Sid Bernstein, Beatles Promoter, Dead at 95

He launched the band in the U.S. and helped make them stars

The visionary force who helped launch the "British Invasion" by introducing America to a then-little-known band called The Beatles died in his sleep Wednesday in New York City, said his publicist. He was 95.

Sid Bernstein, born and raised in Manhattan, booked the emerging rock band from Liverpool for historic concerts at Carnegie Hall and Shea Stadium during the 1960s.

Bernstein had followed the rise of the young band through European newspapers with intensity and fascination, and had to convince major backers in the U.S. to take a chance on them.