Dates

• Existence: 1937 - 2020

Biography

Bill Shapiro was five years old, when his uncle gave him a Victrola and a stack of 78 rpm records, sparking his lifelong interest in music. As a teenager, he began collecting jazz and popular records. On January 28,1956 after seeing Elvis Presley debut on the Dorsey Brothers television show, Shapiro’s passion for rock-n-roll was ignited. His interests in a wide variety of music fueled his desire to be a disc jockey and laid the foundation for his long running music program Cyprus Avenue on Kansas City’s public radio station KCUR.

A tax attorney by profession, Shapiro, a native of Kansas City, MO, gave back to the community by volunteering for auctioneering and other fundraising activities for not-forprofit organizations including the Folly Theater, KCPT Kansas City ‘s public television station and KCUR. Following many successful on-air fundraising events he had an opportunity to pitch KCUR a radio show that would focus on an intelligent viewpoint of rock and roll and other genres of music. Originally called Music, the show made its debut on KCUR in October 1978. Shortly thereafter the name of the program changed to Cyprus Avenue after the title of a song by one of his favorite artists Van Morrison.

Once a week for the next forty years, Shapiro shared his passion and insight into music with listeners on Cyprus Avenue. Drawing from his vast CD and record collection, every show featured a different theme or artists. His insight, knowledge and passion for the music attracted a devoted audience. Cypress Avenue quickly became one of the most popular shows on KCUR. At one point, Cyprus Avenue was nationally syndicated airing on over 50 public radio stations in the United States. Shapiro authored “The CD Rock and Roll Library” (1988) and “The Rock and Roll Review” (1991) both published by Andrews McMeel.

In 2006, he launched Cyprus Avenue Live, a concert series featuring artists, many heard on Cyprus Avenue, at the historic Folly Theater in an effort to contribute to the growth of the theater’s revenue and to broaden its audience. Jerry Lee Lewis kicked off the series which went on to include fifty performances by a wide range of artists. Shapiro’s pre-concert talks with featured artists gave keen insight into their lives and careers. In 2018, Shapiro signed off for the last time on Cyprus Avenue and the namesake concert series at the Folly. His volunteer efforts helped to raise over one million dollars for KCUR and over a quarter of a million dollars for the preservation and maintenance of the historic Folly Theater.

Bill Shapiro passed in 2020. His son Anthony and daughter Carin Shapiro Harkness donated his collection of Albums, CD’s, Books and Cyprus Avenue Radio shows to the Marr Sound Archives and LaBudde Special Collections at UMKC in 2021.

Found in 1 Collection or Record: