Set to take place on Halloween of 2012, Black Sabbath founder and riff-master Tony Iommi will be awarded with the “King of Rock’n’Roll Award” at the 2nd annual Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund Awards Gala. Iommi, who is currently undergoing a battle with lymphoma, will be presented the award, alongside other awards to be presented to music industry moguls. The host for the evening’s gala at The Avalon in Hollywood, CA will be Eddie Trunk (“That Metal Show”) with Dio Disciples and Cirque Berzerk providing the entertainment, with more acts to be announced in the coming months.
The Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund is a non-profit charitable fund “dedicated to support cancer prevention research, raise awareness and educate the public with the focus that early detection and prevention is of vital importance.” Set up under the idea of ‘Knowledge Equals Power,’ an overall philosophy of the cancer fund centers on early detection in order for patients to properly fight and overcome the disease. According to their website, the funds gathered amount to “over $450,000 and have donated over $281,000 to cancer charities, including $117,000 to the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and $100,000 to the T.J. Martel Foundation.”
Tickets for the event can be purchased on the fund’s website, and begin at $200 per person. Additionally, any visitors to the site wishing to donate money can do so via the provided links on the page, in addition to viewing a video clip from Ronnie’s widow, Wendy Dio, providing a message to potential donors.
