Simon Phillip Cowell is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of The X Factor and Got Talent franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on the British television talent competition series Pop Idol (2001–2003),
Professional career
Simon graduated from Windsor Technical College with a degree in sociology, after which he changed several jobs, including the set of Stanley Kubrick’s cult film The Shining. Conflicts with colleagues and superiors were the reason for frequent dismissals, and Simon was unable to build a career until his father, who worked at EMI Music, got him a job working with the mail. Simon showed himself well in his new job, quickly received a promotion and acquired numerous connections.
In the early 1980s, Simon left EMI to found the record company E & S Music with his former boss, but left the business in 1983. He then founded Fanfare Records with Ian Burton, initially selling instructional videos for aspiring performers and music from plays, including those performed by the Italian orchestra Rondo Veneziano. The first hit in 1986 was the song «So Macho» by the popular singer Sinitta, another successful step was Cowell’s collaboration with the trio Stock Aitken Waterman, who released a number of hits throughout the 80s. However, towards the end of the 80s, the company’s business began to decline, and in 1989 Cowell almost went bankrupt. After that, Simon got a job at the music company BMG as an agent for finding new performers.
