| NET WORTH: | $560 million |
|---|---|
| Source of Wealth: | Television Personality, Entrepreneur, Businessman, Entertainment Manager, Record Executive |
| Born: | October 7, 1959 |
| Partner: | Lauren Silverman |
| Children: | 1 |
| Birth Name: | Simon Phillip Cowell |
| Height: | 1.75 m |
Simon Cowell is an English television personality, entrepreneur, entertainment manager and record executive. He is currently one of the judges in the American Television talent competition series America's Got Talent. He is also the founder of the British entertainment company Syco.
Simon Cowell's Early Life
Simon Cowell was born on October 7, 1959 in Lambeth, London. He is the son of Julie Brett and Eric Selig Phillip Cowell and he was raised in Elstree, Hertfordshire. He has a younger brother Nicholas, three half brothers, John, Tony and Michael and a half sister, June Cowell. He went to Windsor Technical College where he gained GCE in Sociology.
Simon Cowell's Career
Cowell started his career when he joined his father at EMI Music Publishing. In early 1980's, he left the company and formed several Records including E&S Music and Fanfare Records but did not found success. He restarted his music business and persuaded two actors, Robson Green and Jerome Flynn to record the song "Unchained Melody". The song became the best-selling and hit number 1 in UK.
Cowell has been a judge in different talent competitions from 2002 to 2004 including Pop Idol, American Idol, World Idol and X Factor. He became famous for his critical remarks and comments on the talent shows. Due to his personality, other version of Idol from different countries come up it's own "Simon Cowell" type.
In 2005, he formed the company Syco which divided into three units: Syco Music, Syco TV and Syco Film. Leona Lewis, X Factor's winner on the third series signed to Cowell's label and has had number one singles and albums around the world. The Boyband, One Direction and girl group Little Mix, also signed to Cowell's label and became successful on their career which gone to top singles and albums around the world.
Due to the success of Idol and X Factor, Cowell decided to make a talent show that is open to all performers of any kind which called Britain's Got Talent. He appeared as a judge and the show was a rating success. In 2014, the show became named the world's most successful reality TV format by Guinness World Records.
Other Shows and Recognition
Aside from X Factor, Pop Idol and American Idol, Cowell co-produced other talent shows including American Inventor, Celebrity Duets and Grease Is the Word. In 2011, he also created his own game show, Red and Black which was broadcast on ITV and was known as the most expensive game show in the television history.
Throughout his career, Simon Cowell received numerous awards and recognition. He was named as one of the 100 most influential people in the world, listed at number 41 for "50 People who Matter in 2010" and number 10 in 2013 list of "The 60 Nastiest Villains of All Time". At the 2010 British Academy Television Awards, he received an award from the BAFTA for his outstanding contribution in the entertainment industry and for his development of new talent. In 2018, he gained a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the television category.
Personal Life and Wealth
Cowell dated an American woman named Lauren Silverman, who was married to a friend of Cowell. Their affair resulted Lauren Silverman to be pregnant with his child and gave birth to their son, Eric on February 14, 2014. Before he met Lauren, he also dated Terri Seymour in 2002 and became engaged to Mezhgan Hussainy in 2010.
As of 2020, Simon Cowell has an estimated net worth of $560 million. According to the Sunday Times Rich List, he is one of the wealthiest people in the UK. He gained his wealth by being a record producer , talent scout and consultant in the UK music industry. In 2006, he also renewed his contract in American Idol for another five seasons, which gained him an estimated yearly salary of $35 million.
