Licensing Compliments the Apollo’s 75th Anniversary Celebration
BEVERLY HILLS, CA – May 24, 2010 – Act III Licensing announced today the addition of the historic landmark Apollo Theater to its client roster. With its rich history and continued significance, the legendary Apollo Theater has been a driving force in shaping America’s music and cultural landscape for nearly 75 years.
Since 1934, when Frank Schiffman bought an old burlesque theater on 125th Street in Harlem and renamed it after the Greek God of music and light, the Apollo has been one of America’s most iconic and enduring cultural forces in shaping contemporary music across generations and genres. That same year, at the Apollo’s most recognizable and longest-running performance series, Amateur Night, 17-year-old Ella Fitzgerald brought down the house in a performance that launched the young singer, as well as the Apollo, into unwavering stardom. Soon thereafter, the Apollo Theater quickly became known the place “Where Stars are Born and Legends are Made” and home to thousands of major performance artists, fans, and patrons of the arts from around the world. The legendary venue has launched the careers of icons such as Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, James Brown, Sarah Vaughan, Billy Holiday, Celia Cruz, Gladys Knight, Tito Puente and Lauryn Hill and continues to maintain its position as the nation’s most popular arena for emerging and established African-American and Latino performers.
“The Apollo Theater represents American music history in ways no others can,” said Aviva Rosenthal, Partner at Act III Licensing. “Internationally recognized, we see many areas where the Apollo can be accessible to a new generation of music fans.”
Apollo’s 75th anniversary celebration kick-off began with an exhibit at the National Museum of American History in Washington, DC currently on display now through August. Over 100 items are on display such as Willie Nelson’s bandanna and sneakers, LL Cool J’s jacket, the Beastie Boys‘ boombox, James Brown’s cape and jumpsuit, dresses worn by the Supremes, Miles Davis‘ flugelhorn (on public view for the first time) and Sammy Davis’ childhood tap shoes. The exhibit travels next to Detroit’s Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History and the Museum of the City of New York.
The initial licensing program will focus on apparel, accessories, stationery and wall art among other categories. Act III Licensing will be featuring The Apollo Theater licensing program at the upcoming Licensing Expo, June 8-10, 2010 in Las Vegas, Booth #2063.