Sam Cohn

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Sam Cohn
Cohn in 1984
Born
Samuel Charles Cohn

(1929-05-11)May 11, 1929
Altoona, Pennsylvania
DiedMay 6, 2009(2009-05-06) (aged 79)
New York City
OccupationTalent agent
Years active1956–2009
SpouseJane Gelfman
Children2

Samuel Charles Cohn (May 11, 1929 – May 6, 2009)

International Creative Management, a firm he helped create, in the borough of Manhattan
in New York City.

Cohn has been described as one of the most powerful agents in the 1970s and 1980s,

E.L. Doctorow. Time magazine called Cohn "the first superagent of the modern age".[2]

Early life

Cohn was born to a

Standard Oil of New York.[4]

Cohn attended the Culver Military Academy in Indiana,[4] and earned a bachelor's degree in English and German literature from Princeton University. He enrolled in Yale Law School, but put his legal studies on hold to join the Army, where he served for two years. He was stationed in Japan at the end of the Korean War and became a private first class.[3] He completed his law degree in 1956.[1]

Career

He worked his way up through the television industry with stints as a television producer, as a lawyer at

General Artists Corporation, which, through a series of acquisitions and mergers, evolved first into a larger agency called Creative Management Associates (founded by Freddie Fields and David Begelman), and then, in 1974, into ICM.[4]

A lengthy 1982 profile by

trade newspapers both mentioned that he was "the most difficult man in the business to get on the phone";[8][9] and, in his New Yorker profile, Singer repeated an industry joke that Cohn's tombstone would read, "Here lies Sam Cohn. He'll get back to you."[4][10]

The character Arnold Moss, a paper-eating talent agent based on Cohn, was created by Nora Ephron and portrayed by Dan Aykroyd in Ephron's 1992 film This Is My Life.[11]

Cohn's client list and influence waned in later years;[1] and, in 1999, he left his position as the head of ICM's New York office.[12] He remained a member of ICM's board of directors until 2005 and continued to work at ICM until retiring in early 2009.[12] The Variety article reporting his retirement noted: "Hanging onto his trademark ways to the very end, Cohn did not return a call from Daily Variety for comment."[12]

Cohn died in May 2009 in Manhattan after a short illness; he was 79.[13]

Personal life

Cohn was married three times, including to Jane Gelfman at the time of his death. He had a daughter, Marya, a son, Peter, and four grandchildren. Cohn also dated actress and client Dianne Wiest for three years in the mid-1980s.[13][14]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Weber, Bruce (May 6, 2009). "Sam Cohn, Powerful Talent Broker, Dies at 79". The New York Times. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  2. TIME. Archived from the original
    on February 18, 2008. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  3. ^ a b "R.I.P. Sam Cohn" by Nikki Finke, Deadline Hollywood website, May 6, 2009
  4. ^ a b c d e f Singer, Mark (January 11, 1982). "Profiles: Dealmaker" (fee required). The New Yorker. pp. 40–84. Retrieved May 9, 2009.
  5. ISBN 978-0-618-19726-2
    . Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  6. ISBN 978-0-684-85981-1
    . Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  7. ^ "Celebrity Obituaries". The Daily Telegraph. London.
  8. ^ a b Saperstein, Pat; Fleming, Michael (May 6, 2009). "ICM veteran Sam Cohn dies". Variety. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  9. ^ Barnes, Mike (May 6, 2009). "Legendary agent Sam Cohn dies". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 7, 2009. [dead link]
  10. ^ "Film Obituaries: Sam Cohn". The Daily Telegraph. London. 2009-05-12. Retrieved 2011-05-27.
  11. ^ "Ephron, Aykroyd Catch Cohn on Film". New York. February 17, 1992. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  12. ^ a b c Fleming, Michael (February 3, 2009). "Legendary Cohn retires from ICM". Variety. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  13. ^ a b Weber, Bruce (May 6, 2009). "Sam Cohn, Powerful Talent Broker, Dies at 79". The New York Times. Retrieved May 7, 2009.
  14. ^ "Dianne Wiest -- Hannah's Fragile Sister". 6 April 1987.
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