ZAMBELLI FIREWORKS July 4th shows will go on without family patriarch

The company that bears his name will put on about 1,700 shows this weekend.
NEW CASTLE, Pa. (AP) -- George Zambelli Sr. would often turn his back on the spectacular pyrotechnic shows he put on as patriarch of one of America's first families of fireworks. He preferred to watch the crowd's reaction.
But this Fourth of July, his family and Zambelli Fireworks Internationale will be producing the oohs and ahhs without him. Zambelli died Dec. 25 at 79.
Zambelli Fireworks will be putting on more than 1,700 pyrotechnic displays from coast to coast this weekend. All the shows will be dedicated to the man known as "Boom Boom" and "Mr. Fireworks."
And in nearby Pittsburgh, the company will hold a memorial featuring his favorite songs and fireworks shells, including one that bursts into a giant purple heart.
George Zambelli was a pioneer of choreographed fireworks shows and also helped make them more than a once-a-year affair. He joined the mom-and-pop business after college in the 1940s and turned it into one of the largest and most recognizable names in the pyrotechnic industry. The company grew from 12 shows a year to more than 3,500.
Zambelli Fireworks, one of the big five American fireworks companies, puts on the large Thunder Over Louisville show that has opened the Kentucky Derby Festival for 14 years. It has also produced displays for every president since John F. Kennedy.
History
Zambelli learned about pyrotechnics from his father, Antonio, who immigrated to the United States from Caserta, Italy, in 1893. After graduating from Duquesne University business school, George Zambelli decided to work in the family business.
All of Zambelli's five children play some role in the business.
Julie Heckman, executive director of the American Pyrotechnics Association of America, in Bethesda, Md., said George Zambelli will be remembered most for his marketing ability: "George was very good at branding his company name. So 'Zambelli' means something."
Gianni DeVincent Hayes, author of the 2003 book "Zambelli: First Family of Fireworks," said Zambelli took a great interest in fireworks safety, made the vibrant colors used in fireworks today and also pioneered the use of choreography and computers.
At Zambelli's funeral in January, the family honored him the best way they knew how: with a rare, daytime fireworks show in his hometown of New Castle, followed by a 25-minute nighttime tribute.
He is buried in a hilltop mausoleum between the company headquarters and the fireworks plant that turns out chrysanthemums, comets, crossettes and other pyrotechnic shells.
At the Pittsburgh celebration Sunday, Zambelli's widow, Constance, plans to watch. But most of the other family members will have traveled to other cities, making sure the shows go on.