Sam Jaffe (producer) facts for kids

Sam Jaffe (born May 21, 1901 – died January 10, 2000) was a very important person in the movie business. He worked as an agent, a producer, and a studio boss. He helped create many films and careers.

Sam Jaffe's Early Life

Sam Jaffe was born in Harlem, a neighborhood in New York City. His parents, Hannah and Max Jaffe, had moved to the United States from Russia. Sam had three older brothers and sisters: Joseph, David, and Adeline. He grew up in another part of New York City called the Lower East Side of Manhattan.

Starting in the Movie Business

Sam Jaffe did not finish high school. He left DeWitt Clinton High School and got a job as an office boy. This was at a company called Famous Players–Lasky Corporation. His brother-in-law, B. P. Schulberg, was an important person there.

Sam worked very hard and moved up in the company. He became a top executive in charge of making movies. He worked with famous directors like Ernst Lubitsch, Josef von Sternberg, and Rouben Mamoulian. In 1932, he left Paramount Pictures because of changes happening at the company.

Becoming a Talent Agent

After leaving Paramount, Sam Jaffe worked for a short time at Columbia Pictures. Then, he joined a talent agency called Schulberg-Feldman. His older sister, Adeline Schulberg, had started this agency with Charles K. Feldman.

In 1933, his sister Adeline left the company to start her own agency. She worked with many top actors like Marlene Dietrich and Fredric March. Later, she sold her agency and moved to London.

In 1935, Sam Jaffe opened his own talent agency, called the Jaffe Agency. A talent agency helps actors and directors find work in movies. While running his agency, Sam convinced 20th Century Fox studio head Darryl F. Zanuck to let him produce a movie. This movie was called The Fighting Sullivans, and it came out in 1944.

Sam Jaffe helped many famous stars and directors of that time. Some of them were Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Stanley Kubrick, and Richard Burton. In the late 1940s, his business faced challenges. This was because of government investigations into Hollywood. In 1949, he sold his agency to his brother-in-law, Phil Gersh, who had been working with him.

Retirement and Later Work

In 1959, Sam Jaffe retired and moved to London, England. Even in retirement, he continued to produce movies. He helped make films like Born Free (1966) and Theater of Blood (1973). In 1985, he moved back to Los Angeles. He then became a collector of modern art.

Sam Jaffe's Family Life

Sam Jaffe was married to Mildred Gersh. She was also from New York. Mildred's younger brother was Phil Gersh. Phil moved to Los Angeles and became a Hollywood agent. He worked with Sam Jaffe and later bought the Jaffe Agency in 1949. In the 1960s, Phil renamed it The Gersh Agency.

Sam and Mildred Jaffe had three daughters. Their names were Naomi Jaffe Carroll, Barbara Jaffe Kohn, and Judith Jaffe Tolmach Silber.

Movies Sam Jaffe Produced

Here are some of the movies Sam Jaffe helped produce:

• Theater of Blood (1973)
• Born Free (1966)
• Damian and Pythias (1962)
• The Fighting Sullivans (1944)
• Diplomaniacs (1933)
• The Vanishing Frontier (1932)