Lionel Bart

Lionel Bart

Infobox actor
name = Lionel Bart


caption =
birthname = Lionel Begleiter
birthdate = birth date|1930|8|1|df=y
birthplace = Stepney, London
deathdate = death date and age|1999|4|3|1930|8|1|df=y
deathplace = London
restingplace =
restingplacecoordinates =
othername =
occupation = Composer
yearsactive = 1952–1999
spouse =
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children =
parents =
influences =
influenced =
website =
academyawards =
afiawards =
arielaward =
baftaawards =
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grammyawards =
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sagawards =
tonyawards = 1963 Best Original Score "Oliver!"
awards = Ivor Novello Awards
1957 Outstanding Song "A Handful of Songs"
1957 Best novelty song "Water, Water"
1957 Outstanding film score "The Tommy Steele Story"
1959 Best-selling song "Living Doll"
1959 Outstanding score "Lock Up Your Daughters"
1959 Outstanding novelty song "Little White Bull"
1959 Special award for "outstanding personal services to British music"

Lionel Bart (August 1, 1930 – April 3, 1999) was an English composer of songs and musicals, best known for "Oliver!"

Early life

Bart was born Lionel Begleiter the youngest of seven surviving children in East London to Galician Jews, and grew up in Stepney. His father worked as a tailor in a garden shed in London E1. The family had escaped the pogroms in Galicia which was then part of the Austrian Empire.

Lionel later changed his name to "Bart" derived from the name of the silk screen printing firm he and John Gorman [http://www.knittingcircle.org.uk/lionelbart.html Lionel Bart] , The Knitting Circle. Accessed 24 November 2006. (Another versionFact|date=February 2007 says that he thought of it whilst passing by St Bartholomew's hospital on a London bus.)] created ("G & B Arts", for Gorman and Begleiter) after he had completed his National Service with the Royal Air Force.

As a young man he was quite an accomplished painter. When Lionel Bart was six years old a teacher told his parents that he was a musical genius. His parents gave him an old violin, but he did not apply himself and the lessons stopped.

At the age of 16 he obtained a scholarship to St Martin's School of Art but he was expelled for "mischievousness", and he gave up his ambition to be a painter. However, he took jobs in silk-screen printing works and commercial art studios. He never learned to read or write musical notation; this did not stop him from becoming a highly significant personality in the development of British rock and pop music.

ongwriting

He started his songwriting career in amateur theatre, first at "The International Youth Centre" in 1952 where he and a friend wrote a revue together called "IYC Revue 52". The following year the pair auditioned for a production of the Leonard Irwin play "The Wages Of Eve" at Unity Theatre, London. Shortly after Bart began composing songs for Unity Theatre, contributing material (including the title song) to their 1953 revue "Turn It Up", and songs for their 1953 pantomime, an agit prop version of "Cinderella". While at Unity he was talent spotted by Joan Littlewood and so joined Theatre Workshop. [This is detailed mainly in David Roper's book, and some of it in Colin Chambers'.]

He first gained widespread recognition through his songwriting, which includes the hits "Livin' Doll" (written for Cliff Richard) and "Rock with the Cavemen", "Handful of Songs", "Butterfingers" and "Little White Bull" (for Tommy Steele). During this period, Mike Pratt as well as Steele were his songwriting partners. In 1957, he won three Ivor Novello Awards, a further four in 1958, and two in 1960.

He wrote the theme song for the 1963 James Bond film "From Russia With Love".

His other hits include: "Do You Mind?" (by Anthony Newley and Andy Williams), "Easy Going Me" (Adam Faith) and "Always You And Me" (with Russ Conway)

Musical theatre

His first professional musical was the 1959 "Lock Up Your Daughters", based on an 18th century play by Henry Fielding. Following that, "Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'Be" produced by Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop, was notable for encouraging the use of authentic Cockney accents on the London stage. "Oliver!" (1960), based on Dickens' "Oliver Twist" was a huge hit from the very beginning, and has sustained its popularity to the present day. The original stage musical which starred Ron Moody and Georgia Brown spawned such song hits as "As Long As He Needs Me" and "Consider Yourself". In 1968 it was made into a film starring Ron Moody, Oliver Reed and Shani Wallis which won several Oscars, including best film. Subject to belief, Lionel actually wrote the part of Nancy for singing star Alma Cogan and not his childhood friend Georgia Brown. Alma was unable to commit to Oliver! at Wimbledon Theatre. It is estimated that around this time Bart was earning 16 pounds a minute from "Oliver!".

Bart's next two musicals, "Blitz!" (1962) (the song "Far Away" produced another hit for Shirley Bassey) and "Maggie May" (1964), had respectable West End runs ("Blitz!", at the time London's most expensive musical ever, had a run of 568 performances [ [http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Story.aspx?ci=516132 Blitz! CD review] accessed 11 May 2007] ); but "Twang!" (1965) was a notorious flop and "La Strada" (1969), which opened on Broadway in New York City, closed after only one performance. Bart used his personal finances to try to rescue them, selling his rights to others of his works, including "Oliver!", in order to generate capital. By 1972, Bart was bankrupt, with debts of £73,0000. He turned to drink, and a twenty-year period of depression ensued, from which he ultimately recovered, attending Alcoholics Anonymous [http://eastlondonhistory.com/lionel-bart/ "Bart biography" {East London History] accessed 11 May 2007] .

He continued writing songs and themes for films, but his only real success in his later years was "Happy Endings", a 1989 advertising jingle for Abbey National.

In 1986 Bart received a special Ivor Novello Award for his life's achievement. Cameron Mackintosh, who owned half the rights to "Oliver!", revived the musical at the London Palladium in 1994 in a version rewritten by Lionel Bart. Mackintosh gave Lionel a share of the production royalties. Lionel Bart was often publicly and romantically linked with Judy Garland or Alma Cogan.

Bart died in 1999 after a long hard struggle with cancer and his funeral took place at Golders Green Crematorium.

A musical play based on Bart's life and using his songs, "It's a Fine Life" was staged at the Queen's Theatre, Hornchurch in 2006 [ [http://www.queens-theatre.co.uk/itsafinelife.htm Lionel Bart bio] accessed 11 May 2007] .

West End theatrical credits

* "Lock Up Your Daughters" (1959) - lyricist
* "Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'Be" (1959) - composer, lyricist
* "Oliver!" (1960) - composer, lyricist, writer
* "Blitz!" (1962) - composer, lyricist, writer
* "Maggie May" (1964) - composer, lyricist
* "Twang!" (1965) - composer, lyricist
* "La Strada" (1969) - co-composer, co-lyricist

Work on Broadway

*"Oliver!" (1963) - musical - composer, lyricist, and bookwriter - Tony Award for Best Composer and Lyricist, Tony Nominations for Best Musical and Best Author of a Musical
**A return engagement of the original production played in 1965, and a revival in 1984.
*"La Strada" (1969) - musical - composer and lyricist

Notes and references

----
* "Bart! The Unauthorized Life & Times, Ins and Outs, Ups and Downs of Lionel Bart" by David Roper ISBN 1-85793-330-3
* [http://eastlondonhistory.com/lionel-bart/ "Oliver!" writer Lionel Bart] on EastLondonHistory.com
* Samantha Ellis, [http://arts.guardian.co.uk/curtainup/story/0,,979581,00.html "Lionel Bart's "Oliver!", June 1960] "The Guardian", June 18, 2003.
* Michael Coveney, [http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/theatre/features/article1222931.ece Lionel Bart: Appetite for destruction] , "The Independent", 31 August 2006.
* [http://www.circa-club.com/gallery/gay_history_icons_lionel_begleiter_bart.php Lionel Begleiter (Bart)] , Icons Gallery, circa-club.com.
* [http://www.queens-theatre.co.uk/biographies/lionelbart.htm Lionel Bart, a composer of songs and musicals] , The Queens Theatre (Hornchurch).
* Gerald Mahlowe, [http://www.songwriter.co.uk/page62.html Songwriter Profile Lionel Bart] , "Songwriter" magazine, International Songwriters Association (undated interview some time after 1985)
* "The Story of Unity Theatre", by Colin Chambers, ISBN 0 85315 587 9

External links

*imdb name|id=0058369|name=Lionel Bart
*ibdb name|id=7347|name=Lionel Bart
* [http://www.mike-pratt.co.uk Biographical info on Mike Pratt] , songwriting partner, along with Tommy Steele

Persondata
NAME= Bart, Lionel
ALTERNATIVE NAMES= Begleiter, Lionel
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Composer
DATE OF BIRTH= 1930-8-1
PLACE OF BIRTH= Stepney, London
DATE OF DEATH= 1999-4-3
PLACE OF DEATH= London


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