| Freddie Fields | |
| Birth Date: | 12 July 1923 |
| Birth Place: | Ferndale, New York, United States |
| Birth Name: | Fred Feldman |
| Death Place: | Beverly Hills, California, United States |
| Occupation: | Producer, agent |
| Children: | 4, including Kathy Fields |
| Spouse: | |
Freddie Fields (July 12, 1923 – December 11, 2007),[1] born Fred Feldman, was an American theatrical agent and film producer.
Born to a Jewish family,[2] Fields was the brother of band leader Shep Fields.
Field's obituary in Variety magazine described his early career:
In 1960, Fields and fellow former MCA agent David Begelman founded the international talent agency Creative Management Associates (CMA). At CMA, Fields and Begelman pioneered the movie "package", where the talent agency put their stars, directors and writers together on a single project.[3]
CMA developed numerous agents, including Sue Mengers, Mike Medavoy, Sam Cohn, and Jeff Berg (who became president in 1979). CMA was instrumental in the development of such stars as Judy Garland, Woody Allen, Henry Fonda, Marilyn Monroe, Robert Redford, Peter Sellers, Steve McQueen and later Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Burt Bacharach, Neil Young, and Jack Carter, and into the 1980s promoted the likes of Richard Gere and Mel Gibson. While at CMA, he was involved with numerous blockbuster films, including Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, American Graffiti, and Star Wars. Fields played a key role in the merger of CMA with the International Famous Agency to form International Creative Management (ICM).
Starting in 1969, Fields was a partner in the First Artists Company with Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, Dustin Hoffman, Sidney Poitier, and Barbra Streisand. While First Artists only lasted for about ten years, it was unique in that it owned the films it produced, such as The Getaway (1972).[4]
Fields later served as president of MGM and United Artists.
Fields was married four times. He was survived by his wife, former Miss Universe 1964, Corinna Tsopei, and by two adopted children by his former wife, actress Polly Bergen.[5] [6] He also was married to actress Edith Fellows, who died June 26, 2011. Kathy Fields is their child.[7]
He was a producer in all films unless otherwise noted.
| Year | Film | Credit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Lipstick | ||
| 1977 | Handle with Care | ||
| Looking for Mr. Goodbar | |||
| 1980 | American Gigolo | Executive producer | |
| Wholly Moses! | |||
| 1981 | Escape to Victory | ||
| 1982 | The Year of Living Dangerously | Executive producer | |
| 1985 | Fever Pitch | ||
| 1986 | Executive producer | ||
| American Anthem | Executive producer | ||
| Crimes of the Heart | |||
| 1989 | Millennium | Executive producer | |
| Glory | Final film as a producer |
| Year | Title | Credit | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962 | The Judy Garland Show | Executive producer | Television special | |
| 1989 | Glory | Executive producer | Television special | |
| 1996 | The Montel Williams Show | Executive producer |