(The balance is transaction costs.). Its sad how things ended because he really was a bright guy, but in the end he carried a lot of pain. They wanted to marry content with distribution, where CKX will not be in the traditional distribution business. [39], On November 24, 2019, Sillerman died at the age of 71 after a respiratory illness.[40]. And then in early 2000, lightning struck again. Dressed in all black, the music mogul--who once appeared on the 2005 Forbes 400 list with a. According to Billboard, Sillerman died of a. Robert F.X. [6] Sillerman was married to copywriter Laura Baudo, whom he met at Ingalls. on fraud charges for his work with Function (X). Just ask the makers of the smash-hit movie Lilo and Stitch, who used an Elvis soundtrack to great success. He set up what became his signature company, SFX, which he took public in 1993 at $15 a share. "Robert F. X. Sillerman," Wikipedia.org. It declared bankruptcy in 2016, and many of the assets it had amassed were sold off. When asked if Bob was dishonest about the companys health, Finkel told Billboard, It was more complicated than that. [36] Sillerman was also a donor and fundraiser for the Democratic Party in the United States. Capstar applied for and received permission to operate more than one class of radio station in the same market. Those companies promised two things. Despite this, the 67-year-old CEO said that he is the right man to run the troubled business and that he still wants to own the company even though he reneged on a plan to take it private earlier this month. The truth is, for all of Elviss transcendent mystique, EPE has never been much of a business. Connecting the show to phones, through the Internet, through merchandising, and ways I cant talk about yet.. What Sillerman bought was Elvis Presley Enterprises (EPE), a company that gets its $40 million in annual revenue from Graceland tours, onsite retailing, and licensingeach contributing a bit less than a third of the totalwith the balance derived from an apartment complex and the Heartbreak Hotel. Thats the whole game., Robert F.X. Sillerman also bought the business of sports superagent David Falk (he repped Michael Jordan, among others) and other pieces of the sports world, such as figure-skating championships. The lawsuit is set to go to trial in October in a federal court in Los Angeles and has been one of a handful of elements to weigh heavily on SFXs stock in the last year. Robert, who grew up in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, was born on the third anniversary of the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt, and his original middle name was a tribute to the former president. The company has teased burned investors with an "indication of interest" from an unnamed bidder. While he survived that battle, Sillerman is now in a fight to salvage SFX Entertainment, which went public at $13 a share and was valued at more than $1 billion in Oct. 2013. He was 71. His plan was to spend $1 billion to buy EDM-related companies around the world, telling FORBES in 2012: If we do this with the right people this will be bigger than the first SFX.. By that time Mr. Sillerman had turned his sights on another industry ripe for consolidation: the nationwide concert circuit, which had long remained a loosely connected network of venues and promoters who operated regional fiefs. Meet the Women in Music Honoree Who Escaped the IronCurtain, Manson Accusers Recantation Cant Be Used for Now in Case Against Evan Rachel Wood, JudgeSays, Fadia Kader Joins Venice Music as EVP &GM. (Hicks Muse agreed to spin this business off to SFX shareholders.) [34], In 2008, Sillerman donated $10 million in order to fund The Sillerman Center for the Advancement of Philanthropy at Brandeis University. Some $124 million was in cash upfront and $31 million in stock, with the balance to be paid in cash or stock after Fullers company reports its year-end numbers. But where did it go wrong for SFX? In the years following that tragic 2012 event, he was often treated as a cartoon villain in the media, trying for a third, fourth and even fifth act in business, and some say the death of his daughter hardened him to any criticism. The results supported theories that Sillerman--who proposed in late May to take the company private at a price of $5.25 per share--didnt have the financial partners or intent to buy his cash-strapped company. I should get a waterproof one for the shower., At this particular sit-down, when Sillerman gets around to talking about CKX, he says, Technology is breaking down the old lines of distribution. On Friday, the stock closed at 91 cents a share. FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. In 2000, the radio chain Clear Channel Communications bought SFX for $4.4 billion. Hes obviously smart, and he doesnt b.s. He loves to party. As for spinoffs, did we mention that another smash hit on Fox, So You Think You Can Dance, is produced by Fuller too? The prior owner, ex-HBO CEO Richard Plepler now founder and CEO of Eden Productions had once listed it for $18.5 million in 2008 after buying it for $2.33 million in 2002. . 1 show on television, drawing some 30 million viewers, which is great, but it means that fewer than one out of ten people in America watch it, Sillerman says. He refounded SFX Entertainment in 2012 as a promoter of electronic music festivals; that company is now known as LiveStyle. While attending Brandeis University, he founded Youth Market Consultants, which sold magazine subscriptions to students and in turn advised companies on how to reach that market. Sillerman insists that cancer hasnt impeded his business or his social life, which can be a bit wild and woolly. Sillerman, poses after ringing the Nasdaq closing bell on Oct. 9, [+] 2013, the day his company went public. But it had to be a biggie to make economic sense. (Rumors suggesting that Sillermans next big acquisition has been delayed have been a drag on the stock.) Elviss legendary manager, Colonel Tom Parker (a.k.a. The massive property that was assembled from four different plots of land has just hit the market for a staggering $150 million. In 1985 Sillerman entered into a partnership with radio/television industry executive Carl E. Hirsch (known as Legacy Broadcasting) to acquire KJOI-FM, Los Angeles for a then record-setting $44 million, as well as other stations in Denver, Detroit, Minneapolis, Washington D.C., Houston, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and New York City. I ask Sillerman about his revenue and income projections for his Elvis and American Idol businesses. [12], In May 2009, Credit Suisse filed a request for summary judgment in New York State Supreme Court, alleging Sillerman had failed to pay the outstanding balance due under a credit agreement with Flag Luxury Properties LLC and that Sillerman defaulted on a series of payments due since April 2008, totaling $21.4 million. Think about it. Laura Sillerman, Robert Reeves and Julie Sheehan attend The Launch of The Southampton Review at Literary Reception on July 29, 2007 in Southampton,. Brucie and Bob bought more stations and worked their magic on operations. He wa At the time, Sillerman said he expected to deliver equity and debt financing on the billion-dollar deal when a 60-day sale process was completed. CKX also gets the publishing rights to 650 songs, but owns the more valuable royalty rights to only the few songs Elvis recorded after 1973. Can we monetize that? ", "Mobile app Viggle sets terms for $50 million NASDAQ listing", "GetGlue Sale to Sillerman's Viggle Cancelled", "GetGlue Acquired by Viggle for $25M, 48.3M Shares of Stock", "Viggle Buys Dijit Media, in Another Second-Screen TV Mashup", "Viggle Acquires Dijit, Will Connect Its Rewards Program To Dijit's TV Discovery App", "With Over 9.5 Million Registered Users, Viggle Expects Fiscal 2015 Revenue to Increase More Than 40% Year-Over-Year to $25.6 Million", "SFX Beefing Up Digital Capabilities, Plans to Buy Tunezy, Fame House and Arc90", "Mogul to Increase Bets on Electronic Dance Music", "SFX Enters Ticketing Business with $16.2 Million Acquisition of Europe's Paylogic", "Electronic music promoter SFX files for $175-million IPO", "Robert F.X Sillerman on SFX's IPO, Stock Prices, Future Acquisitions, Afrojack", "SFX's Bumpy Ride Continues With $20 Million in New Financing", "SFX Entertainment Emerges From Bankruptcy With New Name: LiveStyle", "SFX Emerges From Bankruptcy with a New Name, LiveStyle, and New Leader in Randy Phillips", "Former SFX CEO Robert Sillerman Speaks Out for the First Time About His Company's Implosion: 'I Don't Begrudge the Employees' Anger', "Choosing honorary degree recipient an often-painstaking process", "Sillerman Family Makes $10 Million Gift to Heller to Begin New Center for the Advancement of Philanthropy", "Steven Spielberg and George Soros Stock Senate Democratic Super-PAC", "Music Managers Allege Deceit by SFX Founder", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Robert_F._X._Sillerman&oldid=1135076047, American entertainment industry businesspeople, American telecommunications industry businesspeople, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 22 January 2023, at 14:00. Well, its a little early to ask that question. Really? Even very young people. As his radio empire grew, Sillerman increasingly came up against Federal Communications Commission regulations restricting his ability to own multiple public broadcast stations, until 1996 and the passage of the Telecommunications Act, which lifted the restriction on owning multiple radio and television stations in a single market, paving the way for Sillermans firm to merge with Command Communicationsand become SFX Broadcasting. Viggle registers the television show a person is watching, and engages the users with a loyalty program for viewing particular programs. In 2013, the year after the companys creation, the organizers of industry conference International Music Summit estimated the global market associated with EDM to be about $4.5 billion in sales. Says a top Wall Street banker: Hes a very smart guy, but I dont think you want to be sitting on the other side of the negotiating table from him.. [7] The company was merged at the end of 1989 with a unit of Westinghouse Broadcasting in a then record-setting transaction worth $727 million. In February 2016, SFX filed for bankruptcy, brought down in a cash crunch that Estopinal now partially blames on overpaying for the assets that came to make up SFX. Eight years later he unloaded a bunch of stations to Hicks Muse for $2.1 billion. All Rights Reserved. And she had a great sense of humor., Here then are the terms of the deal between Sillerman and Lisa Presley: CKX paid $114 million for an 85% interest in Elvis Presley Enterprises; Lisa retains the other 15%. On Saturday, Sillerman gave an interview to FORBES and said that he takes full responsibility for the issues within his SFX Entertainment. David Lieberman, "'American Idol' Owner CKX Sells To Financial Firm, Ending Robert F.X. Robert F.X. Ive tried to get him drunk to get him to tell me, says Brucie. Michael Sillerman died in 1980, just when his sons career was taking off. Not bad for a years work. The five-story home, between Lexington and Third avenues, is 5,885 square feet and was built in 1920. CKX raised $251 million at its IPO earlier this year, which it used to pay back $150 million in loans from Bear Stearnsthe rest it paid directly to 19 Entertainment or kept as capital. Then, Lisa says, the failure of the Elvis Presleys Memphis restaurant on Beale Street in 2003 made matters urgent. But Fuller had an even bigger idea, a kind of interactive on-air talent show. In May 2009, Credit Suisse filed a request for summary judgement in New York State Supreme Court, alleging Sillerman had failed to pay the . Embattled music executive Robert Sillerman, who founded the company that would eventually become ticketing and concert giant Live Nation, has died at the age of 71. Impersonator shows can, if properly done, extend the brand, Sillerman says. That means $125 million out of the $306 million paid for these two companies exceeds any tangible assets, including the value of trademarks. Billboard is a part of Penske Media Corporation. In 2017, he almost lost the home after defaulting on a $12.5 million loan, The Post reported at the time. Bob can sell anythingit doesnt matterhe has that kind of head. (Morrow says it was he who enlisted Sillerman, not the other way around. She also criticized the investors and analysts watching the company, saying they spent much of 2015 ignoring all indications that the Company was in a poor financial state and ignored key developments like a decision by Moodys to downgrade SFXs credit rating a development that under normal circumstances would be a significant red flag for investors. The studio of course had a glass wall. Billionaire entertainment mogul Robert F.X. In 2010, he re-emerged with a second strings-attached take-private bid, but CKXs board chose to sell the company to Apollo Global for $5.50 a share, a bruising result for investors. But isnt American Idol just another reality show that will soon run out of gas? (Photo credit: Jonas Roosens/AFP/Getty Images). Former employees also interviewed by Billboard felt that the company did not do enough to leverage its scale, and that the company did not engage in centralization, leading to a lack of coordination between its collection of subsidiaries. [33] In 2000, Sillerman donated a $15 million gift through the Tomorrow Foundation to extend the library and for marine science scholarships. The show is also being franchised in 100 countries. His net worth has been growing significantly in 2021-2022. He also acquired a majority of the Presley estate, with the right to operate Graceland, the Presley home in Memphis; took over the company behind the long-running television hit American Idol; and acquired the rights to Muhammad Alis name and likeness. He made a lot of people wealthy, and he made himself even wealthier., Visit with Sillerman for an hour or two in his Manhattan office, and you are likely to get a rapid-fire discourse on politics from the 1960s to today, or rock & roll radio, or Thoreau, or education in America, or all of the above. Down the road EPE may construct more Graceland-like properties in places such as Dubai and Macau, and perhaps develop a concept similar to the Hard Rock Cafs in Europe. To Sillerman the soft patch was an opportunity to reload. Mr. Sillerman, founder of the electronic dance music conglomerate SFX Entertainment, has listed his eight-bedroom oceanfront home in Southampton, top right, for $39 million with Tim Davis of the. Between Elviss legendary free spending and the fact that he didnt own his songs, the situation was dire. The stock cratered. We have estimated Robert F.X. He just didnt a fabout anything, said one former business partner who did not want to share their name. Robert Sillerman, founder of SFX Entertainment, has died, Billboard reports and Sillerman's lawyer Sanford Philip Rosen confirmed to Pitchfork. In addition to concerts, Robert F.X. The guy didnt have any energy, says Morrow. In short order Sillerman went on a billion-dollar shopping spree, buying dozens of concert hallslike Roseland in New York and the Fillmore West in San Franciscoin major cities across the country. PHOTOGRAPH BY GREG MILLER. That company was also called SFX. Some people loved Bob and some people hated him, there was no middle ground, said James Disco Donnie Estopinal, a New Orleansdance promoter now living in Puerto Ricowho served as Sillermans deal maker and helped bring in the dance promoters that would come to form the new SFX Entertainment. Robert FX Sillerman (born 1949) is an American businessman and media entrepreneur. (A hip-hop-style remix of A Little Less Conversation was a No. Sillerman was looking to become the single big fish in this business so that when acts like Eric Clapton went on tour, his manager would deal with SFX and SFX only when booking venues. Elvis, a poor boy from Tupelo, Miss., comes up to Memphis, manages to get himself into Sun Records, and lays down the track to Thats All Right (Mama). A local radio station airs it, the calls come streaming in, and Elvis is on the way to glory. Sillerman, Self: 60 Minutes. That business was built from a spree of acquisitions from 1997 to 2000 when Sillerman bought up Houston outfit Pace Concerts, New York promoter Delsener/Slater enterprises, Boston big man Don Laws Blackstone Entertainment, Los AngelesAvalon Attractions, Jack Boyles Cellar Door International, Bill Graham Presents in Northern California and Jimmy Koplicks 4,800-seat Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, Connecticut. The orginal goal was to buy Pasquale RotellasInsomniac, explained Estopinal. But nearly every time Sillerman sold, he and his investors made money. The transaction renamed the company to Function (X), Inc. and changing its listing on the stock exchange to FNCX. He sold the company in 1971, and then launched I P+E, a sales marketing and promotion company. I could tell you, but Id have to kill you, he says. Industry sources suggested that a possible buyer could be Live Nation. Mr. Sillerman called it an inside joke. What kind of person would grow up to have business dreams like these? Robert F.X. Robert F.X. Andreas Cornelius van Kuijk), sold the rights to RCAnow part of Sony BMGdecades ago. I thought he was asleep. The company also held a stake in Morra, Brezner, Steinberg & Tenenbaum Entertainment, the management company for Woody Allen, Robin Williams and Billy Crystal. As the genre has grown in popularity, so too has the quantity of reports of drug-induced injuries and deaths at concerts. During its public run, the company also sold $295 million debt to finance additional acquisitions and fund operating losses. In 1993 he founded SFX Broadcasting with a partner, R. Steven Hicks. Investor and media executive Robert F.X. ), Sillerman with Rod Stewart and Dick Grasso at the NYSE.Henny Ray Abrams AFP/Getty Images. [29] In December, the company went private and was renamed LiveStyle, with Sillerman exiting the company in favor of former AEG Live executive Randy Phillips as CEO. If we can, this will dwarf the first SFX. No question we could build a convention-sized hotel here, says Soden. That seemed to sum everything up., A daily briefing on what matters in the music industry. Robert F.X. [17][18] In December 2013 Viggle acquired Wetpaint for $30 million in stock and in early 2014 Viggle acquired Digit Media, an entertainment app producer. Inspite of the distractions, he explained that he is 100% committed to do a deal to take SFX private and is in robust conversation with several people that want to participate with him. Try A Different OS, Get Vaccinated? Sillerman already has 18 acres on the Strip through MJX, a real estate company he controls. SFX raised $260 million in its initial public offering. In 2017, he almost lost the home after defaulting on a $12.5 million. To Function ( X ) convention-sized hotel here, says Morrow has teased burned with... 2.1 billion that will soon run out of gas to great success became signature. 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