453:. In 1989 the museum staged an exhibition of work from their collection, featuring 45 pieces. Gersh was known in the Los Angeles art scene for taking a particular interest in new and emerging artists, and remained an active patron of the arts until his death.
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Gersh and his wife were avid collectors of modern art, starting from the 1950s, and maintained one of the largest private art collections in the United States. In 1979 they played an active role in the campaign for the foundation of the
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Gersh was known for his brash and assertive approach on behalf of his clients, as well as his strong New York accent and signature gravelly voice. He was credited with masterminding
Humphrey Bogart's move, during the 1950s, away from
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was an executive. When Jaffe left
Paramount in 1936 to set up his own talent agency, Gersh moved with him to work as an office boy earning $ 15 a week. His first client as an agent was director
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In 1949, on his return to
Hollywood, he bought Sam Jaffe's talent agency, which he renamed as the Phil Gersh Agency in the 1960s. His film-industry clients included
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in 1990, today the company is run by Gersh's sons Bob and David Gersh, and by the time of Phil Gersh's death in 2004 had 60 agents working from offices in
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in gangster films to more diverse roles. He also fell out with close friend David Niven when Niven was persuaded to fire Gersh by an agent for the
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and opened a restaurant there. As a child Gersh hoped to become a baseball player, and used to sell peanuts outside baseball stadiums.
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123:(October 19, 1911 – May 10, 2004) was an American talent and literary agent, who established an agency known as
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385:. Phil Gersh continued to play a role in the company's management until 10 weeks before his death.
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Gersh died at his home in
Beverly Hills on May 10, 2004, at the age of 92. He is buried in
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on 25th Street and 9th Avenue. When Gersh was 8 or 9 years old, his family moved to
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He and his wife
Beatrice had two sons, David and Robert, and five grandchildren.
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in North Africa and Italy for four months, before being transferred to
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214:. Gersh subsequently signed other directors from the studio including
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for many years, and he and his wife
Beatrice were benefactors of
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immigrant parents, Ida and Louis
Gershowitz. His parents owned a
591:"Phil Gersh, 92; Agent With Old Hollywood Instincts, Art Patron"
344:. Gersh helped his clients Mostel and Polonsky when they were
233:, Gersh saw active service, joining an anti-tank unit of the
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646:"Phil Gersh, a Leading Agent In Hollywood, Is Dead at 92"
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during the anti-Communist witch-hunts of the 1950s.
155:. He was considered one of the last links between
241:, where he met Beatrice Aberle, his future wife.
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707:American entertainment industry businesspeople
712:United States Army personnel of World War II
194:, graduating in 1934. He began working on a
159:and today's corporate-owned movie business.
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363:In 1965 Gersh won the role of director in
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727:20th-century American businesspeople
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395:Motion Picture & Television Fund
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79:Hollywood talent and literary agent
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717:Jewish American military personnel
644:Weinraub, Bernard (May 12, 2004).
518:Reed, Christopher (July 6, 2004).
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687:Businesspeople from New York City
589:McLellan, Dennis (May 11, 2004).
393:Gersh served on the board of the
463:Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery
190:in the early-1930s to study at
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403:Woodland Hills, Los Angeles
202:, where his brother-in-law
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742:Jews from New York (state)
737:21st-century American Jews
732:20th-century American Jews
429:. They also owned work by
379:Beverly Hills, California
137:Beverly Hills, California
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68:Beverly Hills, California
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16:American theatrical agent
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407:Los Angeles Music Center
697:Hollywood talent agents
467:Culver City, California
692:American talent agents
520:"Obituary: Phil Gersh"
157:Hollywood's Golden Age
595:The Los Angeles Times
358:William Morris Agency
235:3rd Infantry Division
135:) in 1949, based in
399:its retirement home
650:The New York Times
366:The Sound of Music
200:Paramount Pictures
181:Washington Heights
167:Gersh was born in
439:Wassily Kandinsky
405:, as well as the
330:Julius J. Epstein
220:Richard Fleischer
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84:Years active
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443:Roy Lichtenstein
389:Other activities
375:The Gersh Agency
338:Abraham Polonsky
258:Richard Benjamin
239:Special Services
125:The Gersh Agency
114:(brother-in-law)
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41:October 19, 1911
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702:Literary agents
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369:for his client
306:Dorothy McGuire
266:Humphrey Bogart
186:Gersh moved to
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163:Life and career
145:Humphrey Bogart
127:(also known as
95:Beatrice Aberle
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342:Budd Schulberg
290:William Holden
282:Gloria Grahame
270:Richard Burton
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153:Richard Burton
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722:Jaffe family
653:. Retrieved
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598:. Retrieved
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527:. Retrieved
524:The Guardian
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250:June Allyson
246:Eddie Albert
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231:World War II
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224:Joseph Losey
212:RKO Pictures
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131:, or simply
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62:(2004-05-10)
60:May 10, 2004
18:
682:2004 deaths
677:1911 births
655:January 18,
600:January 18,
529:January 22,
451:Andy Warhol
447:Franz Kline
423:David Smith
371:Robert Wise
354:typecasting
346:blacklisted
326:Robert Wise
322:Raoul Walsh
314:David Niven
310:Zero Mostel
302:James Mason
294:Karl Malden
274:Lee J. Cobb
216:Robert Wise
208:Mark Robson
188:Los Angeles
149:David Niven
671:Categories
476:References
318:Don Siegel
254:Mary Astor
196:swing gang
121:Phil Gersh
37:1911-10-19
25:Phil Gersh
204:Sam Jaffe
112:Sam Jaffe
87:1949–2004
100:Children
49:New York
229:During
381:, and
340:, and
139:, and
108:Family
92:Spouse
70:, U.S.
51:, U.S.
457:Death
133:Gersh
657:2017
602:2017
531:2017
449:and
425:and
324:and
222:and
198:for
192:UCLA
177:deli
151:and
57:Died
31:Born
401:in
171:to
129:TGA
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35:(
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