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Hollywood stars wouldn’t shine as bright without their managers backing them up

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Deftly skimming the talent pool

All high-class VIPs employ serfs, vassals, types who crash around, get the seats, start the applause, aggravate the agents, find the outfits. Zoos would term them animal trainers. They’re lessers who make the greaters survive.

Even a little talent needs a big manager. J. Lo’s photo is in the paper daily. Husbands she dumps, managers she keeps.

I can now tell stories only of those who are gone. The mortality rate on a manager’s personal happiness is high. Now, often, it’s large management companies.

Take performing artists who came through New York. Eddie Fisher. Manager type Milton Blackstone found gangly kid Eddie. Fresh from Philadelphia. He taught Eddie how to dress, how to act. Taught the then-nobody-nothing kid the business. He spoke for Eddie, thought for him, maintained publicity for him during his GI days. Pushed the kid’s recordings, so that week after week Eddie had hit after hit.

Then — kaboom! — little Eddie met biggie Elizabeth Taylor Hilton Wilding Todd who next trudged on to Burton and Burton, Warner and........

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