Sam Jaffe (producer)

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For the actor Sam Jaffe (1891–1984), see
Sam Jaffe (actor)
.
Sam Jaffe
BornMay 21, 1901
Harlem, New York City
DiedJanuary 10, 2000(2000-01-10) (aged 98)
Los Angeles
NationalityAmerican
OccupationMovie producer
SpouseMildred Gersh
Children3
RelativesMatt Tolmach (grandson)
Adeline Schulberg (sister)
Budd Schulberg (nephew)
Phil Gersh (brother-in-law)
B. P. Schulberg (brother-in-law)
John Kohn (son-in-law)

Sam Jaffe (May 21, 1901 – January 10, 2000)

motion picture
industry, an agent, a producer, and a studio executive.

Biography

Jaffe was born in the

Russian-Jewish immigrants[2] Hannah and Max Jaffe. He had three older siblings: Joseph, David, and Adeline. He was raised on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.[3]

After dropping out of

Famous Players–Lasky Corporation where his brother-in-law, B. P. Schulberg, was an executive.[1] He eventually worked his way up through the ranks to become the executive in charge of production[2] including films directed by Ernst Lubitsch, Josef von Sternberg, and Rouben Mamoulian.[1] In 1932, he was released from Paramount over internal politics.[4]

He worked briefly for

B.P. Schulberg; the firm represented such top actors as Marlene Dietrich, Fredric March, and Herbert Marshall before she sold it and moved to London.[3]

In 1935, Jaffe opened his own talent agency named the Jaffe Agency.

20th Century Fox head Darryl F. Zanuck to let him produce The Fighting Sullivans in 1944.[1] He successfully represented several stars and directors of the era, including Humphrey Bogart, Fritz Lang, Raoul Walsh, Stanley Kubrick,[1] Lauren Bacall, David Niven, Zero Mostel, Richard Burton, Mary Astor, Barbara Stanwyck, Lee J. Cobb, and Jennifer Jones.[2] In the late 1940s, his business was negatively affected by the investigations of many of his clients by the House Un-American Activities Committee investigations into Hollywood.[1] In 1949, he sold the Jaffe Agency to his brother-in-law, Phil Gersh, who had been working with him.[7]

In 1959, Jaffe retired and moved to London.

Theater of Blood (1973).[1] In 1985, he returned to Los Angeles[2] and became a collector of modern art
.

Personal life

Jaffe was married to Mildred Gersh, also from New York. One of her younger brothers was Phil Gersh, who moved from New York to Los Angeles and became a Hollywood agent. After working with Jaffe, Gersh purchased the Jaffe Agency in 1949. He renamed it in the 1960s as The Gersh Agency.[7]

Sam and Mildred Jaffe had three daughters: Naomi Jaffe Carroll, Barbara Jaffe Kohn, and Judith Jaffe Tolmach Silber.[1]

Partial filmography

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Sam Jaffe, 98, Hollywood Agent; Represented the Icons of His Day". The New York Times. January 19, 2000. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e Sun Sentinel: "Sam Jaffe, Movie Talent Agent, 98" January 15, 2000
  3. ^ a b Jewish Women's Archives: "Adeline Schulberg 1895 – 1977" retrieved September 24, 2015
  4. ISBN 978-0813126012
    |University Press of Kentucky | September 2010
  5. ISBN 9780802196408
    .
  6. ^ Los Angeles Times: "Sam Jaffe; Pioneer Movie Producer, Manager, Agent" by Myrna Olver January 14, 2000
  7. ^ a b New York Times: "Phil Gersh, a Leading Agent In Hollywood, Is Dead at 92" By BERNARD WEINRAUB May 12, 2004

External links

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