Ahmet Ertegün (July 31, 1923 – December 14, 2006) was the Turkish American co-founder and executive of Atlantic Records and chairman of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and museum, described as "one of the most significant figures in the modern recording industry". He also co-founded the New York Cosmos soccer team of the North American Soccer League.
2006 injury and death
Aged 83, Ahmet Ertegün was injured after a fall at a Rolling Stones performance in New York on October 29, 2006 for the 60th birthday of former US President Bill Clinton. Ertegün slipped and hit his head backstage. Although he was initially in stable condition, Ertegün soon took a turn for the worse. This announcement was made by Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page during the band’s induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame. Ertegün slipped into a coma and died later, with his family by his side, at New York-Presbyterian Hospital-Weill Cornell Medical Center.
He was buried December 18 in the Garden of Sufi Tekke, Özbekler Tekkesi in Sultantepe, Üsküdar, ?stanbul, next to his brother, his father, and his shaikh great-grandfather ?eyh ?brahim Edhem Efendi, who was once the head of the tekke in his native Turkey. At the garden were hundreds of mourners, including his wife Mica, members of the Ertegün family, Turkish dignitaries and entertainers including Atlantic artist Kid Rock