Anna Hostler

Larry Hostler

ABC Cremation Society

Larry David Hostler, 68, of Rancho Cordova, CA, passed away on August 22, 2023. He was born on December 6, 1954, in Altoona, PA to Sylvester “Larry” and Cleo Hostler.
In 1960 with his parents and two older sisters, Joan and Elaine, they moved to Burbank, CA.
His childhood existed in a San Fernando Valley, full of orange groves and mischief, that’s long since gone. He’d jump on the back of city trolleys to hitch rides around town with his friends Mike and Andre. They regularly snuck into studio backlots to play on the sets. One time the lot security came while they were in the middle of playing outlaws on a western street. Andre ended up getting left behind, still locked in the jail cell, when all the kids scattered.
At age 12 he also snuck onto the player’s bench at the first Super Bowl after his dad dropped him off at the stadium while he went to the horse races.  It was broadcast on live TV and his mom found out that his Dad had really spent the day at the races when her telephone starting ringing off the hook from all her friends calling.
He wasn’t that fond of school and instead chose to spend most of his teenage years at the beach, surfing and hanging out. His dad dropped off him and his friends each morning and picked them up at nightfall.
As soon as he turned 15 ½, he got his motorcycle license and traveled around the state, camping in the mountains, attending protests up in Berkeley, and hanging around in counterculture areas of LA, like Music & Vine and Sunset Blvd.
He met his friend Kenny that same year and together they would drive motorcycles, an orange VW van, hitchhike, or hop freight trains in order to see whatever they could, however they could manage. They would always find themselves back in LA eventually.
He and his friends would watch Hollywood Bowl shows by hiding out in the trees on the hill nearby. The police would clear out the people on the ground underneath but wouldn’t bother with the kids in the trees since they didn’t want to climb up to get them.
He took odd jobs, such as working in a glass packing warehouse or spending months in the mountains collecting redwood burls for a San Francisco artist that made coffee tables out of them. One time he accidentally collected a rattlesnake along with the burl and abandoned his truck when the rattlesnake poked its head out from beneath his seat.
He got into the music industry largely by chance. A friend was helping a band, Rubber City Rebels, move equipment, but his truck broke down and he needed my dad’s. He saw how well it paid for a night’s work so the very next day he had business cards printed saying “Roadie for hire. Dependable and on time.” and started passing them out at all the clubs along Sunset.  He helped bands of all different styles at venues all around LA, from the Whiskey A Go Go to Madame Wong’s to Gazzarri’s.
Starting in 1979, he began working with Van Halen. He started with them as one of their carpenters and was on the crew that built the first indoor rolling stage. In 1980 he became their Stage Manager. Initially, when they were on breaks from tours, he would pick up tours with bands like Hall and Oats.
In the early 1980s, he began working exclusively with Van Halen. After the band split ways, he went with Dave as he pursued his solo career. He worked as his Stage Manager and later as his Production Manager.
When Dave wasn’t on the road, he was busy maintaining Dave’s personal property and working closely with him, organizing his many projects, video productions, rehearsals, etc.
While he was touring though he had adventures like eating bear at an inn in rural Finland, camping in the Australian outback, climbing in the Arapiles, facing armed Venezuelan soldiers who came to complain about the crew’s shirtlessness, and so much more.
He had many fond memories of those years. Experiences like driving Dave up the coast in his 1951 Mercury convertible while Dave wrote songs in the back and the daily life stuff like kayaking in the Pacific, hiking, and mountain climbing.
In 1989, he married Cheri (née Bittle) and soon after had their daughter Anna. In 1991 they welcomed a son, Larry Lee. That same year he quit the touring business since he didn’t want to be away from his kids for months at a time.
He bought a rural homestead, still covered in volcano ash in many areas, in Amboy, Washington, to start this new chapter of his life. He worked in Seattle promoting major concerts throughout the entire Pacific Northwest. His free time was spent with his family as well as a growing zoo of beloved pets that included two horses, a cow, two cats, a dog, and a wolf.
In 1993 they moved to Branson, Missouri where he worked at a theater. During that time, he attempted to help IATSE unionize the Branson theaters and became a union brother.
In 1995 they moved to The Plains, Virginia, where he worked as the operations manager at an amphitheater in Bristow Station.
Then in 2000, to provide more educational opportunities for his son who was nonverbal and autistic, they moved back to California. He took a job to open and manage the newly built amphitheater in Marysville.
After camping on its grounds for weeks in the 1970s RV that the family had moved across the country in, they found a home in Rancho Cordova, where he would stay for the rest of his life. In 2005 he became a proud member of IATSE local 50 in Sacramento and worked as a stagehand until he retired.
In 2005, he helped with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He was able to use his decades of production experience to put together and run a base camp outside of New Orleans for a company contracted with the US Military. He stayed there for 6 months until the camp was no longer needed. While on his daily walk inspecting the grounds, he found an injured man and was able to get him medical attention in time to save his life.
Family was the most important thing to him and he always put his children first no matter the cost to his career or personal life. His son was his best friend and he was there for Larry Lee every day until his death in 2020. Every single day he got him ready for his day program or to go out on weekends and then got him ready for bed at night. Larry Lee was the focus of his life and caring for him was never a burden, but time that he cherished.
After both his sisters passed away, he brought his mother up from Burbank to live with us for the last five years of her life. When he and Cheri divorced after 23 years, they continued to co-parent their son and remained friends until the end. He was also a proud uncle to his nephew, Bobby Knollmiller.
He went on to love again, not just once, but twice. He had a long-term relationship with Shirley Farris, who he was friends and neighbors with originally in the 1970s, prior to her passing. More recently he reconnected with and became engaged to Tami Olson, who he originally met while working together in the 1980s.
He is survived by his daughter Anna Hostler, nephew Bobby Knollmiller, fiancee Tami Olson, and many beloved friends.
He is predeceased by both parents, son Larry Lee, sisters Joan Knollmiller and Elaine Lowrey, longtime girlfriend Shirley Farris, and many beloved friends.

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Larry Hostler Obituary | ABC Cremation Society