Don Kirshner Dies at 76

Don Kirshner, Rock Producer and Promoter, Dies at 76 - Don Kirshner the businessman and songwriter who helped create The Monkees and launch the careers of several iconic performers, died Monday in Florida. According to a press release, the 76-year-old passed away from heart failure. Don Kirshner who guided the course of Brill Building and bubblegum pop in the 1950s and ’60s as a music publisher and promoter, and later served as an Ed Sullivan for 1970s artists like Bruce Springsteen, Pink Floyd, Kiss and the Ramones with his weekly program “Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert” on television, died on Monday in Boca Raton, Fla. He was 76. The cause was heart failure.