At Capitol Records he signed Sinatra, the Beatles, Beach Boys, The Band, Steve Miller. Also produced TV show Bonanza and created Bozo the Clown. Quite a career!
Show Biz Executive Alan Livingston, 91
(03-14) 09:20 PDT Los Angeles, CA (AP) --Alan W. Livingston, the music executive who created Bozo the Clown and signed the Beatles during his tenure as president of Capitol Records, has died. He was 91.Livingston died of age-related causes at his home in Beverly Hills on Friday, his stepdaughter Jennifer Lerner said.Livingston began his multifaceted career in show business as a writer and producer of children's read-along record albums for Capitol Records. He came up with the Bozo character for the 1946 album "Bozo at the Circus," and it became a big hit and spawned a cottage industry of merchandise and television series featuring the wing-haired clown.When he moved into executive positions at Capitol Records in the early 1950s, Livingston signed Frank Sinatra, then at a low point in his career, and introduced him to arranger Nelson Riddle. Together, the pair produced "I've Got the World on a String" and "Young At Heart," which led to Sinatra's comeback on the charts.Livingston left the record label in the late 1950s to work in television, where he produced the western series "Bonanza." He eventually returned to Capitol Records as president in the 1960s where he signed such rock acts as the Beach Boys and Steve Miller and the Band.Capitol, then partly owned by the Beatles' record company EMI in the United Kingdom, had rejected the group's early hit singles as unsuitable for the American market. But when Livingston heard the song "I Want to Hold Your Hand," he agreed to release single and brought the Fab Four to the United States in 1964 to promote it."He had great taste and judgment, as far as musical talent, and as an executive, he was always very mentoring, very supportive," said Neil Portnow, president and CEO of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences who worked with Livingston in the late '70s.In addition to stepdaughter Jennifer Lerner, Livingston is survived by his wife Nancy Olson, one son, one daughter, and another stepdaughter. His late brother Jay Livingston, who died in 2001, was a composer who teamed with songwriter Ray Evans to produce such enduring standards as "Mona Lisa,""Silver Bells" and "Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)" and the theme music for "Bonanza."
