The awaited moment nears. Fireworks Control begins its countdown. Pyrotechnical engineers receive their cues. Buttons are pressed, electrical contact is made, and BOOOOMMM! The July Fourth night sky explodes in radiating colors, fiery fingers, and comets bursting into spheres of twinkling stars.
To any member of the Rozzi family of Cincinnati, it's all in a day's work, and it's the way the Rozzis have made their living since 1895, when the family started manufacturing and exploding fireworks. They wouldn't dream of missing this Independence Day show, but the very nature of their work -its inherent danger and complexity -means they get to relax and enjoy their creations only rarely. "We take a glance now and then, but we have to watch what we're doing," says Arthur Rozzi, vice president of Rozzi's Famous Fireworks/Tri-State Manufacturing Co.
Lots of other people have marveled at the work of this fourth-generation Italian-American family. In addition to manufacturing fireworks for clients like Disney World, the Rozzis have also helped clients celebrate special occasions, such as the 1964 Democratic National Convention and the Statue of Liberty's one-hundredth birthday party. The Rozzis have lit up the skies of many a city, including Montreal, St.Louis, Cleveland, Denver, and New Orleans. A typical Independence Day weekend for them includes an average of thirty community shows.
John Conkling, executive secretary of the American Pyrotechnics Association (APA), says the Rozzis are "one of the leading American manufacturers of display fireworks. There were only about five companies involved in putting on fireworks for the Statue of Liberty," he says, "and they were one of them."
According to Conkling, the Rozzis are "most famous for their Riverfest display in Cincinnati. A lot of companies in the [pyrotechnics] industry come to see that [the display] because it's truly spectacular."
Omar Lerman, who was associate producer of fireworks for the Ellis Island Foundation, organization that put on the five-day celebration of the statue's centennial in 1986, says the Rozzis supplied a substantial amount of the fireworks needed and performed admirably.
"In an industry noted for feuds and a great deal of competition, the Rozzis are the gentlemen of the industry -they get along with everybody," he says "They were chosen to participate because we wanted a representation of all the fine fireworks companies in the country. We discussed the overall design of their show, but the realization was left in their hands. The results were their own, and they can be proud of them."
For more than a decade, the Rozzis have supplied Disney World with the fireworks they regularly use to dazzle their visitors. "They make some things better than anyone else," says John Albert, Disney's fireworks manager. "For example, they make a shell that opens in a pattern with color that will have a gold or silver contrast or other secondary effects."
Hanging Tough
The Rozzis are diehards among a dwindling number of American fireworks manufacturers. In fact, most of the
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