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Hawaii events promoter Bob Peyton helped to produce scores of successful entertainment shows in Hawaii and brought a number of big-name acts to the state.
Unfortunately, he will be forever remembered as the promoter of the "Stevie Wonder Blunder" — the bogus concert last year that had University of Hawaii officials losing hundreds of thousands of dollars, his friends said.
Peyton died Thursday morning at Castle Medical Center after a prolonged illness and complications from diabetes. He was 66.
University of Hawaii officials and Peyton’s business wired a total of $250,000 last year to the Florida business that claimed to manage singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder.
The money was supposed to go toward the production of an Aug. 18 concert at the university’s Stan Sheriff Center. But university officials later learned that the Florida company did not represent Wonder, and had to refund 6,000 tickets.
A University of Hawaii task force reporting to the Board of Regents said in November the school allowed itself to be deceived because those involved in the financial transactions lacked judgment and didn’t take responsibility.The university reassigned athletic director Jim Donovan after the failed concert came to light. Donovan left the university altogether in mid-December to become athletic director at California State University, Fullerton.
Jury selection is scheduled to start in April in U.S. District Court in Honolulu for a trial involving Marc Hubbard, who allegedly was involved in the bogus concert.
Hubbard, 44, of North Carolina, has been indicted for wire fraud by a federal grand jury in Honolulu.
Sean Barriero, 44, a British national, was accused of transporting the money.
Barriero, who has agreed to cooperate with prosecutors, has pleaded guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced May 2.
Robert Vance Peyton was born March 4, 1946, in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
As a liberal arts major and son of a New York attorney, Peyton decided to attend the University of Hawaii, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, said his wife, Marie.
Marie Peyton said her husband, head of Bob Peyton Entertainment Corp. and BPE Productions Inc., helped to promote a variety of events including ballet, boxing and rock concerts and did numerous shows featuring top entertainers, including B.B. King, Johnny Mathis, ZZ Top, Van Halen, Ray Charles and ballet star Mikhail Baryshnikov.
Friends said Peyton was also involved in helping to promote music festivals at Diamond Head Crater in the 1970s.
"He really cared about music," said his friend Alfredo Villegas. "He really cared about having people entertained."
Peyton worked as promotions manager for entertainment promoter Tom Moffatt for several years, helping to produce a number of shows in the 1970s and 1980s.
Moffatt said the shows included a Stevie Wonder concert and a Chicago concert, both at Aloha Stadium.
The Chicago concert was rained out over the weekend, but luckily the band was able to stay in Hawaii and play the concert several days later.
Moffatt remembered receiving a picture from Peyton of an elderly woman with a caption that read, "I was a young girl when I came to see Chicago."
Graphic artist John Harmon said Peyton was able "to make things happen," adding, "He thought big. He dreamed big."
Harmon said Peyton had a strong personality but also a nice side and would pay him a bonus for a good job.
Friends said Peyton should be remembered for all the concerts he helped to produce, including two Wonder shows.
"I want them to remember all the good things he did, all the joy he brought to people, how hard he worked," said his former sister-in-law, Marcia Linville. "He was a really great guy."
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