David Alan Gest (May 11, 1953 – April 12, 2016) was an American producer and television personality. Gest founded the American Cinema Awards Foundation in 1983. He produced the television special '' Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration'' in 2001, which was the last reunion of

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

and

the Jacksons The Jackson 5, later known as the Jacksons, are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was formed in Gary, Indiana in 1964, and originally consisted of brothers Jackie, Ti ...

coming almost 17 years after their previous reunion. Gest appeared on the 2006 series of the British reality television show '' I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!''. He frequently made tabloid headlines during his marriage with

Liza Minnelli Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli has received numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, ...

. In 2016, Gest appeared in '' Celebrity Big Brother 17'' in the UK but elected to leave the show after 13 days due to "medical reasons". This resulted him finishing in 13th place.

Career

Early success

At the age of 17, Gest landed a job as a publicist at

London Records London Recordings (or London Records and London Music Stream) is a British record label that marketed records in the United States, Canada, and Latin America for Decca Records from 1947 to 1980 before becoming semi-independent. The London nam ...

by passing himself off as 24. Nearly a year later, he was promoted to national director of publicity and transferred over to the New York office of the label. Singer

Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), known professionally as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer. He is best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Tired of ...

encouraged him to start a P.R. and management firm, and at age 18, he created David Gest & Associates. Green became his first client and mentor. Shortly after, he had 25 artists on his roster and generated vast success.

Later years

Gest finished in fourth place on the 2006 series of ''I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!'', a day before the show finished. Two days later, Gest appeared on the Royal Variety Show in London in front of

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

, for which he received a standing ovation. Another two days later, a controversy arose on the cover of two major UK papers stating that more than 30,000 text votes were not counted in Gest's favour when the network ITV had a voting glitch. This would have changed the outcome of the show but Gest declined a recount. In January 2007, Gest appeared as a judge on ITV1's '' Soapstar Superstar'', for one night replacing Michael Ball who was coaching the singers. Later that month it was announced that Gest had signed a one-year deal with ITV to appear in his own reality series entitled ''This Is David Gest'', which began on April 22, 2007. He also took cameras for a rare glimpse of the Jackson family house in

Encino, California Encino is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. History Etymology The name Encino is the misspelling in masculine of Encina, the Spanish language, Spanish word for "holm oak” (Quercus ilex). The Spanis ...

, where he met Tito Jackson and his children as well as matriarch Katherine Jackson. He was one of the four judges on ITV1's entertainment series '' Grease Is the Word'' and also starred on ''Greased Lightnin''. In 2007, Gest also appeared in an episode of Gordon Ramsay's '' The F Word''. Gest paid ITV to be released from his contract early and ITV replied that they had no idea what to do with him. Gest was quick to say that he wanted to be released: "My lawyers negotiated an early release so I could host '' The Friday Night Project'' on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

", Gest told ''

The Sun The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. It is a massive, nearly perfect sphere of hot Plasma (physics), plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, radiating the energy from its surface mainly as ...

''. Gest was the guest on ''Celebrity Fantasy Homes'' with Gaby Roslin.

Plot to kill Elton John

In 2017,

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

carried a report claiming that Gest had attempted to have

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

killed. Gest was reportedly infuriated by a reference John made to Gest's sexuality after Gest's marriage to

. The alleged plot did not progress.

Personal life

Gest was born to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

familyJewish Chronicle: "American entertainer and producer David Gest found dead in London hotel"
12 April 2016 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and grew up in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. Gest and

were married on March 16, 2002, and separated in July 2003. In October 2003, he sued her for $10 million, claiming that she had been violent and physically abusive during their marriage, behavior the affidavit blamed on Minnelli's persistent

alcoholism Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...

. Minnelli denied the accusations, claiming Gest was simply after her money. The suit was dismissed in September 2006 for lack of triable issue of fact. Gest was a close friend of

, and after Jackson's death, he produced and starred in a documentary film about his life called '' Michael Jackson: The Life of an Icon.''

Death

On April 12, 2016, Gest was found dead in his room at the Four Seasons Hotel in

East London East London is the part of London, England, east of the ancient City of London and north of the River Thames as it begins to widen. East London developed as London Docklands, London's docklands and the primary industrial centre. The expansion of ...

Canary Wharf Canary Wharf is a financial area of London, England, located in the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The Greater London Authority defines it as part of London's central business district, alongside Central London. Alongside ...

financial estate. He was 62 years old. Police described his death as involving no suspicious circumstances. It was later reported that he had died from a stroke. Before his death, Gest had been arranging a new tour entitled ''David Gest Is Not Dead but Alive With Soul'', in reference to a misunderstanding on ''

Celebrity Big Brother ''Celebrity Big Brother'' or ''Big Brother VIP'' is an adaptation of the '' Big Brother'' reality television series. It is the celebrity version of its parent franchise ''Big Brother'', the celebrity version airs in several countries, however, t ...

'' after he had gone to bed early feeling unwell on the evening the

death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

was announced. Despite Gest's death, the tour went ahead. After his death, sources revealed that Gest had been addicted to gambling; friends reported that he had amassed debts of £500,000 before his death. Gest's funeral service was held at

Golders Green Crematorium Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and is one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £136,000 in 2021), ...

in North London on April 29, 2016. His ashes were scattered in

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

Bibliography

*''Simply the Gest'' (Headline, 2007)

References

External links

* *
David Gest
lawsuit text, filed against Liza Minnelli in October 2003

interview on Extratv.com, 2004 {{DEFAULTSORT:Gest, David 1953 births 2016 deaths 20th-century American Jews American expatriates in England American memoirists Television personalities from Los Angeles Television producers from California Golders Green Crematorium 21st-century American Jews