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30-459: Bernard Delfont, Baron Delfont (born Boris Winogradsky ; 5 September 1909 – 28 July 1994) was a leading Russian-born British theatrical impresario . Delfont was born in Tokmak , Berdyansky Uyezd , Taurida Governorate , Russian Empire (now Ukraine), the second son of Isaac and Olga Winogradsky, a Jewish family. His brothers, Lew Grade and Leslie Grade , also entered show business and formed

60-514: A vertically integrated film industry duopoly in Britain with the Rank Organisation . The company was founded during 1927 by Scottish solicitor John Maxwell after he had purchased British National Pictures Studios and its Elstree Studios complex and merged it with his ABC Cinemas circuit, renaming the company British International Pictures. The Wardour Film Company, with Maxwell as chairman,

90-512: A Kind (1961 to 1968). He also helped the careers of Tommy Steele , Danny La Rue , Norman Wisdom and Tommy Cooper . By the 1960s, the brothers were all very successful and were said to have a "Gradopoly" over British popular entertainment, with Delfont the country's leading impresario; Leslie running the UK's biggest talent agency and Lew one of the major players in British commercial television. In 1967,

120-551: A café waiter and made a fortune at La Scala , in Milan, where he was also in charge of the gambling operation and introduced roulette . Duchess Elisabeth Sophie of Mecklenburg was a harpsichordist who also presided over seventeenth-century North German court music as an impresario. The traditional term is still used in the entertainment industry to refer to a producer of concerts , tours and other events in music, opera, theatre , and even rodeo . Important modern impresarios in

150-491: A demonstrated "public value". Of the 21 films made by ABPC during the 1950s, only two were derived from original screenplays. German-born Frederick Gotfurt was Clark's scenario editor in this period, but his command of English was imperfect and the contracted actor Richard Todd doubted Gotfurt's ability to assess the quality of the dialogue in a script. "It was a dreadful place", said Richard Attenborough when remembering ABPC's Elstree facility. "It created nothing in terms of

180-554: A feeling of commitment." During this period though, the company produced its best remembered titles such as The Dam Busters ( Michael Anderson , 1954), and Ice Cold in Alex (1958), whose director J. Lee Thompson was ABPC's most productive during the 1950s. In 1958, Associated Talking Pictures, the parent company of Ealing Films , was acquired. In 1955, the Independent Television Authority (ITA) awarded one of

210-517: A large number of shares to Warner Bros. , who, although the Maxwell family remained the largest shareholders, were able to exercise a measure of control. The studio at Elstree was taken over by the government for the duration of the war. Film production was restricted to B-Pictures made at the company's smaller studio in Welwyn Garden City , which closed in 1950. Much of the output of the studio

240-547: A leading role in orchestrating events. Jacques Cousteau said of himself that he was an impresario of scientists as an explorer and filmmaker who worked with scientists in underwater exploration. Nicholas Wade described James Watson and E. O. Wilson in The New York Times as impresarios of Charles Darwin 's works. Associated British Picture Corporation Associated British Picture Corporation ( ABPC ), originally British International Pictures ( BIP ),

270-582: A reallocation of the ITV franchises, ABC Television ceased to exist in 1968; however, unwilling to eject ABPC from the system, the ITA awarded the contract for weekdays in London to a new company that would be joint-owned by ABPC and British Electric Traction (parent company of outgoing franchisee Rediffusion ), with ABPC holding a 51% controlling stake. Both companies were initially reluctant to this "shotgun merger", but eventually

300-401: Is portrayed by Rufus Jones . He is played by Michael Gambon in the 2019 film Judy , which recounts Judy Garland's last days. Impresario The term originated in the social and economic world of Italian opera , in which from the mid-18th century to the 1830s, the impresario was the key figure in the organization of a lyric season. The owners of the theatre, usually amateurs from

330-647: The Blackpool Tower Company . In 1970, Delfont sold his own Bernard Delfont Organisation to EMI for $ 192,000, which increased his future shareholding in EMI to a value of around $ 8 million. As head of EMI's leisure division, Delfont oversaw film production, including The Go-Between (1971), Murder on the Orient Express (1974), Death on the Nile and The Deer Hunter (both 1978). In that role he withdrew funding for

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360-503: The Grade Organisation was acquired by EMI for $ 21 million and Delfont and his brothers joined the EMI board. When Leslie fell ill, Delfont was asked to help out at the Grade Organisation. As part of the deal, he became the largest individual shareholder in EMI. In 1969 he became chief executive of Associated British Picture Corporation after it was acquired by EMI and was a board member for around 30 entertainment entities, including

390-645: The Grade Organisation. Their sister, Rita Grade, later wrote a book about the family called My Fabulous Brothers . In 1912, the family moved to the East End of London and at age 12, Delfont left school and followed Lew into music halls and changed his name to Delfont to avoid confusion with his brother, forming a dance partnership with comic Hal Monty called The Delfont Boys. He later formed another dance partnership called Delfont & Toko. In 1937 he stopped dancing and again followed Lew in becoming an agent and impresario. During World War II Delfont became involved in

420-443: The UK, mainly seaside resorts. In 1950, he became stage producer for a BBC summer variety show Carefree and soon after the launch of ITV , the variety show Bernard Delfont Presents was produced by Lew's Associated Television , which ran from 1956 to 1958. From 1959 to 1962, Bernard Delfont's Sunday Show was broadcast. Delfont was instrumental in bringing Morecambe & Wise to ITV in their first successful TV show, Two of

450-579: The actress Carole Lynne in 1946. They had one son (David) and two daughters (Susannah and Jennifer). He was knighted in 1974 and created a life peer as Baron Delfont of Stepney in Greater London on 29 June 1976. He died from a heart attack at his Angmering home in Sussex, England . In the 2018 film Stan & Ollie , which recounts the 1953 tour of the United Kingdom by Laurel & Hardy, he

480-760: The exclusive rights from Paul Derval to stage the Folies Bergère for the first time outside Paris. He also teamed up with former rival Val Parnell to acquire a lease on the Prince of Wales Theatre and stage shows at the London Palladium . He presented over 200 shows in London and New York City , including more than 50 musicals, such as the original productions of Little Me , Stop the World - I Want to Get Off , City Of Angels , Funny Girl and Sweet Charity . He also presented summer variety shows in over 20 towns across

510-538: The film Life of Brian in 1978 at the last moment owing to worries over the religious implications of the screenplay. He later became Chief Executive of EMI in 1979. In 1980, following the sale of EMI's leisure interests to Trust House Forte , he became chief executive of THF Leisure Division. In 1983, he headed a management buyout under First Leisure Corporation where he was chairman until 1988 and then president. In Blackpool , First Leisure owned all three of its piers ( South Pier , Central Pier and North Pier ). He

540-469: The four initial contracts for commercial television in the UK to ABPC (after original awardee Kemsley-Winnick Television collapsed). The contract was to provide programming on the new ITV network in the Midlands and northern England on Saturdays and Sundays. The board of ABPC had been unconvinced by the merits of entering the television market, but were eventually convinced by the ITA who believed they were

570-635: The new station, christened Thames Television , took to the air in July 1968 (two days after ABC's last broadcast). The 51% controlling stake passed to EMI upon its acquisition of ABPC the following year. Policies changed after Clark left in January 1958. New projects from the company were limited to those using contracted television comedy performers, and investment in independent productions. The use of Elstree for television production increased. Later successful features from ABPC itself included several films built around

600-571: The nobility, charged the impresario with hiring a composer (until the 1850s operas were expected to be new) and the orchestra, singers, costumes and sets, all while assuming considerable financial risk. In 1786 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart satirized the stress and emotional mayhem in a single-act farce Der Schauspieldirektor ( The Impresario ). Antonio Vivaldi was unusual in acting as both impresario and composer; in 1714 he managed seasons at Teatro San Angelo in Venice, where his opera Orlando finto pazzo

630-433: The only acceptable option to take the contract. Former head of British Pathé Howard Thomas was appointed as the station's managing director. Under the name ABC Television , the company came on the air in stages between February and November 1956. Among many television series ABC produced were Opportunity Knocks , The Avengers , Redcap , and the long-running Armchair Theatre drama anthology series. Following

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660-399: The pop singer Cliff Richard , such as The Young Ones (1961) and Summer Holiday (1963). The same year, ABPC acquired Associated Talking Pictures (parent of the original Ealing Studios ) from The Rank Organisation (who had bought the studio in 1944). In 1962, the company acquired 50% of the shares of Anglo-Amalgamated , and made an arrangement with the Grade Organisation to support

690-592: The rival British Gaumont , due to his dissatisfaction with the projects he was assigned at British International. Under Maxwell's paternalistic management the company prospered and during 1933 it acquired British Pathé, which as Associated British-Pathé now functioned as the distribution division. The company was renamed Associated British Picture Corporation in 1933 and was now in a position to vertically integrate production, distribution and exhibition of films. After Maxwell's death in October 1940, his widow Catherine sold

720-887: The theatre with a tour of Room for Two in 1941 and then started staging shows in London from 1942 with Jam Tomorrow at the St Martin's Theatre . He entered theatrical management in 1949 and acquired theatres in the West End of London . He acquired the London Casino and converted the London Hippodrome into the Talk of the Town nightclub, bringing in entertainers such as Lena Horne , Shirley Bassey , Frank Sinatra , Eartha Kitt , Judy Garland , The Ink Spots , Sophie Tucker , Barbra Streisand , Sammy Davis Jr. and Laurel & Hardy and also secured

750-562: The traditional sense include Thomas Beecham , Rudolf Bing , Sergei Diaghilev , Richard D'Oyly Carte , Fortune Gallo , Sol Hurok , Sarah Caldwell , Andrew Lloyd Webber , Aaron Richmond , and jazz festival producer George Wein . Bill Graham , who produced music shows at The Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco, was known as a rock music impresario. The term is occasionally applied to others, such as independent art museum curators , event planners, and conference organizers who have

780-598: Was a British film production, distribution and exhibition company active from 1927 until 1970 when it was absorbed into EMI . ABPC also owned approximately 500 cinemas in Britain by 1943, and in the 1950s and 60s owned a station on the ITV television network. The studio was partly owned by Warner Bros. from about 1940 until 1969; the American company also owned a stake in ABPC's distribution arm, Warner-Pathé , from 1958. It formed one half of

810-637: Was an active supporter of the Variety Club of Great Britain and was a former president. He presented the annual Royal Variety Performance from 1958 to 1978, and saw its first television broadcast in 1960, which became a ratings hit. He was also involved in other entertainment charities being life president of the Entertainment Artistes' Benevolent Fund and president of the Entertainment Charities Fund from 1983 to 1991. Delfont married

840-564: Was followed by numerous others. Alessandro Lanari (1787–1852), who began as the owner of a shop that produced costumes, eliminated the middleman in a series of successful seasons he produced for the Teatro della Pergola in Florence. He presented the premieres of the first version of Giuseppe Verdi 's Macbeth , two of Vincenzo Bellini 's operas and five of Gaetano Donizetti 's, including Lucia di Lammermoor . Domenico Barbaia (1778–1841) began as

870-484: Was routine, which restricted its success outside the UK, but after World War II , the company contracted with Warner (by now the largest shareholder, owning 40% of the studio) for the distribution of its films in the United States. Robert Clark was head of production for the company between 1949 and 1958, and insisted on tight budgeting and the use of pre-existing properties such as books or plays as these already had

900-472: Was the distributor of BIP films. He appointed Joseph Grossman , formerly manager of the Stoll Studios, his Studio Manager. During its early years the company's most prominent work was that directed by Alfred Hitchcock , including the film Blackmail (1929), usually regarded as the first British all- talkie . Hitchcock worked on a total of twelve pictures for the company before leaving in 1933 to work for

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