Phil Gersh was an American talent and literary agent, who established an agency known as The Gersh Agency in 1949, based in Beverly Hills, California, and New York City, representing stars including Humphrey Bogart, David Niven and Richard Burton.
18 Facts About Phil Gersh
1.
2.
Phil Gersh was considered one of the last links between Hollywood's Golden Age and today's corporate-owned movie business.
3.
Phil Gersh's parents owned a deli on 25th Street and 9th Avenue.
4.
When Phil Gersh was 8 or 9 years old, his family moved to Washington Heights and opened a restaurant there.
5.
Phil Gersh moved to Los Angeles in the early-1930s to study at UCLA, graduating in 1934.
6.
Phil Gersh began working on a swing gang for Paramount Pictures, where his brother-in-law Sam Jaffe was an executive.
7.
When Jaffe left Paramount in 1936 to set up his own talent agency, Phil Gersh moved with him to work as an office boy earning $15 a week.
8.
Phil Gersh subsequently signed other directors from the studio including Robert Wise, Richard Fleischer and Joseph Losey, thereby establishing a reputation as an effective spotter of directing talent.
9.
Phil Gersh represented writers including Julius J Epstein, Ernest Lehman, Abraham Polonsky, and Budd Schulberg.
10.
Phil Gersh helped his clients Mostel and Polonsky when they were blacklisted during the anti-Communist witch-hunts of the 1950s.
11.
Phil 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.
12.
Phil Gersh was credited with masterminding Humphrey Bogart's move, during the 1950s, away from typecasting in gangster films to more diverse roles.
13.
Phil Gersh fell out with close friend David Niven when Niven was persuaded to fire Gersh by an agent for the William Morris Agency, who died a few days later.
14.
In 1965 Phil Gersh won the role of director in The Sound of Music for his client Robert Wise, and the substantial returns to his agency from this deal allowed for the purchase of plush new headquarters in Beverly Hills.
15.
Phil Gersh continued to play a role in the company's management until 10 weeks before his death.
16.
Phil 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.
17.
Phil Gersh died at his home in Beverly Hills on May 10,2004, at the age of 92.
18.
Phil Gersh is buried in Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery, Culver City, California.