS AND TALENTS IN SAN FRANCISCO AS TALENT AND AS AN AGENT’S ASSISTANT, AND LATER FOR JIMMY GRIMME AGENCY. DURING THIS PERIOD, HE ALSO FOUND WORK AS A PRODUCTION ASSISTANT FOR VARITEL VIDEO IN SAN FRANCISCO AND MAGNETIC IMAGE IN MILL VALLEY.
WORKING ODD JOBS AROUND PRODUCTIONS IN SAN FRANCISCO EVENTUALLY LED HIM TO WORK FOR ROCK AND ROLL IMPRESARIO BILL GRAHAM. IN AN INTERESTING COINCIDENCE, BILLY WAS LIVING TAT THE TIME IN BILL GRAHAM’S OLD ART ROCK POSTER FACTORY, A CONVERTED WARE-HOUSE IN SAN FRANCISCO’S SOUTH OF MARKET DISTRICT. THOUGH NOT WORKING ON THE VIDEO/FILM SIDE OF BGP, BILLY ENJOYED THE SHORT HOURS AND BIG MONEY OF WORKING ROCK SHOWS. IN THE LATE 1980S THROUGH EARLY 1991, BILLY GOT TO WORK SHOWS WITH THE ROLLING STONES, THE WHO, PAUL MCCARTNEY, THE GRATEFUL DEAD AND 100S OF OTHERS.
ON THE COLD AND RAINY NIGHT OF OCTOBER 25TH, 1991, BILLY
GOT THE NIGHT OFF WORK TO HAVE DINNER AND SPEND EVENING WITH HIS PARENTS IN NOVATO. MARIN COUNTY NATIVES HUEY LEWIS AND THE NEWS WERE PLAYING THE CONCORD PAVILION, A SMALL AMPHI- THEATER ON THE EAST SIDE OF SAN FRANCISCO BAY. AFTER HIS PARENTS HAD GONE TO BED, BILLY WATCHED TELEVISION ALONE, WHEN, SOMETIME AFTER 11:00 PM. THE POWER WENT OUT. A HELICOPTER HAD FLOWN INTO AN UNMARKED POWER LINE OFF OF THE
SIDE OF HWY 37, LESS THAN THREE MILES FROM THE HOUSE. IT WASN’T
UNTIL THE FOLLOWING DAY THAT IT WAS ANNOUNCED THAT THE CRASH
INVOLVED BILL GRAHAM, STEVE KAHN, AND MELISSA GOLD (GRAHAM’S GIRLFRIEND). BILLY MOVED TO LOS ANGELES SHORTLY THEREAFTER.
AFTER ARRIVING IN LOS ANGELES 1992, BILLY LANDED A JOB WORKING FOR SHAPIRO ENTERTAINMENT, INC. DURING HIS TENURE AT SHAPIRO ENTERTAINMENT BILLY HAS HELPED DEVELOP TELEVISION PROJECTS FOR CBS, NBC, ABC AND FOX. IN ADDITION, BILLY HAS DEVELOPED FEATURE FILM PROJECTS FOR FOX
SEARCHLIGHT, ARTISAN ENTERTAINMENT,
BLOCKBUSTER ENTERTAINMENT AND PALM PICTURES.
KLUNKERZ IS BILLY’S FIRST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE.
