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Producer Jerry Weintraub Dies At 77

Jerry Weintraub, the legendary producer behind such hits as The Karate Kid and Ocean's Eleven, died Monday in Santa Barbara, Calif. He was 77.

The cause was cardiac arrest, according to Rogers & Cowan, the PR firm.

Weintraub began his career as a talent agent for MCA in the 1950s, representing clients such as Jack Paar. He then became a leading concert promoter, handling acts like Elvis Presley and Bob Dylan. His first production venture was Robert Altman's Nashville, which garnered five Academy Award nominations.

"I'm not afraid of anything," Weintraub told NPR in a 2010 interview. "I'm never afraid of failing. I failed many times. Failure only teaches you how to be successful next time."

Here's more from Hollywood Reporter:

"A promoter and impresario in the old sense, Weintraub was a larger-than-life, Damon Runyon-esque character. A steely, hard-charging personality, he was wildly successful in a ranging entertainment career that spanned over 50 years."

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Krishnadev Calamur is NPR's deputy Washington editor. In this role, he helps oversee planning of the Washington desk's news coverage. He also edits NPR's Supreme Court coverage. Previously, Calamur was an editor and staff writer at The Atlantic. This is his second stint at NPR, having previously worked on NPR's website from 2008-15. Calamur received an M.A. in journalism from the University of Missouri.