Music business magnate Don Kirshner, 76, dies

Don Kirshner, the Bronx-born music business magnate who helped create the Brill Building songwriting scene in the '60s and made live rock music a staple on network TV in the '70s, died Monday of heart failure in Boca Raton, Fla. He was 76.

Dubbed "the man with the golden ear," Kirshner worked behind the scenes with his partner Al Nevins in Aldon, the company that put together a group of songwriters in the Brill Building in midtown Manhattan - including Neil Sedaka, Carole King and Gerry Goffin, and Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil - and published their pop hits in the '60s.

"It was Don's introduction to Connie Francis, who would go on to record 'Stupid Cupid' and propel my songwriter career," Sedaka said in a statement. "He was a great friend, a pioneer, and a father figure for many of us young songwriters. He will be missed."

Kirshner continued his backstage work as a music supervisor in movies including "To Sir, With Love" and "Lawrence of Arabia," and in television, with "The Monkees." When Kirshner and The Monkees had a falling out, he put together The Archies, who went to No. 1 with "Sugar, Sugar" in 1969. He also launched several record labels, including Kirshner Records, which became home to his discovery, Kansas.

But in 1972, Kirshner famously moved into the TV spotlight - first with ABC's "In Concert," which taped its earliest shows at Hofstra University, and then in 1973 with "Don Kirshner's Rock Concert," which showcased rock on late-night network TV and featured bands playing live, instead of lip-synching. The "Rock Concert" series launched with the Rolling Stones.

Kirshner's deadpan introductions on the show became almost as famous as the wide range of acts he booked, from Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel to the Ramones and ABBA. Kirshner's friend Paul Shaffer impersonated him on "Saturday Night Live," and Blue Oyster Cult sampled one of Kirshner's introductions on its song "The Marshall Plan" in 1980.

Services for Kirshner are being arranged in Florida. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Sheila, children Ricky and Daryn, and five grandchildren. The family asks that donations be made to the Don Kirshner Scholarship Fund for emerging songwriters, 70 W. 36th St., Suite 701, New York, NY 10018.

With AP