Jack Rollins | |
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![]() Rollins in 1984 | |
Born | Jacob Rabinowitz March 23, 1915 Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
Died | June 18, 2015 Manhattan, New York, U.S. | (aged 100)
Occupation(s) | Film and television producer and talent manager |
Years active | 1952–2015 |
Military career | |
Allegiance | ![]() |
Service/ | ![]() |
Years of service | World War II |
Rank | Sergeant |
Battles/wars | China Burma India Theater |
Jack Koeppel Rollins (born Jacob Rabinowitz; March 23, 1915 – June 18, 2015) was an American film and television producer and talent manager of comedians and television personalities.[1] His first major success came in the 1950s when he managed actor and singer Harry Belafonte. Rollins co-wrote the song "Man Piaba" with Belafonte on his debut RCA Victor album Mark Twain and other Folk Favorites, released in 1954. In 1958, he helped create and promote the comedy duo Nichols and May. He went on to help shepherd the careers of several prominent comedians with his partner Charles H. Joffe, beginning in 1960 with Woody Allen and later with Dick Cavett, Billy Crystal, David Letterman, and Robin Williams.
Rollins' work as a film and television producer was closely tied to the artists that he managed. He was credited as an executive producer on many of the films directed by Woody Allen from 1969 to 2015.[2][3] From 1970 to 1972 he was an executive producer on ABC's The Dick Cavett Show and, from 1982 to 1992, he was an executive producer of the NBC series Late Night with David Letterman. Between the two shows, he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award ten times.