Can i go now the life of sue mengers, hollywood s first superagent ebook written by brian kellow. Kristin staskowski stars as agent sue mengers in ill eat you last at terrific new theatre. Brain kellow has written the definitive biography of sue mengers, and its a fun book. By the early 70s she was not only the most powerful female agent in hollywood, she was the towns most powerful agent. Bette midler is broadway bound tv, movies, music, books. Daniel, the associated press before there was ovitz or ari, there was sue mengers. Hollywood talent agent sue mengers and actor jack nicholson, whom she represented, attend a screening of black sunday in 1977. In her her blog post about the late agent sue mengers, susan orlean writes, interviewing sue mengers was one of the saddest experiences of my professional life. Sue mengers, one of hollywood s most influential and colorful. During the peak of her clout in the 1970s, the brash barrierbreaker helped popularize the idea of the hollywood superagent. Last, written by tony winner john logan and directed by tony winner joe mantello, is based on the real life of powerful hollywood agent sue mengers, whose 2011 obituary called her brilliant.
Sue mengers took over the boys club of hollywood and did. Sue mengers september 2, 1932 october 15, 2011 was a talent agent for many filmmakers and actors of the new hollywood generation of the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s. A lively and colorful biography of hollywood s first superagentone of the most outrageous showbiz characters of the 1960s and 1970s whose clients included barbra streisand, ryan oneal, faye dunaway, michael caine, and candice bergen before sue mengers hit the scene in the mid1960s, talent agents remained quietly in the background. Hollywood super agent sue mengers takes center stage in a. Can i go now the life of sue mengers, hollywoods first. Superagent sue mengers built careers of film royalty. A biography of the greatest agent of one of the greatest periods of american cinema is a book to read. Story of sue mengers, top hollywood agent of the seventies and eighties, and confidant to the top stars and hollywood movers and shakers of the era. Superagent sue mengers handled some of the hottest stars in hollywood. Brian kellow has the scoop on hollywoods first superagent. About a month ago legendary talent agent turned hollywood hostesswiththemostess sue mengers died at the age of 7978 or or 81 depending on who you ask and where you read. In time she became, as fran lebowitz says, capitals sue mengers.
Superstar barbra streisand and hollywood agent sue mengers. Sue mengers biographer talks barbra streisand feud, wild. According to the article, for over 20 years, mengers. In 2011, i was casting around for the subject of my next biography when my literary agent, edward hibbert, suggested sue mengers, the celebrated, groundbreaking hollywood agent of the 1970s and. As the representative for many of the major players of the day. Mengers was an influential hollywood talent agent who represented some of the industrys most glamorous stars at the height of their careers. This particular phone book belongs to hollywood agent sue mengers, and contains only the names of the famous, the nearfamous, or the oncefamous who were mengers clients or party guests, or the celebrities she wanted to be her clients or party guests. Jack nicholson offered princess margaret cocaine book. Can i go now, biography of agent sue mengers, by brian. Blazing a trail for other women agents, her alist clients included stars like barbra streisand, ryan oneal and faye dunaway.
Morgan spurlocks warrior poets has acquired rights to brian kellows bestselling biography can i go now. Superagent sue mengers handled some of the hottest stars in hollywood including barbra streisand, ryan oneal, ali macgraw, mick jagger, candice bergen and peter bogdanovich. An interview with brian kellow, author of can i go now. Superagent mengers mistreated stars, but they loved her. In 1994, susan orlean published after the party, a new yorker profile of the formidable talent agent sue mengers. To call sue mengers a character is an understatement, unless the word is written in all caps, followed by. This bio of sue mengers is a recounting of her hollywood agent superagent in this case life. To call sue mengers a character is an understatement, unless the word is written in all caps, followed by an exclamation point and modified by an expletive.
New sue mengers biography a colorful glimpse of hollywood. Mengers is said to have been on good terms with princess margaret, although it is unclear how they first met sue mengers house in hollywood photo. Mengers was the first woman to amass huge power and notoriety for representing alisters like gene hackman, michael caine, candice bergen, ryan oneal, mike nichols, barbra streisand and more. New sue mengers biography a colorful glimpse of hollywood agent. But if youre hunting for little eyecatchers, lots 2519 through 2712 might be just the ticket. There was a shift where this really became a business, and the world of mike ovitz was a lot different from the one sue. The life of sue mengers, hollywood s first superagent. The untold story of the female agent who ruled 1970s hollywood. The life of hollywood s first superagent by brian kellow. Sue was a few years out of the agenting racket, and was still adjusting to. She was the highestprofile agent in the business, man or woman.
Spurlock will direct a feature on mengers, writing a script and producing with warrior poets coo jeremy chilnick, with richard arlook also producing. Hollywood agent sue mengers brought to life on stage in i. What hollywood superagent sue mengers was really like. Super agent sue mengers handled some of the hottest stars in hollywood including barbra streisand, ryan oneal, ali macgraw, mick jagger, candice bergen and peter bogdanovich. But kellow initially was ambivalent about writing his book. The photo above shows sue mengers at a book party for mickey ziffren in 1976. Hollywood agents estate sale displays star power the. The life of sue mengers, hollywoods first superagent by brian kellow. Do any other three words better conjure up the enormous energy, creativity and freewheeling social life of hollywood in the 1970s. In her heyday, in the nineteensixties and seventies, mengers was one of the. Photo by maggie rice in the 1970s and early 80s, sue mengers was a household. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read can i go now the life of sue mengers, hollywood s first superagent. Mengers, who died in 2011, was the first powerful female agent to infiltrate the hollywood boys club in the 1960s and 1970s.
Lets looksee at sue mengers bev hills party pad variety. The line was, sue mengers created a family, and ovitz built an empire. Morgan spurlock to direct, cowrite film on talent agent sue mengers. On january 27, 1979, sue mengers, the first enormously successful female agent in the movie industry, was taking a saturdayafternoon flight from. The title of the book comes from mengers passiveaggressive way.
The superagent who ruled hollywood with sex and booze. Kellows book perfectly captures the spirit of a woman who only understood life in terms of alisters vs. A colorful glimpse of hollywood superagent sue mengers. Photofest when i called the renowned hollywood talent agent sue mengers in 1999 to propose a profile for vanity fair, her first words spoken in the hoarse, gravelly voice that was all her own were. Mengers was the first woman to amass the sort of power she did, representing barbra streisand, gene hackman. Sue mengers is pure hollywood, said the wunderkind who thought of the idea. Great tidbits on the making of some of my all time favorite movies and stars from that time. Sue mengers attends the book party for mickey ziffrens a political affair on september 23, 1976, at ziffrens home in malibu, california.
Sue mengers, who died four years ago this week, was a brassy, foulmouthed, wisecracking superagent, who hustled her way from the secretarial pool to the top of hollywood. Last week i read an obit in the new york times about recently deceased hollywood agent sue mengers s legendary dinner parties. When susan orlean wrote a profile of sue mengers in the new yorker in 1994, it was a portrait of a woman in exile. Sue mengers september 2, 1932 october 15, 2011 was a talent agent for many filmmakers and actors of the new hollywood generation of the.
From left to right, actress faye dunaway, hollywood agent sue mengers, and producer robert evans attend the golden globes at the beverly hilton hotel on jan. Discover delightful childrens books with prime book box, a subscription that. From the 1950s through the 1980s, sue mengers 19322011 represented some of the most famous names in show business, including paul newman, joanne woodward, candice bergen, ali mcgraw, ryan oneal, michael caine, gene hackman, elliott gould, and, most notably, superstar barbra streisand. Before there was ovitz or ari, there was sue mengers. The biographer brian kellow, whose last subject was pauline kael, writes in can i go now. Kellow gives mengers the place in hollywood history that she deserves. Mengers may have been the most glam, powerful, statusconscious, starsnuggling hollywood power broker of the 1970s, but both she and her way of doing business had gone the way of the dinosaurs by. During the peak of her clout in the 1970s, the brash barrierbreaker helped popularize the idea of the hollywood super agent. A new biography goes inside hollywood s firstsuperagent to reveal the crazy, brazen fights and lurid. The big gig isnt the only thing going on in the third ward this weekend. Mengers is the subject of an excellent new biography can i go now. The life of sue mengers, hollywood s first superagent, the biography tells the story of arguably one of the most powerful agents in tinseltown history. Once commonly referred to as a hollywood superagent, ms. For three nights, from june 29th to july 1st, theater red and untitled productions are presenting the milwaukee premiere of ill eat you last, a onewoman show based on the reallife antics of hollywood agent sue mengers, whose explosive personality and staggering client list made her a celebrity in her own right.
583 910 178 1139 1230 535 1248 1371 1287 268 707 863 1019 1382 977 297 229 662 1361 582 384 905 363 484 1224 1351 1253 783 1381 852 517 1232 1192 648 266 334 1395 1032 1093 1168 1242