Don Kirshner
This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2011) |
Don Kirshner | |
---|---|
New York, New York, U.S. | |
Died | January 17, 2011 Boca Raton, Florida, U.S. | (aged 76)
Resting place | Temple Beth El Mausoleum, Boca Raton, Florida, U.S |
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | Upsala College |
Occupations |
|
Years active | 1950s–2011 |
Known for | Don Kirshner's Rock Concert |
Spouse |
Sheila Grod Kirshner
(m. 1959) |
Children | 2, including Ricky Kirshner |
Parent(s) | Gilbert Kirshner Belle Jaffe |
Donald Kirshner (April 17, 1934 – January 17, 2011)[1] was an American music publisher, music consultant, rock music producer, talent manager, and songwriter. Dubbed "the Man with the Golden Ear" by Time magazine,[2] he was best known for managing songwriting talent as well as successful pop groups, such as the Monkees, Kansas, and the Archies.[3]
Early life
Don Kirshner was born to a
Aldon Music
Kirshner achieved his first major success in the late 1950s and early 1960s as co-owner of the influential New York-based publishing company Aldon Music with partner Al Nevins, which had under contract at various times several of the most important songwriters of the so-called "Brill Building" school, including Carole King, Gerry Goffin, Neil Sedaka, Neil Diamond, Paul Simon, Phil Spector, Howard Greenfield, Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, Tony Orlando, and Jack Keller.[6]
As a producer-promoter, Kirshner was instrumental in launching the careers of singers and songwriters, including
Don Kirshner's record labels
Kirshner had three record labels. The first was Chairman Records, a subsidiary of
Music for TV shows
In the early 1960s, Kirshner was a successful music publisher as head of his own company, Aldon Music, which later was sold to Screen Gems-Columbia Music.[6] With Al Nevins, Kirshner brought performers such as Bobby Darin together with songwriters and musicians. He later became president of COLGEMS, a subsidiary of the COLPIX label, in 1966.
Kirshner was hired by the producers of The Monkees to provide hit-worthy songs to accompany the television program, within a demanding schedule. Kirshner used songwriting talent from his Brill Building stable of writers and musicians to create catchy, engaging tracks which the band could pretend to perform on the show. This was required to keep up with the demanding schedule.
The formula worked phenomenally well – the singles "
Kirshner's later venture was the Archies, an animated series where there were only studio musicians to be managed.[8]
Kirshner was a music consultant or music supervisor for nearly two dozen TV series between 1966 and 1977, such as Bewitched.[13] One instance brought Phil Spector, Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart together on the TV show I Dream of Jeannie, a program on which Don Kirshner was credited as music consultant for 35 episodes from 1966 to 1967.
Producer
From 1970 to 1979, Kirshner served as producer or executive producer for a number of
Don Kirshner's Rock Concert
In the fall of 1972, Kirshner was asked by ABC Television to serve as executive producer and "creative consultant" for their new In Concert series, which aired every other week in the 11:30 p.m. slot normally showing The Dick Cavett Show. The following September, Kirshner left In Concert to produce and host his own syndicated weekly rock-concert program called Don Kirshner's Rock Concert.[6] With its long-form live performances, it was a new direction for pop music presentation on television as compared to rehearsed, often lip-synced performances that were the staple of earlier television shows like Shindig!. [6] The last show aired in 1981, the year that MTV was launched.
The program presented many of the most successful bands of the era, usually rock and roll but occasionally from other genres, each time introduced by Kirshner's trademark monotone delivery as the program host. In its final season, Rock Concert was mostly hosted by Kirshner's son and daughter, whose delivery was similar as their father's. Kirshner's "wooden" presentation style was later lampooned on Saturday Night Live by Paul Shaffer, most notably in Shaffer's introduction of the Blues Brothers during the duo's television debut. Shaffer and Kirshner worked together on the short-lived situation comedy, A Year at the Top, which Kirshner co-produced with Norman Lear, and in which Shaffer starred.[15]
Later career
Kirshner received the 2007 Songwriters Hall of Fame Abe Olman Publishing Award.[16] He was a creative consultant for Rockrena, a company founded by Jack Wishna, and launched in 2011 to promote new music talent online.[17] He died of heart failure in a Boca Raton, Florida hospital on January 17, 2011, at age 76, survived by his wife of 50 years, Sheila; his son, Ricky Kirshner; daughter, Daryn Lewis; and five grandchildren.[18][19][20]
On April 14, 2012, Don Kirshner was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.[21]
References
- ^ "Don Kirshner dies at 76; music mogul". Los Angeles Times. January 19, 2011.
- ^ Garcia, Oskar (January 18, 2011). "Don Kirshner, record producer, was the 'man with the golden ear'". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
- ^ a b Sisario, Ben (January 18, 2011). "Don Kirshner, Shaper of Hit Records, Dies at 76". The New York Times.
- ^ "Don Kirshner". Cleveland Jewish News.
- The New York Jewish Week. January 18, 2011.
- ^ ISBN 1-85227-745-9.
- ^ "Don Kirshner". Toddeverett.wordpress.com.
- ^ a b Schudel, Matt (January 18, 2012). "Don Kirshner, hit-making rock impresario of the 1960s, dies at 76". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
- ISBN 978-0-547-89686-1.
- ^ "Don Kirshner". The Daily Telegraph. London. April 18, 2011.
- ^ "From chart-topping teen to music executive, Tony Orlando has done it all". Reno.com.
- ISBN 1575440121.
- ^ a b "Don Kirshner". IMDb.
- ^ Short-Lived Television Series, 1948–1978: Thirty Years of More Than 1,000 Flops By Wesley Hyatt, page 235-36
- IMDb
- ^ "Kirshner award info/biography at Songwriters Hall of Fame website". Archived from the original on December 17, 2010. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
- ^ ""Rock promoter Don Kirshner, dubbed the 'Man with the Golden Ear,' dies at 76 in Florida"". Startribune.com.[permanent dead link]
- ^ CNN.com, "Rock producer and Monkees hit-maker Don Kirshner dead at 76", 18 January 2011 (accessed 29 December 2011)
- ^ Sam Thielman (January 18, 2011). "Don Kirshner, music publisher and producer, dies". Variety. Retrieved January 18, 2011.
- ^ Matt Schudel (January 18, 2011). "Don Kirshner, hit-making rock impresario of the 1960s, dies at 76". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 18, 2011.
- Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
A major contributor to this article appears to have a close connection with its subject. (March 2023) |
Further reading
- Podolsky, Rich (2012). Don Kirshner: The Man with the Golden Ear: How He Changed the Face of Rock and Roll. Hal Leonard Publishing. ISBN 1-4584-1670-4.
External links
- Official website
- Don Kirshner at IMDb
- Don Kirshner Productions Company profile on IMDb
- "Return of the Hit Man: On Music Legend Don Kirshner's To-Do List: Become Global Mogul". David Segal. The Washington Post. December 20, 2004.
- "Don Kirshner and Aldon Music". History of Rock