Ipswich nightclub owner and entertainment supremo Ken Bean has died peacefully at the age of 94.
Mr Bean ran the First Floor Club in Tacket Street for nearly 25 years from the mid-1960s and the Chev Club in Chevallier Street for several years after that.
Ken's son Graham said his father saw the possibilities of the entertainment industry when he was doing National Service in Malta.
He said: "He saw how popular Bingo was and decided to do that when he came out of the services and returned to Ipswich.
"You needed a gaming licence to do that - it was quite strict but once you had it you could do other things with it. He went on to organise casino nights for the Americans at Bentwaters - and that led to him taking over what became the First Floor Club."
At this time Ken met Barry Dye who was playing in local bands - and later became an agent.
He said: "We were playing quite a bit at the International Club in Leiston which was quite a place!
"You had the Americans from Bentwaters and Woodbridge and the construction workers from Sizewell and Ken was running casino nights and we were the band - it could get a bit lively!"
One of the Americans Ken met owned what was then called the Rendevous in Tacket Street - but was selling it to return to his home country.
Ken bought it in 1966, changed its name, and Graham said a legendary Ipswich venue was created.
Barry's band, The Sonics, became the House Band - and in the early 70s he started booking big names for the venue.
But it already had a big reputation for attracting stars of the day.
Graham said: "We had the stars of the West End show Hair come here twice on Sundays to perform their routines on their day off - that was quite risque because there was nudity in the show.
"Warren Mitchell - who played Alf Garnett - did his first ever stand-up routine there and there were performances from Bob Monkhouse, Ronnie Corbett - lots of big names came here."
By the early 1970s, Barry was booking the acts for the club bringing people like Paul Daniels to perform there.
And he became very friendly with Ken and his family: "We went on holiday together and on cruises - we had a wonderful time.
"As a businessman he ran a very tight ship, but as an individual, he was one of the most generous people you could meet."
Ken sold the First Floor Club in 1990 but continued to run the Chev Club - which was mainly a disco - for several more years before selling that to concentrate on managing his property investments.
Ken was a lifelong supporter of Ipswich Town - and in the 1960s was one of the officers of the Ipswich Town supporters' club.
Barry added that Ken had come to know Bobby Robson quite well during the glory days of the 1970s and early 80s.
Graham said: "He was always very keen on his football and knew many of the people there."
Over recent years the family had brought together pictures of the nightclubs and footballing highlights to show Ken as his memory started to fade.
Ken leaves a widow, Peggy, Graham, and a daughter Christine. He was also a grandfather and great grandfather.
His funeral will be at St Matthew's church in Ipswich at noon on Tuesday, December 12. followed by a private cremation.
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