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Pollstar co-founder Gary Smith dies at 77

Gary Smith, the co-founder of US concert business magazine Pollstar, has died aged 77, it has been announced.

Smith, who established the publication in 1981 as Promoter On Line Listings alongside Gary Bongiovanni, passed away “peacefully and unexpectedly” at home in Fresno, California on Saturday 20 January.

Smith led Pollstar – initially a service providing printed pages for subscribers to assemble in their own binders – throughout its history, overseeing the launch of weekly print magazine, the Concert Industry Consortium (now the Pollstar Live! conference and awards) and the magazine’s online presence.

Bongiovanni, Pollstar’s former editor in chief, retired in July 2017, almost a year after the company’s acquisition by Oak View Group.

“When Gary Bongiovanni and I got together, he had his files, he had his concept, and he had filed to incorporate Promoters On-Line Listings as a title,” said Smith in a 2022 interview. “It wasn’t that it was a cool name, but it describes what we did. It was an insider newsletter. The idea for promoters is that you could get information online even though we sent out a printed newsletter, and it wasn’t just the box office reports. We listed the avails of artists.”

Smith, who retired in 2018 after almost 38 years at the Pollstar helm, continued: “I’m glad to see that there’s a legacy that’s sustained. Maybe it will be remembered in some small way. I would hope so.”

Smith also worked in artist management and as a promoter for San Diego-based James C. Pagni Productions and later Papa Productions, working with acts such as The Doors, Tower of Power and The Guess Who.

“He was much beloved by the company he built and the industry he worked in and tirelessly supported”

“He was much beloved by the company he built and the industry he worked in and tirelessly supported,” says Andy Glen, executive editor of Pollstar and VenuesNow, on LinkedIn. “He will be sorely missed by many.”

Smith was also a long-time supporter of the International Live Music Conference (ILMC), and an ILMC platinum delegate.

“Gary was such a lovely guy, a real gentlemen,” says ILMC MD Greg Parmley. “He always had time to chat, was always extremely welcoming and funny, and was a pioneer in building Pollstar into such a globally recognised brand. His passing will be very sad news to a great many people.”

Primary Talent’s Martin Hopewell also paid tribute.

“On the last night of one of the early ILMC weekends, I ended up sitting in the bar all night chatting with Gary – comparing conference organising notes, crying on his shoulder about things that had gone wrong and having a good laugh about the silly stuff that had gone right,” he tells IQ.

“That became a tradition – an essential way of ending an ILMC – with the pair of us staying up later each year until we finally agreed that the arrival of the hotel manager at 9am and a shared tray of bacon sandwiches would be our limit. Those nights – along with the many crazy stunts that we got involved in during the conference – are what I’ll remember of Gary. He was a lovely guy and I will miss him.”

 


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Co-founders step back as Pollstar announces move to LA

Pollstar co-founders Gary Smith and Gary Bongiovanni are to scale back their involvement with the US concert business magazine, ahead of an impending relocation to Los Angeles after 37 years in Fresno, California.

Editor in chief Bongiovanni will retire this month, while former CEO Gary Smith will remain with the magazine in an advisory capacity, owner Oak View Group (OVG) has announced.

OVG – the venue development and investment vehicle founded by ex-AEG CEO Tim Leiweke and former Live Nation chairman Irving Azoff – bought Pollstar last July.

“When Gary and I founded this publication, we set out to revolutionise the quality of data available to those who make their living in the live entertainment industry, and we accomplished that goal,” says Smith. “I couldn’t be more excited to be a part of the next era in the history of Pollstar, building on that legacy with the team at OVG.”

Former Billboard reporter Ray Waddell, now president of the OVG Media & Conferences division, which includes Pollstar, adds: “Pollstar built a remarkable media brand in Fresno, synonymous with credible live entertainment business news and industry data, and perfectly positioned for growth in influence and relevance.

“Relocating Pollstar’s HQ to the epicentre of the live music business is the right move at the right time”

“I couldn’t be more excited about the team we have in place as we remain focused on becoming an even more powerful tool for those in the business of live entertainment and facilities.”

The relocation, which begins immediately, will “necessitate staffing transitions and reorganisation”, according to a statement from OVG. In a Celebrity Access articlePollstar’s former news editor, Joe Reinartz estimates that, of the 50 staff based in the Fresno office, “about 12 will remain on the OVG payroll”.

OVG says the “editorial, technology and box-office staff, the latter two led by CTO Dan Martin and box office manager Brad Rogers [sic], respectively, will remain largely unaffected”.

“Live is leading the way in the music business in terms of popularity, revenue and career development, and the majority of the most influential [US] agencies, promoters and managers are based in southern California,” comments OVG CEO Leiweke. “We are reacting to this robust market by investing significant resources in growing Pollstar across all metrics: editorial influence, superior data and global reach.

“Relocating Pollstar’s HQ to the epicentre of the live music business is the right move at the right time.”

 


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