Marvin Josephson
{{Short description|American talent agent and executive (1927–2022)}}
{{infobox person
| name = Marvin Josephson
| birth_date = March 6, 1927
| birth_place = Atlantic City, New Jersey, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2022|05|17|1927|03|06}}
| death_place = New York City, U.S.
| occupation = Talent agent, executive
| employer = CBS News legal department (1952–1955)
| education = Cornell University (BA, 1949)
New York University (law degree, 1952)
| organization = Marvin Josephson Associates
International Famous Agency
International Creative Management
| spouse = {{plainlist|
- {{marriage| Ingrid Bergh |1950|1970|end=divorce}}
- {{marriage|Tina Chen|1973}}
}}
| children = 5
}}
Marvin Josephson (March 6, 1927 – May 17, 2022) was an American talent agent and founder of International Creative Management, later renamed ICM Partners.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/31/arts/television/marvin-josephson-dead.html|title=Marvin Josephson, Who Scored Big Deals for Stars, Dies at 95|first=Neil|last=Genzlinger|newspaper=The New York Times |date=May 31, 2022}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/marvin-josephson-dead-icm-founder-1235150093/|title=Marvin Josephson, Founder of ICM, Dies at 95|first1=Mike|last1=Barnes|website=The Hollywood Reporter |date=May 19, 2022}}{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2022/film/news/marvin-josephson-dead-icm-founder-1235271503/|title=Marvin Josephson, Founder of ICM Partners, Dies at 95|first1=J. Kim|last1=Murphy|date=May 19, 2022|work=Variety}}
Early life and education
Josephson was born and raised in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and attended Atlantic City High School.{{cite news|author-link=Eden Ross Lipson|last=Lipson|first=Eden Ross|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1977/06/26/archives/superagent-strikes-again-the-superagent.html|title=Super-Agent Strikes Again|work=The New York Times|date=June 26, 1977|access-date=June 5, 2023|quote= Although he travels a great deal, Mr. Josephson lives quietly in New York with his second wife Tina and an infant daughter, Yi‐Ling. Coincidentally, both he and Mr. Schlosser of NBC are graduates of Atlantic City High School}} He was of Jewish descent.{{Cite news|first=Robert |last=Benjamin |authorlink= |title=New York girl honors her ancestry in China |newspaper=Tampa Bay Times|date=July 22, 1990 |url=https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1990/07/22/new-york-girl-honors-her-ancestry-in-china/ |via=|archive-url=| archive-date=}} Josephson graduated from Cornell University in 1949, where he was managing editor of The Cornell Daily Sun and a member of the Quill and Dagger society. He graduated from the New York University School of Law in 1952.
Career
Josphson started his career in the legal department of CBS News. In 1955, he started his own talent agency, at first representing television journalists like Chet Huntley (and later, Barbara Walters). His first notable entertainment client was Bob Keeshan.
In 1968, he purchased the Ashley-Famous talent agency from Steve Ross of Kinney National Company, renaming it International Famous Agency (IFA). In 1971, Josephson added the clients and assets of Jerry Perenchio's Chartwell Artists to IFA;{{cite magazine|url=https://deadline.com/2021/09/robin-french-dies-former-paramount-production-chief-talent-agent-was-84-1234832606/|title=Robin French Dies: Former Paramount Production Chief & Talent Agent Was 84|first=Erik|last=Pedersen|date=September 13, 2021|magazine=Deadline Hollywood}} adding the literary assets of Robin Dalton that same year.{{cite magazine|title=Chartell Clients Shift Over to IFA|magazine=Cashbox|date=Aug 14, 1971|page=7|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/70s/1971/Cash-Box-1971-08-14.pdf}} Under Josephson, IFA became the world's first publicly traded talent agency.
In 1975, Josephson merged IFA with Freddie Fields' Creative Management Associates to form International Creative Management. In 1992, Josephson passed control of ICM onto Jeff Berg, Sam Cohn, and Jim Wiatt, though Josephson maintained a leadership role and continued to represent personal clients. In 2005, the company was sold to a private investor, Suhail Rizvi."
Personal life
Josephson had three daughters and a son with his first wife, Ingrid Bergh, including ICM talent agent Nancy Josephson;{{Cite news|first1=Claudia |last1= Eller|first2=Sallie |last2=Hofmeister|authorlink= |title= ICM Executive Is a Top Talent Among Agents |newspaper=The Los Angeles Times|date=November 24, 1988 |url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-nov-24-fi-47146-story.html|via=|archive-url=| archive-date=}} they later divorced. In 1973, he married Tina Chen; they had one daughter, YiLing Chen-Josephson.
Death
Josephson died on May 17, 2022, in New York City, at age 95.
References
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Josephson, Marvin}}
Category:American business executives
Category:American talent agents
Category:Atlantic City High School alumni
Category:Cornell University alumni
Category:Deaths from pneumonia in New York City
Category:New York University School of Law alumni
Category:People from Atlantic City, New Jersey
{{US-business-bio-1920s-stub}}