Bobby considered politics. He was smart, articulate, handsome, caring. I took him to friends like Gov. Grant Sawyer and Supreme Court Justice John Mowbray to explore Bobby’s political viability. They thought he could be mayor, senator, governor. Bobby was first a friend who enriched my life and later my partner. We received Federal approval for a public stock offering, a registered SEC prospectus (for a daily newspaper). Bobby’s name was proudly included.
He was an exciting entertainer with a sparkling personality. Few knew it, but Bobby was an authentic genius, a Mensa member, with an IQ of 137, in the top 2%. He was a 22-year show-biz veteran with a polished stage presence, a gift for comedy sketches, and natural timing for actual or rehearsed ad-libs. He did great impressions of James Cagney, Clark Gable, Jerry Lewis, Tony Bennett, Ray Charles, Rex Harrison, Walter Brennan, Jimmy Stewart, Robert Mitchum, Burt Lancaster, Marlon Brando and Cary Grant. He had magnetism, danced and choreographed with gusto, and played musical instruments well, including piano, guitar, vibes, harmonica and drums.
Bobby sang to each of us, a very personal connection. His allure was honesty, direct from his soul. He was animated, flippant yet friendly, rebellious yet relaxed, sassy yet suave. He had a 10-piece or larger band with back-up singers; he often performed in a tux. He was a perfectionist and told musicians, "If you screw up, they blame me, not you." Excellence was his goal. Self-confident outside, down deep he was sincere, unpretentious, yet seriously misunderstood. Lifelong pain affected his music, but it never lessened his commitment to do his best every time.
I believed in Bobby’s innate talent, but in the mid-to-late 1960s his career had been quiet. I knew Strip Hotel owners and entertainment directors, and, in 1970 and 1971, I got him miracle bookings as the main-room headliner at the Landmark and Desert Inn hotels. In top form, he gave fabulous performances to packed houses, earning rousing standing ovations and rave reviews. Bobby asked me to be his agent, but while I considered the offer, his health declined. Those milestone Las Vegas engagements were his most successful bookings in a decade, earning national publicity and re-starting his career. His fame then reached new heights, before his final curtain call.
Triumphant 1970-71 Vegas shows re-started his career, Mack was back! Thrilled to help launch his "second" career, I negotiated his highest-ever salary, $40,000/week. He offered 10% but I wouldn’t accept. Those Landmark, Desert Inn sellout runs ended a quiet period, and he achieved national fame. Rushed by ambulance to his first open-heart operation and plastic heart valves, he recovered and continued his soaring comeback.
In 1972-73 he starred in two NBC-TV primetime variety shows, his most important TV ever. ("Bobby’s Groucho Marx impression is so good, even Harpo shouted praise," I said, after Bobby brought down the house.) After his Las Vegas comeback and first surgery, he required antibiotics before routine dental work. One time he forgot. A major infection put strain on a lifetime of illness, requiring a second operation to replace now-faulty valves.
