Short answers, pulled from the story.
Reginald Leon Isaac Vapnick entered the world on the 12th of December 1920 within the East End of London. His parents were Polish Jewish immigrants who ran a kosher butcher shop in that area.
Brian Epstein contacted James on the 27th of November 1962 regarding a publishing contract for the record titled Please Please Me. The pair subsequently established Northern Songs Ltd. along with John Lennon and Paul McCartney to handle its rights.
The year 1969 marked the final break because James sold the publishing rights to Northern Songs without giving the band a chance to buy control. The Beatles considered this action a betrayal that took advantage of their early trust and they lost all rights to their own compositions forever.
Stephen James discovered Reginald Dwight using their facilities late at night without permission in 1967. All releases by John up to 1976 appeared on the DJM label which was formed in 1969.
James died of a heart attack in London on the 1st of February 1986 at age 65. His company Dick James Music was acquired by PolyGram shortly after his passing and the entire catalog is now part of Universal Music Publishing Group.