Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono

 Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono (February 16, 1935 – January 5, 1998)

He came to fame in partnership with his second wife Cher, as the popular singing duo Sonny & Cher. He was also mayor of Palm Springs, California from 1988 to 1992, and congressman for California's 44th district from 1994 until his death in a skiing accident while still in office. Bono began his music career working at Specialty Records where his song "Things You Do to Me" was recorded by Sam Cooke, and went on to work for the record producer Phil Spector in the early 1960s as a promotion man, percussionist and "gofer". One of his earliest songwriting efforts was "Needles and Pins" which he co-wrote with Jack Nitzsche, another member of Spector's production team. Later in the same decade, he achieved commercial success, along with his then-wife Cher, as part of the singing duo Sonny and Cher. Bono wrote, arranged, and produced a number of hit records with singles like "I Got You Babe" and "The Beat Goes On", although Cher received more attention as a performer. He also played a major part in Cher's early solo career with recordings such as "Bang Bang" and "You Better Sit Down Kids". Sonny continued to work with Cher through the early and mid-1970s starring in a popular television variety show, The Sonny and Cher Show, which ran on CBS from 1971 to 1974. From 1976 to 1977, the couple returned to performing together on The Sonny and Cher Show despite being divorced.

Bono entered politics after experiencing great frustration with local government bureaucracy in trying to open a restaurant in Palm Springs, California. Bono placed a successful bid to become the new mayor of Palm Springs. He served four years (1988 to 1992).He was instrumental in spearheading the creation of the Palm Springs International Film Festival, which is held each year in Bono's memory. Bono was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1994 to represent California's 44th congressional district. Sonny Bono died on January 5, 1998, of injuries sustained when he hit a tree while skiing on the Nevada side of Heavenly Ski Resort near South Lake Tahoe, California. He is buried at Desert Memorial Park in Cathedral City, CA