“ENTREPRENEUR EXTRAORDINAIRE”

by Desmond Kelly ‘the Star of eLanka’

Time passes, but memories remain. On American Independence day, the 4th of July,2017, the people of Sri Lanka, formerly Ceylon, & especially those who formed the “Wonderful World” of Show Business in our beautiful Island, remembered him, DONAVAN ANDREE, who has “left the room” now, for 50 years. Those of us, Entertainers who were fortunate enough to personally work for Donavan, the writer being one of the very first to have the privilege, should never forget that it was this man who was responsible for ensuring that “his choice” got as far in a very demanding & difficult “Show-biz” career, as was humanly possible. Speaking for myself, as I usually do, an uncle of mine, Roy Demmer was one of Donavan’s “right-hand men” & when Roy wasn’t in the “guards -van” of one of the Ceylon Government Railway trains, doing his job as a “guard”, he could be seen at one of Donavan’s Casinos or Clubs in Colombo, helping Donavan to “lighten the pockets” of any gambler willing to “take their chance”on losing their money, which again, in my opinion is what “gamblers” do. Oh yes, they do win, sometimes, only to give their “winnings” away the next time they took a “punt”. Still, this was DONAVAN ANDREE’S main business, perfectly legal ( he did not force anyone to throw their money away) either at the gambling tables or “on the horses”, which was still another popular “sport” in Ceylon, at the time. Donavan Andree had an office ,in the heart of Colombo Fort, within a stone’s throw of the local Police Station there, and, although illegal betting was frowned-upon, Donavan Andree was always considered a “Legal Bookie”. They “placed their bets”, won or lost, and it was a well-known fact that he would pity the losing gambler sometimes, to the extent of helping them out sometimes with cash to feed their families, & even advising them sonetimes, NOT to gamble unless they had mobey to spare.

Donavan Andree was a “big man”, a “good man” with a big heart, and this is how the majority of our people will remember him.

The term “Entrepreneur Extraordinaire” is not easily earned.Now, comes the other great love of this great man. Music, entertainers & showbiz, in general.

Although Donavan was the “Founder” of what I would term “Entrepreneirship”, in Ceylon, at the time (early 1950’s), not too many “bloggers”, “journos”, & “showbiz-writers” knew too much about him, except the fact that he WAS the man who brought out all the International “acts”, married the great Erin de Selfa, & ran a “bucket-shop” in Colombo. Quite apart from this, these “writers” concentrate on Donavan’s Son, from a previous marriage, whose name was Malcolm, who was supposed to have carried on with his Father’s business & did, I suppose, AFTER I had already left Ceylon to migrate to Australia in early 1962. What Malcolm Andree did, for Showbiz, after 1960, I don’t know, but I DO know that neither HE, Mubharak Thaha, or ANY other Entrepreneur after, could even COMPARE with DONAVAN ANDREE who won “Citizen of the year”, over Sir John Kotalawela, who was Prime Minister at the time. Even today, in 2017, there are individuals who are under the impression that they are another Donavan Andree. My own impression was, is, & always will be that there can never be another “Donavan”. That “mould” is busted and can never be fixed.

As I have written before, I was possibly the FIRST Entertainer to benefit from Donavan Andree’s generosity. After all, it was in 1952, I was just 16 years old, had already worked part-time for the Man & “entertained” for the Man at the 3 Club Venue, where I was instructed by the Man himself, that I had to sing the song “Ain’t misbehavin” for him personally, whenever he appeared there. If I remember correctly, the lady Erin de Selfa who was one of his lady-loves at the time (he married her later), sang under the title of “Dinah” & her song, for him, was “The nearness of you”
sung beautifully, in soft “jazz-style”, which he loved & Dennis Roberts, another good friend of mine and a superb singer, had to sing, I’ll make up for everything”.
Bill Forbes & Cliff Foenander came into the picture later.I think both Bill & Cliff were slightly older than me.

Donavan helped Bill to go the England, where he (Bill) was able to convince Columbia Records that he had a fine voice & recorded many songs for them,was successful & still lives in England, which is his home now. Donavan then helped Cliff Foenander to go to the Phillipines, where he met up with the Phillipino Band, the “Fabulous Echoes”, went with the to America & proved to be one of the finest “front-men” any Band could hope to have, in that I think even though there wasn’t much of him, his “voice” was pure magic & everyone who heard him, loved him. Cliff left the USA to come back to Australia, where his family lived, only to sadly pass away, a few years later.

I was helped by Donavan, when my turn came and he helped me to join a show called the Continental Non-Stop Revue, an English Circus Troupe brought to tour the Island for roughly six months. After I finished with the tour, I still worked part-timr for Donavan until I joined the Royal Ceylon Navy, where I served, until 1962, in order to migrate to Melbourne.

Many, were the other great “Artistes” helped by Donavan during those early years, too numerpus to mention, but after I left Ceylon (reluctantly), I believe that he carried on with his good work but then sadly passed away, the date, for some reason, is unknown, but he was born in 1902, and DONAVAN ANDREE will ultimately be remembered as the greatest-ever “Entrepreneur-Extraordinaire” that our little Island has seen, certainly the BEST that Sri Lanka will EVER see.

This is my tribute to him, readers of eLanka, and may his soul always rest in peace.

Desmond Kelly
Star of eLanka.