Sid Bernstein's 90th Birthday - August 12, 2008

[yerblues1968]

Sid Bernstein


UNCLE TOM'S GABBIN


By Tom Moffatt


Wednesday - August 13, 2008


DON’T FEEL BAD if you’ve never heard of him, most people haven’t. But for someone who’s spent his whole life in the music business, Sid Bernstein was one important fella. So much so, that when I heard he was about to celebrate his 90th birthday I decided I had to be there, even if I had to travel to New York City on a muggy day in August ... When a flabbergasted Sid answered his door, I hand-delivered a box of Leonard’s malasadas! The look on Sid’s face as he bit into that first malasada made the long journey worthwhile ...



Sid became a Leonard’s fan during the same period in the ‘60s that Hawaii embraced his group, The Young Rascals. Of course, that wasn’t Sid’s biggest group. You’ve probably heard of this other group he managed. They were known as The Beatles, and Sid was the guy who introduced the Beatles to the U.S., highlighted by their sold-out Shea Stadium concerts…


Manager Brian Epstein watches "his boys" The Beatles perform
at Shea Stadium in New York in August 1965.




Interview with Sid Bernstein in January 2008 with Rob Funaro.
Sid Bernstein is interviewed at the beginning of the video and
discusses his experiences at Shea Stadium and Brian Epstein.
The rest of the video is about baseball cards. (6:27 minutes)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9wZaxAcKX0



Bethel Woods Center for the Arts where Sid Bernstein was honored on his 90th Birthday.


It was a special thrill being with Sid at a Sunday night concert at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts (on the site of the Woodstock Festival) when his birthday was honored before several thousand cheering fans ...



Aerial view of Bethel Woods Center for the Arts.


The day before, I visited backstage with Loretta Ables Sayre after enjoying her performance as Bloody Mary in Rodgers & Hammerstein’s South Pacific at the Lincoln Center Theater. The smash revival is sold out for weeks ahead! Much has been written about Loretta and the other major stars of the show, but I was especially impressed by Matthew Morrison, who portrays Lt. Joseph Cable. After we were introduced by Loretta, I was surprised when Matthew mentioned that he was no stranger to Honolulu - he worked one summer as a background vocalist for Don Ho at the Reef Hotel’s Polynesian Palace ... After enjoying miso/matzoh ball soup (you read it right!) followed by a delicious seafood meal at Manhattan’s Red Eye Restaurant with The Stylistics‘ manager and longtime friend Jack Bart, Sid had to take me to his favorite - the 2nd Ave Deli - for real matzoh, and wished that Eddie Sherman was there ...





Sid Bernstein's favorite - the 2nd Ave Deli in New York.

www.midweek.com/content/columns/utg_article/uncle_toms_gabbin128/

[yerblues1968]

CREAM, THE ANIMALS, AND SID BERNSTEIN...


freakfilms.com

Monday, August 4, 2008


So, last night we went to see Jack Bruce (Cream) and Eric Burdon (The Animals) at Bethel Woods, the original site of Woodstock. The show was unbelievable, and for someone born in the '70s, it's the closest I'll ever get to the bands from the '60s. We managed to score box seats, and the best part was our seats were right behind Sid Bernstein, the (and, I quote) "man who brought the Beatles to America". Yes, the promoter responsible for bringing the Beatles, and countless other bands (Stones, ABBA, look him up, you'll see why we were awestruck) to America.



Rock Promoter Bill Graham (far right) in an early photograph with LYNYRD SKYNYRD. Bill Graham was killed in a helicopter crash near Vallejo, California in 1991, while returning home from a Huey Lewis and the News concert at the Concord Pavilion. Graham had attended the event to discuss promoting a benefit concert for the victims of the 1991 Oakland firestorm, after a large portion of the Oakland/Berkeley Hills burned. Once he had obtained the commitment from the News to perform, he returned to his helicopter, which crashed shortly after take-off, just 20 miles from the concert site. Bill Graham died on October 25, 1991. He was 60 years old.


We got into conversation and he asked what I did, and I mentioned the film. We got on the subject of Bill Graham, who Sid said he had never met, but "had incredible respect for". He mentioned that he had just won a Lifetime Achievement Award, and in his acceptance speech, said "Bill, this one's for you".

Sid had just celebrated his 90th birthday, and during the show, they made an announcement, and the stadium applauded him. At some point, someone from backstage had brought him dinner, and he kept turning around and (as if it wasn't nice enough for him to engage in conversation) he kept offering us pieces of chicken (which my husband and our friend Charlie accepted - it was great chicken, according to both of them).

What a genuinely kind person, I would have liked to have had more time (and, a quieter place) to talk.

As he was leaving, we said our goodbyes, and our buddy Charlie thanked him for the chicken. The man who was with Sid said "that's funny, people usually come up to him and say "Thanks for the Beatles". That's the first time we've heard "Thanks for the chicken."

www.freakfilms.com/blog/blog/2008/08/cream-animals-and-sid-bernstein.html