Simon Cowell, born on October 7, 1959 in Brighton England, is an artist & reportoire (A&R) for Sony Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) in the UK, and most famously, a judge for the popular U.S. TV show American Idol. He is also a judge on the popular British music talent show The X Factor. Simon Cowell is known for his blunt and sometimes scathing criticism of the performers he judges.
Early Life
Cowell is son of Eric and Julie Cowell and grew up in a privileged home in Elstree, a small village in Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire. His father is a successful real estate agent and music executive. Cowell was raised by nannies and attended several boarding schools, being transferred to school to school due to bad behavior. All told, Cowell attended 16 different schools by the age of sixteen.
Early Career
At the age of 20, Cowell landed his first job as a mail room clerk for EMI Music Publishing, where his father was an executive. He was eventually promoted to record producer, but left after a few years to form his own independent music company, E&S Music. The company was a failure and collapsed within a year, so Cowell returned to EMI. Cowell soon again left EMI to form another independent music label, Fanfare Records, with fellow EMI clerk Lain Burton in 1985. The record company struggled early on, but with the help of record producer Pete Waterman, founder of Stock Aitken Waterman trio, the label found success in the mid to late 1980s. Fanfare Records first major artist was singer Sinitta Malone, whom Cowell briefly dated.
In 1989 at the age of 30, Cowell became an A&R consultant for BMG. Cowell signed a number of successful acts to BMG, including Curiosity Killed the Cat, Sonia, 5ive, UK chart-toppers Westlife, and surprise actors-turned-singers Robson & Jerome. Cowell also released a recording featuring the wrestlers of the World Wrestling Federation that met with great success. In 2002, Cowell set up another label, S Records, which signed the top two contestants from the first season of Pop Idol. He sold his share of S Records in June 2003 for $42 million dollars to BMG.
Pop and American Idol
In 2001, Simon Cowell became a judge on the first season of the British hit show Pop Idol. A U.S. version of the show was launched a year later as American Idol where Cowell also served as a judge. Cowell's acerbic commentary and interplay with the audience helped propel the popularity of the show, and he became well known for his signature phrase, "I don't mean to be rude, but..." In December 2003, he published a book using his signature phrase as the title, I Don't Mean to Be Rude, But.
Additional Entertainment and Television Productions
Cowell's production company Syco created the British music talent show The X Factor. Cowell served as a judge along with Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh. The show became a hit, and returned for a second and third series in 2005 and 2006. Cowell was sued by Simon Fuller, creator of Pop and American Idol, claiming the show was a copy of these shows. The lawsuit threatened to block Cowell from appearing for the fifth season of American Idol, as Cowell's old contract had expired and he was negotiating a new contract at the time. The suit was eventually settled out of of court, and Cowell signed a new five-season American Idol agreement with Fox.
Simon Cowell is an executive producer for Celebrity Duets, a show similar to American Idol but the contestants are popular celebrities. Cowell is also an executive producer for the U.S. television show America's Got Talent, a variety talent show hosted by Regis Philbin.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful Kathy Hogan,
Seattle
simon loves being sardonic, Sep 24, 2006
That pretty much sums it up about his character. However, he basically says what I'm thinking so does that make me sardonic as well? I think you can deliver the truth in a less brutal manner. Also, how tacky is " America's Got Talent"? What an embarrasment to America! I hope that show isn't shown in other countries, it's tacky as hell.
Simon Cowell, born on October 7, 1959 in Brighton England, is an artist & reportoire (A&R) for Sony Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) in the UK, and most famously, a judge for the popular U.S. TV show 
