'The RSO Treatment'. Robert Stigwood Impresario Extraordinaire- By Stephanie Lynne Thorburn.

Dr. David English with Robin Gibb Photo: Keith Curtis.

2007-10-25 14:03:30 - The avant-garde world of 1960's psychedelia heralded a new age of cultural and psychic consciousness, a world stratified by the rich hierarchies of stars across the spectrum of media. These apparently simultaneous developments in music, film and the stage were born of one dream, a series of visions eclipsed together by the rationality of a single mind. For this man his only fear was to lose the chase, exhausting and exploring all natural opportunities within the creative realm, an approach cautioned by cynics as practically impossible due to the bureaucratic status quo of the industry.

This irrepressible impresario was manager and producer extraordinaire, Robert Stigwood, his vision comprised of building an empire crossing the boundaries between management, recording, publishing and producing. Robert's lifecycle of success saw him emerge from concrete origins having emigrated from Adelaide in 1955, hitching to Europe, seemingly pre-empting and exploding the hippie movement in his wake. There were some characteristically humble beginnings, with Stigwood's early ventures ending in bankruptcy, prior to his becoming established as co-manager of NEMS Enterprises with Svengali Brian Epstein. Following Epstein's unfortunate death, Robert decided to form his own company, the seminal 'Robert Stigwood Organisation'. Initially working as a promoter for the crème de la crème, including Mick Jagger and David Bowie, he moved forward with assured authority into management, nurturing the careers of primarily Cream and The Bee Gees.

Robert's next distinguished manoeuvre was into the discipline of theatrical production, a venture destined to set a precedent and standard for generations to come. By 1968 he brought the American rock musical ‘Hair' to the West End, followed by productions of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's musicals 'Jesus Christ Superstar' and 'Evita'. Perhaps Stigwood's greatest success was to become a silent witness to realising the ambitions of so many talented young hearts and minds by giving opportunities to young artists in stage and music.

The final corner stone in Stigwood's achievements saw his shrewd marketing instincts enter the sphere of film production, with a list of familiar epic titles including credits for a reproduction of 'Jesus Christ Superstar' as a motion picture and 'Tommy', starring Roger Daltrey. The newly formed RSO films went on to launch the career of John Travolta with blockbusters 'Saturday Night Fever' and 'Grease'.

In presenting the facts of Stigwood's biography it is hard not to consider his career as a fictional 'treatment', or outline synopsis used as a selling document for a classic movie script. Plot, energy, excitement, vivid adjectives and event driven, yes this is the real life of a definitive mogul impresario. The irony of his career is found in between the lines of the facts, there is sadly little to teach us the rich details of his life experiences, simply scattered press library copy, with internet searches leading to information portals on theatrical websites. Yet, this is a man who is responsible for building the framework for many existing taken for granted landmarks in our quality consumption of music, stage and film.

This year alone, we are left with numerous reminders of the timeless appeal of Stigwood's many projects, which all form precedents to this day. The resurgence of Grease on both sides of the Atlantic and the 30th Anniversary of Saturday Night Fever this year are testaments enough- the publication of a string of recent autobiographies from A-list music industry personalities should however highlight Robert Stigwood's supportive role as an impresario further. In Eric Clapton's autobiography he speaks evocatively of his thoughts on Robert,
'Robert was an extraordinary character, a flamboyant Australian who liked to pass himself off as a wealthy Englishman. He would usually wear a blazer and grey slacks, with a pale blue shirt and a smattering of gold, and was the epitome of a man of leisure. Seated behind an ornate desk, he launched into a very confident monologue, telling us all the things that he could do for us, and how wonderful our lives were going to be... I was struck by his obvious artistic flair and thought he had a pretty unique and interesting vision of life.- Page 80. 'Eric Clapton. The Autobiography.' Century 2007.

In his second autobiography, 'Confession Of A Dedicated Englishman' Dr. David English, former President of RSO dedicates a chapter to his colleague, ‘Robert Stigwood- The Greatest Showman of Them All.' David reflects on the status of Robert as an international figure in the media industry, together with his enigma and the gap in literature upon him. Without a doubt, this is a valid point, although there has not only been an omission in biographical material on Robert, but also seemingly a lack of formalised acknowledgement of his contribution in our British honours system. As a guru of the entertainment industry, I imagine that Robert Stigwood has enjoyed a higher degree of privacy in his capacity as a low key impresario-

Biographical reflections on Robert Stigwood: - ‘The RSO Treatment': -

www.brothersgibb.org/reports-the-rso-treatment.html

Stephanie Lynne Thorburn.