George Black (Producer)

George Black was a British theatrical impresario, controlled many entertainment venues during the 1930s. He was born in Birmingham on 20 April 1890, and died in London on 4 March 1945.

When young he helped his father set up some of the first permanent cinemas in Britain. In 1928 he took over the management of GTC (General Theatre Corporation) which was a chain of Theatres, Cinemas and Dance halls. He also took over the management of the London Palladium, which was the flagship of the corporation.

In 1931 he organised "Crazy Week" at the Palladium, which brought together acts which later became the Crazy Gang. Black devised and produced the shows and revues which stared the Crazy Gang at the Palladium until his death. Many theatre programs of the 1930s had the words "Produced by George Black" on their cover.

Black oversaw the merging of GTC with Moss Empires in 1932. He was then in charge of the new company Moss Empires Group and was in control of a chain of 53 theatres.

In 1937 and 1938, he directed two films; "The Penny Pool" and "Calling All Crooks"

After his death in 1945, Val Parnell, who had been his booking manager, took over the running of the Group.