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Nathan Lefkowitz 1905 - 1983

Nathan Lefkowitz of New York, New York County, NY was born on July 24, 1905. He was married to Sally Lefkowitz, and died at age 78 years old in September 1983. Nathan Lefkowitz was buried at Sharon Gardens Cemetery in Valhalla, New York, Comté de Westchester County.

Nathan Lefkowitz

New York, New York County, NY 10023

July 24, 1905

September 1983

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Nathan Lefkowitz Nathan Lefkowitz (1905 - 1983)

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Nathan Lefkowitz's History: 1905 - 1983

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Introduction

William Morris Agency, Inc. History The Morris Agency found an unlikely savior in Mae West, who went on to become the top grosser at the box office in the 1930s. After its initial dip, entertainment proved a Depression-hardy industry. Over the course of the decade, revenues multiplied from about $500,000 to $15 million as the agency's client roster grew to number in the hundreds. While big-name film and radio deals contributed two-thirds of this turnover, the other third came from lesser known departments, including vaudeville, nightclub, and literary management. For not only did the agency represent well-established stars but it also nurtured what it called "the stars of the future." As a William Morris Agency advertisement once stressed, "Our Small Act of Today Is Our Big Act of Tomorrow." In 1938 the agency moved its West Coast office to posh Beverly Hills. Its early real estate purchases throughout the area would become a major source of wealth in the decades to come. The Morris Agency's contribution to the Allied World War II effort was as showbiz-oriented as anything it had ever done. Abe Lastfogel organized USO shows featuring more than 7,000 entertainers, including such luminaries as Bing Crosby, Dinah Shore, Marlene Dietrich, James Stewart, Clark Gable, and Humphrey Bogart. Post-World War II Expansion into Television In the postwar era Morris's roster included Mickey Rooney, Laurence Olivier, Danny Kaye, Vivien Leigh, Katharine Hepburn, and Rita Hayworth. The agency also discovered and launched Marilyn Monroe's steamy career. Morris merged with the Berg-Allenberg Agency in 1949, bringing in such Hollywood luminaries as Clark Gable, Judy Garland, Frank Capra, Edward G. Robinson, and Robert Mitchum. It also branched into television during this period. According to Frank Rose, author of a 1995 history of the agency, "in the early years the talent agencies essentially produced the shows, even lining up guests, taking care of all sorts of details." In fact, Morris agents were responsible for packaging such immensely popular productions as "The Milton Berle Show," "Texaco Star Theater," and "Your Show of Shows." "Make Room for Daddy," starring Danny Thomas, was another Morris vehicle of the 1950s. When Bill Morris, Jr. retired from the agency in 1952, Abe Lastfogel became de facto head of William Morris. During the decade, the group represented Elvis Presley and revived Frank Sinatra's career. The agency also sparked the quiz show craze with the 1955 launch of "The $64,000 Question." Other agents booked comedy and variety acts to the nightclubs and casinos springing up in Las Vegas. These venues continued to serve as "feeders" to the film and television operations, fleshing out new talent and molding it into the next generation of movie and TV stars. Film stars of the 1960s on the Morris roster included Anne Bancroft, Carol Channing, Katharine Hepburn, Jack Lemmon, Sophia Loren, Walter Matthau, Kim Novak, Natalie Wood, Spencer Tracy, Gregory Peck, and Barbra Streisand. The agency also expanded into the music industry during this time, representing such diverse acts as folk artists Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel, British rockers the Rolling Stones, Motown divas the Supremes, and teen idols The Beach Boys. But it was television that became William Morris's biggest moneymaker in the 1960s, contributing around 60 percent of revenues or more than $7 million by the end of the decade. According to a 1989 article in Forbes magazine, "In the mid-1960s Morris was the undisputed kingpin of the television business, with some 9 hours on network prime time." When Abe Lastfogel retired in 1969, he generously divvied up all the agency's voting stock among its key executives and employees. He was succeeded by an attorney/accountant Nat Lefkowitz. At that time, the Morris agency was bringing in an estimated $12 million annually, and it boasted hundreds of employees at offices in New York, Chicago, Beverly Hills, London, Paris, Munich, Rome, and Madrid. Though the transition from Lastfogel to Lefkowitz appeared to have been a smooth transfer of power, William Morris was fraught with internal strife. For while the agency's corps of young, eager talent brokers multiplied, positions at the top remained filled by sexagenarians. Only Phil Weltman, a high-ranking executive in the television division, was in favor of grooming a cadre of younger men for top positions. Weltman's ideas were anathema to the Morris corporate culture, which prized long-term loyalty and rewarded it with promotions, but only after decades of service. The agency was becoming a training ground for other Hollywood professions; music industry executive David Geffen, television producer Aaron Spelling, and television executive Barry Diller all got their starts in the Morris mailroom. When Lefkowitz unceremoniously canned Weltman in 1975, several of Weltman's young apprentices saw the writing on the wall. That year Rowland Perkins, Bill Haber, Mike Rosenfeld, Mike Ovitz, and Ron Meyer left to form Creative Artists Agency. The agency and other defectors soon lured more than a dozen major clients, including Barbra Streisand, Robert Redford, Brian De Palma, Goldie Hawn, Mel Gibson, Michelle Pfeiffer, Kevin Costner, Jane Fonda, Alan Alda, and Chevy Chase. Back at Morris, Lefkowitz was bumped up to the newly established--and dutiless--post of "co-chairman," a title shared with the octogenarian Abe Lastfogel. Lefkowitz was succeeded as president by Sammy Weisbord, who had joined the agency in 1931 at the age of 19 as Lastfogel's assistant and had risen through the ranks of the television division. December 1980 brought another management reorganization. While Weisbord remained president, the two aging past presidents were dubbed "co-chairmen emeriti" and the board was expanded to include seven new members--the first newcomers since the early 1950s. It was not exactly an influx of new blood, however; not one director was under the age of 50. Weisbord went into semi-retirement in 1984 and was succeeded by Lee Stevens, who guided the company until his death in February 1989. At that time, Norman Brokaw ascended to the top management position. The frequent management upheavals of the 1980s did not do much to spruce up the Morris Agency's dulled reputation. Before long, it had become the butt of an oft-quoted joke: "How do you commit the perfect murder? Kill your wife and go to work for the Morris Agency. They'll never find you." Trade rags like Los Angeles Magazine and Variety sounded the death knell with headlines like "Whither William Morris?" and "R.I.P.?" Of course, the obituaries for the William Morris Agency were premature, for although the business did rely heavily on past glories and the residuals they generated, it retained several big stars, including Bill Cosby, Clint Eastwood, Jack Lemmon, Tim Robbins, Uma Thurman, Tom Hanks, and John Malkovich. Moreover, estimated revenues had doubled from $30 million in 1984 to more than $60 million by the end of the decade, when the company represented about 2,000 clients.Nat Lefkowitz, a former co-chairman of the William Morris Agency, the theatrical talent agency with which he was associated for 56 years, died Sunday in New York University Medical Center, where he had undergone heart surgery. He was 78 years old. Mr. Lefkowitz held the title of chairman emeritus at the agency and also was an officer of a number of theatrical philanthropies. Born in Brooklyn, he attended New York public schools and was graduated from City College and the Brooklyn Law School. He went to work as an accountant, joining William Morris in 1927 and serving as comptroller, treasurer, executive vice president and president before moving into a share of the chairmanship in 1976. He was chairman of the Jewish Theatrical Guild for a number of years and served in various capacities with the United Jewish Appeal, the Federation of Jewish Philantropies, the Actors Fund, the Will Rogers Hospital, the O'Donnell Memorial Research Laboratories and the National Conference of Christians and Jews. He is survived by his wife, the former Sally Feigelman; a brother, Julius of Beverly Hills, Calif.; three daughters, Dorothy B. Litwin of Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.; Rona Pinkus of New York and Helene Andrea Nachtigall of San Francisco, and five grandchildren. A funeral service will be held Tuesday in the Riverside Chapel, 76th Street and Amsterdam Avenue.
07/24

1905

Birthday

July 24, 1905

Birthdate

Unknown

Birthplace

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09/dd

1983

Death

September 1983

Death date

Unknown
Cause of death

Unknown
Death location

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Gravesite & Burial

mm/dd/yyyy
Funeral date
Sharon Gardens Cemetery in Valhalla, New York, Comté de Westchester County, NY États-Unis
Burial location
Obituary

Nat Lefkowitz, a former co-chairman of the William Morris Agency, the theatrical talent agency with which he was associated for 56 years, died Sunday in New York University Medical Center, where he had undergone heart surgery. He was 78 years old. Mr. Lefkowitz held the title of chairman emeritus at the agency and also was an officer of a number of theatrical philanthropies. Born in Brooklyn, he attended New York public schools and was graduated from City College and the Brooklyn Law School. He went to work as an accountant, joining William Morris in 1927 and serving as comptroller, treasurer, executive vice president and president before moving into a share of the chairmanship in 1976. He was chairman of the Jewish Theatrical Guild for a number of years and served in various capacities with the United Jewish Appeal, the Federation of Jewish Philantropies, the Actors Fund, the Will Rogers Hospital, the O'Donnell Memorial Research Laboratories and the National Conference of Christians and Jews. He is survived by his wife, the former Sally Feigelman; a brother, Julius of Beverly Hills, Calif.; three daughters, Dorothy B. Litwin of Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.; Rona Pinkus of New York and Helene Andrea Nachtigall of San Francisco, and five grandchildren. A funeral service will be held Tuesday in the Riverside Chapel, 76th Street and Amsterdam Avenue. .

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Nathan Lefkowitz lived 1 year longer than the average family member when died at the age of 78.

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10 Memories, Stories & Photos about Nathan

Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

01/13/2018

Nathan Lefkowitz and Elvis

A photo of Nathan Lefkowitz with Elvis Presley

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

05/03/2019

Nathan Lefkowitz grave

A photo of the grave of Nathan Lefkowitz

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

05/03/2019

Nat Lefkowitz Gravesite

A photo of the grave of Nat Lefkowitz (headstone says NAT!)

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

01/13/2018

Nathan Lefkowitz

A photo of Nathan Lefkowitz and Larry Auerbach at the signing of Elvis Presley

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

01/13/2018

Sally and Nat Lefkowitz and wife Sally

A photo of Nat Lefkowitz with wife Sally Feigelman Lefkowitz

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

01/13/2018

Sally Lefkowitz, widow of Nat Lefkowitz, chairman emeritus of the William Morris Agency until his death in 1983, died Sunday Jan. 19 in New York City. She was 95.

Active philanthropist until her death, she participated in orgs such as the USO of Metropolitan New York, the Floating Hospital, Women’s Auxiliary of NYU Medical Center and Brandeis U. National Women’s Committee. She was also involved in the Jewish community, particularly Women’s League for Israel, B’nai B’rith and Hadassah.

She and her husband established three educational scholarship funds, under their names at Brandeis, Georgetown U. and NYU Medical School.

She is survived by three daughters, their spouses, nine grandchildren and nine great- grandchildren.

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Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

01/13/2018

Nathan Lefkowitz book

A photo of Nathan Lefkowitz

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

01/13/2018

Nathan Lefkowitz

A photo of Nathan Lefkowitz

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

01/13/2018

He was at Marlene Dietrich's opening night party at the Rainbow Room in October 1967 with his lovely wife. My date [MGM's Silas Seadler] and I (a publicist) were invited to sit with Nathan and his wife Sally at their table. In the move "For the Boys" Bette Midler says: "Last Night I had a dream that Nat Lefkowitz was God." So now you know why EVERYONE including Dietrich and my pen pal for 55 years, Olivia de Havilland were impressed that I sat at that table! Nat Lefkowitz knew everybody, met everybody and made great things happen for so many people! His wife was incredibly wonderful too.

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Nathan Lefkowitz, Elvis, and Harry Kalcheim

Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

07/26/2017

Nathan Lefkowitz, Elvis, and Harry Kalcheim

A photo of Nathan Lefkowitz and Harry Kalcheim signing a deal with Elvis at the William Morris Agency.
People in photo include: Harry Kalcheim

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Amanda S. Stevenson

17.7k+ favorites

07/21/2017

Nat Lefkowitz, a former co-chairman of the William Morris Agency, the theatrical talent agency with which he was associated for 56 years, died Sunday in New York University Medical Center, where he had undergone heart surgery. He was 78 years old.

Mr. Lefkowitz held the title of chairman emeritus at the agency and also was an officer of a number of theatrical philanthropies. Born in Brooklyn, he attended New York public schools and was graduated from City College and the Brooklyn Law School.

He went to work as an accountant, joining William Morris in 1927 and serving as comptroller, treasurer, executive vice president and president before moving into a share of the chairmanship in 1976.

He was chairman of the Jewish Theatrical Guild for a number of years and served in various capacities with the United Jewish Appeal, the Federation of Jewish Philantropies, the Actors Fund, the Will Rogers Hospital, the O'Donnell Memorial Research Laboratories and the National Conference of Christians and Jews.

He is survived by his wife, the former Sally Feigelman; a brother, Julius of Beverly Hills, Calif.; three daughters, Dorothy B. Litwin of Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.; Rona Pinkus of New York and Helene Andrea Nachtigall of San Francisco, and five grandchildren.

A funeral service will be held Tuesday in the Riverside Chapel, 76th Street and Amsterdam Avenue.

Comments