Stein was invited to Turner’s hotel suite afterwards to talk about South Africa and the upcoming tour. Since hearing of her passing, Stein took a fond stroll down memory lane to the time when she interacted intimately with the star during her Big Concerts tour.īefore Turner set foot on Jozi shores, Stein’s client at the time, Peter Stuyvesant, sent her to meet Turner in Paris at the “super fancy” Ritz Carlton Hotel, where she delivered a press conference with her globally famous publicist, Bernard Doherty, and manager, Roger Davies, “who took me under their wing and became friends”, said Stein. Turner, who was hailed as the queen of rock and roll and whose famous legs were insured for millions, visited South Africa twice, once in the late 1970s during apartheid, for which she later expressed regret and again in 1996 in the heady honeymoon period after the lifting of the cultural boycott, when many headline artists were eager to appear on local stages. Turner passed away from natural causes aged 83 last Wednesday, 24 May, at her home in Switzerland.

“She was so energetic, strong, vibrant, and agile, iconic – and boy, could she dance and shake her body,” said Stein who made a name for herself in dealing with the local publicity for international musical superstars, including Michael Jackson, Celine Dion, Elton John, Lionel Richie, Sting, Bon Jovi, Diana Ross, Pavarotti, Andrea Bocelli, ZZ Top, Meat Loaf, and Janet Jackson, to name a few. “Tina Turner was one of those special people who should have lived forever,” said Penny Stein, who worked closely with this trailblazing international star during her 1996 Wildest Dreams European Tour, on hearing that the musical superstar had died.

Memories madeleine barbra streisand