Frank Sinatra Tours, 1955, 1957
In January 1955 Gordon scored one of his biggest coups by landing a tour with legendary singer and film star Frank Sinatra. It was Sinatra's first visit to Australia and it played to capacity audiences in Sydney, and Melbourne. But a second tour, booked for March 1957, was cancelled two days before the scheduled opening night, apparently because Sinatra's friend, songwriter Jimmy Van Heusen, was unable to get a berth on the flight to Australia—although it was also rumored that Sinatra had simply decided to abandon the tour to play golf with Sammy Davis, Jr..
Big Show Ltd took a heavy loss because of the cancellation, so Gordon sued, but in an out-of-court settlement, Sinatra agreed to perform a series of concerts in the USA to compensate Gordon. However Sinatra insisted that he be flown everywhere in a DC7 aircraft, and on one occasion, when Gordon gave a non-committal answer about the aircraft's availability, Sinatra's manager Hank Sanicola reportedly punched Gordon several times in the head.
A subsequent tour by legendary comedian and film star Bob Hope surprisingly lost money, but Hope reportedly enjoyed the visit so much that he generously told Gordon that he would waive his fee, and only asked for expenses.
Read more about this topic: Lee Gordon (promoter), Australian Career
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