Brian Epstein

Brian Samuel Epstein ( /ˈɛpstaɪn/; 19 September 1934 – 27 August 1967), was an English music entrepreneur, and is best known for being the manager of The Beatles up until his death. He also managed several other musical artists such as Gerry & the Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Cilla Black, The Remo Four & The Cyrkle. His management company was named NEMS Enterprises after his family's music stores, also called NEMS (North End Music Stores).

Epstein paid for The Beatles to record a demo in Decca's studios, which Epstein later persuaded George Martin to listen to, as Decca were not interested in signing the band. Epstein was then offered a contract by Martin on behalf of EMI's small Parlophone label, even though they had previously been rejected by almost every other British record company. Martin later explained that Epstein's enthusiasm and his confidence that The Beatles would one day become internationally famous convinced him to sign them.

Epstein died of an accidental drug overdose at his home in London in August 1967. The Beatles' early success has been attributed to Epstein's management and sense of style. McCartney said of Epstein: "If anyone was the Fifth Beatle, it was Brian".

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Epstein

Brian started to work at the family furniture store at Walton Road in 1950 at the age of 16. Two years later he was conscripted for National Service, but he was discharged after ten months. Upon his return in 1954 he was put in charge of another branch of the family business, Clarendon Furnishing in Hoylake, and he was very successful.

However, Brian had other plans for his own life, and after some pleading with his parents was allowed to join the Royal Academy for Dramatic Arts to train as an actor. He passed the audition, but soon discovered he wasn't cut out for show business, and returned to the family business.

When his father opened a new NEMS store on Great Charlotte St, Brian was put in charge of the ground floor, where he expanded from pianos and wireless sets to gramophone records. The new record department was so successful that another NEMS branch was opened at 12-14 Whitechapel, with Brian in charge. Meanwhile, Brian, who had been selling the music publication Mersey Beat since its first issue on July 6, 1961, became interested in the local music scene, and asked its editor Bill Harry if he could contribute a record column. His first column appeared in the third issue of Mersey Beat on August 3, 1961.

Brian's new NEMS store on Whitechapel was only down the street and around the corner from a dingy, basement club called The Cavern.

Alistair Taylor, long-time assistant to Brian Epstein, from an interview with Martin Lewis at the re-created Cavern Club in 1995: "We found this record in Germany by a guy called Tony Sheridan and the Beat Brothers, the boys were just a backing group, and one day Brian came into the shop and he said, 'By the way, do you remember that record that we sold so many of, that band the Beatles?' So I said, yeah. So he said, 'Well, they're playing at the Cavern. Let's go down and see them, and we'll see what they're like.'

"And it was jammed solid, and we just sat at the back feeling rather embarressed, and I suddenly realised my foot was tapping, and I hated pop music, and Brian hated it even more than me, and I looked 'round and so was his."

"And after a while Brian started talking about it, and he said, 'What did you think?' And I said I thought they were awful, quite honestly, but absolutely incredible. So he said, 'that's exactly my feelings. Do you think I should manage them?' And I said, yeah."

Alistair talks about the day Brian met the Beatles:

"I hadn't had anything to do with management of pop artists before that day that I went down to the Cavern Club and heard the Beatles playing, and this was quite a new world, really, for me.

"I was immediately struck by their music, their beat, and their sense of humour on stage. And even afterwards when I met them I was struck again by their personal charm. And it was there that really it all started..."

Queenie Epstein, Brian's mother, remembers Brian talking to his parents after he met the Beatles:

"He asked his father and myself to listen to a record. He said, 'Forget about the singer, just listen to the backing group.' Actually, we were always fairly interested in all the records, because being in the business [NEMS record store].

And he said, 'They are four boys and I'd like to manage them. It wouldn't take any longer than two half days at a time, it's just sort of a part-time occupation.' He said it would never interfere with business.

"But the first time we met the Beatles, Brian was very insistent that we should go ahead with them, and I'd never been to a rock and roll concert before and I asked him what I should wear. And he said he hadn't either..."

It was decided that Brian would be the Beatles' manager at a meeting on December 10, 1961. Their first contract was for a five year period. The contract was formally signed at Pete Best's house on January 24, 1962, with Alistair Taylor as witness, although Brian, himself, didn't sign it. When asked why later, Brian answered "Well, if they ever want to tear it up, they can hold me but I can't hold them."

Brian smartened up the Beatles' stage appearance by putting them in matching suits and he instructed them not to smoke or swear on stage. Brian also encouraged the boys to make a rather theatrical synchronized bow at the conclusion of each song when performing in concert or on television. All of the Beatles went along with their new image although there was some initial very minor grumbling from John and George.

During his 'demythologize the Beatles' phase in 1970, John Lennon made references to how these image changes had somehow "tamed the real Beatles" and that he'd been against it at the time. However, most contemporary reports - and indeed recent McCartney comments - note that at the time, all of the Beatles (including John) were happy to follow Epstein's shrewd advice, particularly when it proved to be 100% effective. The reality is that in the climate of the early 60's no British or American TV show would have given the Beatles (or any other pop group) even five seconds of air time looking as they did pre-Brian.

Now that he was signed to be their manager, it was Brian's job to get them a recording contract. He used the clout of his family's record stores in Liverpool to get meetings with all the major British record companies. But the Beatles were rejected by every label including the two biggest companies, EMI and Decca. Brian finally secured a contract for the Beatles in June 1962 when they were signed by George Martin, head of one of EMI's smallest labels, Parlophone.

George Martin commented later that he signed the Beatles in considerable part because of Epstein's enthusiasm. He thought that the Beatles had promise, but he was not entirely convinced by their talent. However, he was very impressed by Epstein's conviction that the Beatles would be world famous.

	 Brian on Hullabuloo Shortly after they signed with EMI, John, Paul and George (who had been together as the nucleus of the group since 1958) gave Brian the unpleasant job of telling drummer Pete Best that they wanted him out of the group, to be replaced by Ringo Starr. Brian was uncomfortable but accomplished this difficult task.

In a very real sense Epstein had now passed his 'audition' with the Beatles. In a mere six months he had secured them the record contract that they had desired for so long. And he had proven his ability to handle the most awkward of managerial tasks.

In addition to managing the Beatles, Brian managed other artists. Brian also appeared on several TV shows in Britain, and hosted a regular segment of the US TV show Hullabaloo.

But Brian's first love was always the Beatles. His joy in life was seeing their ever-burgeoning success and ensuring their happiness. This devotion to work was often at the expense of his personal life.

During the time Brian managed the Beatles, they enjoyed the greatest success that any popular artists had ever achieved. Their career trajectory was meteoric. There was not a single reversal of fortune in the entire 5 3/4 years. Once he died the Beatles became embroiled in a tangle of conflicts, money squabbles and personal jealousies. They had lost the one man who united them and who was capable of resolving their differences.

From the first Beatles success until his tragic death in August 1967, Brian took care of every aspect of the Beatles' career. When he died the difference was immediately felt. While the Beatles continued to make magnificent music, their business affairs rapidly crumbled. Within two years of Brian's death the end of the Beatles was clearly in sight. By 1970 it was all over.

Brian Epstein also managed Gerry & The Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas, The Fourmost, and Cilla Black.

בריאן סמואל אפשטיין

' (באנגלית: Brian Samuel Epstein ‏; 19 בספטמבר 1934 - 27 באוגוסט 1967), היה איש עסקים בריטי יהודי, אמרגנם של הביטלס ושל להקות ואמנים נוספים מליברפול. נטיות להרס עצמי באופיו החריפו כאשר הפסיקו הביטלס את מסעי ההופעות שלהם, והיו אחת הסיבות למותו, ככל הנראה ממנת יתר של סמים.

תוכן עניינים 1 קורות חיים 1.1 חיים פרטיים, תחילת הקריירה והצטרפותו לביטלס 1.2 אפשטיין והביטלס 1.2.1 שינוי במראה 1.2.2 הביטלמניה 1.2.3 שנותיו האחרונות ומותו 1.3 חיים אישיים 2 ראו גם 3 קישורים חיצוניים 4 הערות שוליים קורות חיים חיים פרטיים, תחילת הקריירה והצטרפותו לביטלס סבו היגר לבריטניה מליטא וסבתו מרוסיה. אפשטיין, בן למשפחה יהודית אמידה מליברפול, השתלב בשנת 1955 בעסקי המשפחה, כמנהל חנות התקליטים "NEMS". תחת ניהולו היצירתי והחדשני, הפכה החנות אחת מחנויות התקליטים המצליחות בליברפול. אפשטיין לא הסתפק בהצלחתו וביקש גם להפוך אמרגן לאחת הלהקות בזירת המוזיקה התוססת של ליברפול. ההזדמנות הגדולה נקרתה לאפשטיין בסוף שנת 1961, כאשר ביקר בחנותו לקוח שביקש לרכוש את התקליטון "My Bonnie" של טוני שרידן והביטלס. תקליטון זה הוקלט אותה שנה בהמבורג, כשהביטלס משמשים להקת ליווי לשרידן. הבקשה עוררה את סקרנותו של אפשטיין, והביאה אותו לבקר בהופעה של הלהקה במועדון The Cavern (המערה). אחרי ההופעה נפגש אפשטיין עם חברי הלהקה (אז, עדיין עם המתופף פיט בסט, שהוחלף מאוחר יותר ברינגו סטאר) וזמן קצר אחרי כן הפך לאמרגנה של הלהקה.

אפשטיין והביטלס שינוי במראה אפשטיין חולל שינוי דרמטי במראה הלהקה ובצורת הופעתה. הוא הגביל את זמן ההופעה לכחצי שעה, ותבע מחברי הלהקה לשנות את תסרוקתם ולוותר על בגדי העור ומראה ה"טדי בוי" שלהם. במקביל, החל אפשטיין לתור אחר חברת תקליטים שתסכים להחתים את הלהקה על חוזה הקלטות. ניסיונו הראשון, עם חברת "דקה", לא צלח. ניסיון נוסף, בחברת EMI, עלה יפה יותר - אף כי לתפקיד המפיק מונה ג'ורג' מרטין, שעד אז התמחה בעיקר בתקליטי מוזיקה קלאסית והומור.

הביטלמניה הצלחתה האדירה של הביטלס קנתה לאפשטיין שם, והוא הפך, נוסף על הביטלס, אמרגנן של להקות נוספות מליברפול. כישרונו התיאטרלי וחושיו העסקיים החדים כאמרגן סייעו בידו בארגון מסעי ההופעות הארוכים של הביטלס בשנים 1963-1966, במהלכן הופיעו הביטלס מאות פעמים. חוסר ניסיונו, עם זאת, עמד לו לרועץ בכמה וכמה עסקאות של מוצרים נלווים וחוזי תקליטים בארצות הברית. בשנים 1964-1966 נמכרו תקליטים ומוצרים נלווים במיליארדי דולרים (בערכים של היום), אך הביטלס הפיקו מכך רק הכנסות זעומות.

שנותיו האחרונות ומותו בהדרגה מאסו חברי הביטלס בהופעות ובסתיו 1966 חדלו מהופעות חיות לחלוטין והתמקדו בהקלטות. מצב זה הותיר את אפשטיין חרד למעמדו כאמרגן הלהקה, לקראת מועד חידוש חוזהו עם חבריה. ב-27 באוגוסט 1967, כאשר הביטלס שהו בצפון אנגליה במחיצת המהרישי - מסעם הראשון כלהקה בלי ליווי של אפשטיין - נמצא אפשטיין מת בביתו שבלונדון, בעקבות נטילת מנת יתר של ברביטורט, חומר הרדמה ששימש בעבר גם כגלולת שינה והרגעה וכסם פנאי.

אפשטיין עירב שתיית אלכוהול ונטילת גלולות השינה במינון שייתכן והיה שגרתי עבורו, אך השילוב עם האלכוהול הפחית את סיבולת הגוף שלו לברביטורט והמינון הפך למנת יתר קטלנית. חוקר מקרי המוות קבע שמותו של אפשטיין היה תאונה.[1].

חיים אישיים אפשטיין היה הומוסקסואל, ונטייתו המינית הייתה ידועה לכל מכריו, אף כי לא זכתה לפרסום בחייו. בכמה ספרים על הביטלס נטען כי אפשטיין נמשך לחבר הלהקה ג'ון לנון, וכי משיכה זו הייתה אחד המניעים לרצונו להפוך אמרגן הלהקה. טענה זו הובילה גם לפרסומים על קשר הומוסקסואלי בינו לבין לנון, אך לקשר זה לא נמצאו תימוכין עובדתיים של ממש. אפשטיין החל להשתמש בסמים ממריצים כבר מראשית הקריירה שלו כאמרגן. רוב הסמים הממריצים היו אז חוקיים והשימוש בהם היה מקובל מאוד (הביטלס צרכו סמים ממריצים דרך קבע בהופעותיהם). מאוחר יותר התנסה אפשטיין גם בסמים קלים וככל הנראה גם בסמים קשים יותר, כהרואין וקוקאין.

ראו גם בילי ג'יי קריימר והדקוטות - להקה שייצג אפשטיין. ג'ון בנקס - המרסיביטס, להקה שייצג אפשטיין. קישורים חיצוניים ויקישיתוף מדיה וקבצים בנושא בריאן אפשטיין בוויקישיתוף Green globe.svg אתר האינטרנט הרשמי

של בריאן אפשטיין Allmusic Favicon.png בריאן אפשטיין , באתר AllMusic (באנגלית) MusicBrainz Logo 2016.svg בריאן אפשטיין , באתר MusicBrainz (באנגלית) בריאן אפשטיין , באתר Discogs (באנגלית) IMDB Logo 2016.svg בריאן אפשטיין , במסד הנתונים הקולנועיים IMDb (באנגלית) בריאן אפשטיין , באתר "Find a Grave" (באנגלית) חייו וחיי האהבה של בריאן אפשטיין

בפודקאסט "ביטלמניה" אורי לוטן, אנדרטת זיכרון לחייל האלמוני , באתר nrg‏, 4 בנובמבר 2004 Glenn Frankel, Nowhere Man

The Washington Post, August 26, 2007 י. פינקלסטון, בריאן אפשטיין מת: "חיפושית הקצב החמישית" , מעריב, 28 באוגוסט 1967 https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%91%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%90%D7%9F_%D7%90...

---------------------------------------------------

Brian Samuel Epstein ( /ˈɛpstaɪn/; 19 September 1934 – 27 August 1967), was an English music entrepreneur, and is best known for being the manager of The Beatles up until his death. He also managed several other musical artists such as Gerry & the Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Cilla Black, The Remo Four & The Cyrkle. His management company was named NEMS Enterprises after his family's music stores, also called NEMS (North End Music Stores).

Epstein paid for The Beatles to record a demo in Decca's studios, which Epstein later persuaded George Martin to listen to, as Decca were not interested in signing the band. Epstein was then offered a contract by Martin on behalf of EMI's small Parlophone label, even though they had previously been rejected by almost every other British record company. Martin later explained that Epstein's enthusiasm and his confidence that The Beatles would one day become internationally famous convinced him to sign them.

Epstein died of an accidental drug overdose at his home in London in August 1967. The Beatles' early success has been attributed to Epstein's management and sense of style. McCartney said of Epstein: "If anyone was the Fifth Beatle, it was Brian".

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Epstein

Brian started to work at the family furniture store at Walton Road in 1950 at the age of 16. Two years later he was conscripted for National Service, but he was discharged after ten months. Upon his return in 1954 he was put in charge of another branch of the family business, Clarendon Furnishing in Hoylake, and he was very successful.

However, Brian had other plans for his own life, and after some pleading with his parents was allowed to join the Royal Academy for Dramatic Arts to train as an actor. He passed the audition, but soon discovered he wasn't cut out for show business, and returned to the family business.

When his father opened a new NEMS store on Great Charlotte St, Brian was put in charge of the ground floor, where he expanded from pianos and wireless sets to gramophone records. The new record department was so successful that another NEMS branch was opened at 12-14 Whitechapel, with Brian in charge. Meanwhile, Brian, who had been selling the music publication Mersey Beat since its first issue on July 6, 1961, became interested in the local music scene, and asked its editor Bill Harry if he could contribute a record column. His first column appeared in the third issue of Mersey Beat on August 3, 1961.

Brian's new NEMS store on Whitechapel was only down the street and around the corner from a dingy, basement club called The Cavern.

Alistair Taylor, long-time assistant to Brian Epstein, from an interview with Martin Lewis at the re-created Cavern Club in 1995: "We found this record in Germany by a guy called Tony Sheridan and the Beat Brothers, the boys were just a backing group, and one day Brian came into the shop and he said, 'By the way, do you remember that record that we sold so many of, that band the Beatles?' So I said, yeah. So he said, 'Well, they're playing at the Cavern. Let's go down and see them, and we'll see what they're like.'

"And it was jammed solid, and we just sat at the back feeling rather embarressed, and I suddenly realised my foot was tapping, and I hated pop music, and Brian hated it even more than me, and I looked 'round and so was his."

"And after a while Brian started talking about it, and he said, 'What did you think?' And I said I thought they were awful, quite honestly, but absolutely incredible. So he said, 'that's exactly my feelings. Do you think I should manage them?' And I said, yeah."

Alistair talks about the day Brian met the Beatles:

"I hadn't had anything to do with management of pop artists before that day that I went down to the Cavern Club and heard the Beatles playing, and this was quite a new world, really, for me.

"I was immediately struck by their music, their beat, and their sense of humour on stage. And even afterwards when I met them I was struck again by their personal charm. And it was there that really it all started..."

Queenie Epstein, Brian's mother, remembers Brian talking to his parents after he met the Beatles:

"He asked his father and myself to listen to a record. He said, 'Forget about the singer, just listen to the backing group.' Actually, we were always fairly interested in all the records, because being in the business [NEMS record store].

And he said, 'They are four boys and I'd like to manage them. It wouldn't take any longer than two half days at a time, it's just sort of a part-time occupation.' He said it would never interfere with business.

"But the first time we met the Beatles, Brian was very insistent that we should go ahead with them, and I'd never been to a rock and roll concert before and I asked him what I should wear. And he said he hadn't either..."

It was decided that Brian would be the Beatles' manager at a meeting on December 10, 1961. Their first contract was for a five year period. The contract was formally signed at Pete Best's house on January 24, 1962, with Alistair Taylor as witness, although Brian, himself, didn't sign it. When asked why later, Brian answered "Well, if they ever want to tear it up, they can hold me but I can't hold them."

Brian smartened up the Beatles' stage appearance by putting them in matching suits and he instructed them not to smoke or swear on stage. Brian also encouraged the boys to make a rather theatrical synchronized bow at the conclusion of each song when performing in concert or on television. All of the Beatles went along with their new image although there was some initial very minor grumbling from John and George.

During his 'demythologize the Beatles' phase in 1970, John Lennon made references to how these image changes had somehow "tamed the real Beatles" and that he'd been against it at the time. However, most contemporary reports - and indeed recent McCartney comments - note that at the time, all of the Beatles (including John) were happy to follow Epstein's shrewd advice, particularly when it proved to be 100% effective. The reality is that in the climate of the early 60's no British or American TV show would have given the Beatles (or any other pop group) even five seconds of air time looking as they did pre-Brian.

Now that he was signed to be their manager, it was Brian's job to get them a recording contract. He used the clout of his family's record stores in Liverpool to get meetings with all the major British record companies. But the Beatles were rejected by every label including the two biggest companies, EMI and Decca. Brian finally secured a contract for the Beatles in June 1962 when they were signed by George Martin, head of one of EMI's smallest labels, Parlophone.

George Martin commented later that he signed the Beatles in considerable part because of Epstein's enthusiasm. He thought that the Beatles had promise, but he was not entirely convinced by their talent. However, he was very impressed by Epstein's conviction that the Beatles would be world famous.

	 Brian on Hullabuloo Shortly after they signed with EMI, John, Paul and George (who had been together as the nucleus of the group since 1958) gave Brian the unpleasant job of telling drummer Pete Best that they wanted him out of the group, to be replaced by Ringo Starr. Brian was uncomfortable but accomplished this difficult task.

In a very real sense Epstein had now passed his 'audition' with the Beatles. In a mere six months he had secured them the record contract that they had desired for so long. And he had proven his ability to handle the most awkward of managerial tasks.

In addition to managing the Beatles, Brian managed other artists. Brian also appeared on several TV shows in Britain, and hosted a regular segment of the US TV show Hullabaloo.

But Brian's first love was always the Beatles. His joy in life was seeing their ever-burgeoning success and ensuring their happiness. This devotion to work was often at the expense of his personal life.

During the time Brian managed the Beatles, they enjoyed the greatest success that any popular artists had ever achieved. Their career trajectory was meteoric. There was not a single reversal of fortune in the entire 5 3/4 years. Once he died the Beatles became embroiled in a tangle of conflicts, money squabbles and personal jealousies. They had lost the one man who united them and who was capable of resolving their differences.

From the first Beatles success until his tragic death in August 1967, Brian took care of every aspect of the Beatles' career. When he died the difference was immediately felt. While the Beatles continued to make magnificent music, their business affairs rapidly crumbled. Within two years of Brian's death the end of the Beatles was clearly in sight. By 1970 it was all over.

Brian Epstein also managed Gerry & The Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas, The Fourmost, and Cilla Black.