Kenneth Leo BrodziakOBE (31 May 1913 – 3 June 1999), known early in his career as Richard R. Raymon and nicknamed "Mr Show Business", was an Australian entrepreneur, theatre and concert promoter, producer and artist manager. His career lasted from the mid-1940s until his retirement in 1980.
Life and career
Kenn Brodziak was born in the Sydney suburb of Waverley; of Polish-Jewish extraction. Brodziac's family wanted him to have a law career, and he studied law for five years while writing plays in his spare time, but he did not get a law degree.[1]
He joined the RAAF when war broke out, and trained in Canada as a navigator under the Empire Air Training Scheme. He was in Coastal Command in England; when on leave in London’s theatreland he got tips on theatrical management from stars like Jack Warner and Vivien Leigh.[1]
However a 1954 tour by Ted Heath and his orchestra was a logistical and financial disaster for Brodziak and his Sydney associate John (Jack) Neary (who lost his house). Another lesson for the pair was Sam Snyders’ Fabulous American Water Follies in 1956. The show lost £23,000 in Sydney’s White City Stadium in ten days, but recovered the losses in Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth; a lesson that what goes in Melbourne may not play well in Sydney and vice versa. Jack Neary looked after New South Wales and Queensland, and Kenn Brodziak looked after Victoria and South Australia. [1]
His bringing of the BBC's Black and White Minstrel Show for an intended six-month tour of both Australia and New Zealand was an unprecedented success, eventually lasting for over for three years from 1962 to 1965 and breaking box office records in both countries which still stand.[citation needed] He was also the second manager of pop singer John Farnham and casting him in roles in local versions of musicals Charlie Girl and Pippin.
His major competitor was Harry M. Miller in Sydney, whom he subsequently joined with Stadium Limited to form Miller-Aztec Stadiums and promoted tours by the Animals, the Monkees and the "Big Show Tour" of 1968 headlined by rock group the Who.[2]
The Beatles' Australian tour
Brodziak's most notable achievement was arranging the Beatles' 16-day Australian tour in 1964 during their world tour. He had seen the Beatles perform during a talent-scouting trip to Britain in 1963 and agreed to handle and promote the group's Australian tour, just prior to the explosion of Beatlemania in Australia, for Stadiums Limited which owned most of the large capital city venues including the Brisbane Festival Hall, the Festival Hall in Melbourne, Centennial Hall in Adelaide and Sydney Stadium. By the time the Beatles arrived in Australia they had become international stars, having already scored 12 hits on the Australian pop charts. The tour was a great success, bringing Brodziak a level of fame in Australia he had never previously experienced. In 1998, he acknowledged that, in spite of his many other achievements, bringing the Beatles to Australia was probably the most memorable:
"It used to annoy me that people only knew me for bringing The Beatles here. Now I realise what a landmark moment that was. There will never be another group like them."[2]
Theatre productions
Though Brodziak would continue to book concerts, later in his career he also concentrated on producing stage shows. These shows included the successful Australian productions of The Boys in the Band, Godspell, Pippin, Hair and A Chorus Line. One of his assistants was Shane Hewitt. After retiring in 1980, he concentrated on adding to and developing his extensive collection of showbiz memorabilia.
Armstrong, Greg; Neill, Andy (2024). When We Was Fab: Inside the Beatles Australasian Tour 1964. Warriewood NSW, Australia: Woodslane Press. ISBN978-1-922800-68-8.
