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agency industry talent and literary agencies successor william morris endeavor founded 1898 in new york city website wmeentertainment.com the william morris agency also known as wma was a hollywood based talent agency . it represented some of the best known 20th century entertainers in film television and music . during its 109 year tenure 1 it came to be regarded as the first great talent agency in show business . 2 in april 2009 wma merged with the endeavor talent agency to form william morris endeavor . 3 contents 1 history 1.1 beginnings 1.2 1945 to 2000 1.3 post 2000 2 2009 merger with endeavor 3 the wma agent training program 4 references 5 further reading 6 external links history edit beginnings edit in 1898 william morris born zelman moses a german jewish immigrant to the us posted a cross hatch trademark above an office door in new york city four x s representing a w superimposed on an m 4 and went into business as william morris vaudeville agent . by the time wma formally incorporated in new york state on january 31 1918 morris son william jr. and an office boy named abraham lastfogel who after becoming a talent agent in his own right entered into a business partnership with morris sr. as silent film grew into widely viewed entertainment morris encouraged his clients to experiment in the new medium . stars such as charlie chaplin al jolson the marx brothers and mae west were all represented by the company . by 1930 morris had turned over leadership of the agency to his son and lastfogel . in 1932 five years after his retirement william morris sr. died from heart failure . by that time the agency had begun the process of relocating from hollywood and vine to canon drive in beverly hills . 5 1945 to 2000 edit the william morris agency attained further industry dominance with the december 1949 acquisition of the berg allenberg agency . the senior agent in the motion picture department during the 1950s was mike zimring . 6 by 1965 wma s music department had emerged as an industry powerhouse representing among others the rolling stones sonny & cher the beach boys and the byrds . citation needed less than 10 years later in 1973 the agency s newly established nashville office provided another significant boost to the operations of william morris extending the agency s reach into country music and beyond . 7 in the early 1980s wma built the william morris plaza located at 150 el camino drive directly across the street from its main building at 151 el camino . in 1989 wma acquired the jim halsey company . in the early 1990s wma s literary department announced the largest book to screen deal ever inked when it sold the television rights for scarlett the sequel to margaret mitchell s gone with the wind . in 2000 wma acquired the writers shop which was owned by jennifer rudolph walsh . 8 post 2000 edit wma s miami beach office opened in 2003 and wma s shanghai office opened in 2004 . in 2007 the agency expanded its london music operation underscoring wma s continued commitment to the international marketplace . along with the addition of new personnel the london office moved into the iconic centre point tower . in 2003 a seismic shift occurred in the agency landscape when wma s svp and theatre topper george lane and fellow agent in charge of foreign rights michael cardonick left wma to open creative artists agency s new york city office and theatrical department . 9 2009 merger with endeavor edit main article william morris endeavor on april 27 2009 wma and the endeavor talent agency announced that they were merging to form william morris endeavor . 10 endeavor executives ari emanuel and patrick whitesell were widely recognized as the architects of the deal and ultimately took the roles of wme co ceos . 11 following the official announcement of the merger nearly 100 wma employees and former board members were let go . one of those leaving was jim wiatt who came to wma in 1999 from international creative management where he was vice chairman in 1999 . he had joined wma as president and co chief executive officer and had risen to board chairman . 12 after the merger wma permanently relocated its offices to the endeavor building at 9601 wilshire boulevard in beverly hills california . 13 the wma agent training program edit the wma agent training program often referred to as the mailroom was established in the 1940s and is well known for its roster of successful alumni . since the 1970s the program has been replicated at other talent agencies and studios many of which were headed by former mailroom trainees . once accepted trainees rotate through different departments starting with the mailroom before becoming a full time assistant or coordinator . wma s longtime competitor creative artists agency was founded in 1975 by michael ovitz ron meyer william haber michael rosenfeld and rowland perkins all former wma agent trainees . 14 15 david geffen once called the wma agent training program the harvard school of show business only better no grades no exams a small stipend and great placement opportunities . graduates from the training program were perceived at a high level of prestige within the entertainment industry because of the caliber of notable alums that have graduated from the program . 15 464 former chairman norman brokaw became the first mailboy in the beverly hills mailroom at age 15 . the agent training program still exists today at william morris endeavor . it was famously documented in david rensin s 2003 book the mailroom hollywood history from the bottom up . references edit company overview of william morris endeavor entertainment llc . bloomberg businessweek . retrieved may 27 2012 . cullen frank . vaudeville old & new an encyclopedia of variety performances in america volume 1 . routledge . p. 1020 . littleton cynthia 2009 04 27 . wma endeavor approve merger . variety . william morris agency inc. history . fundinguniverse.com . retrieved 29 january 2016 . a charmed life or a thirty six short makes it big . the brokaw company . retrieved november 13 2011 . weisbord merrily 1991 . our future selves love life sex and aging . berkeley calif. north atlantic books . p. 157 . isbn 978 155643145 6 . claudia eller january 16 2003 . morris targets miami s talent . los angeles times . jennifer rudolph walsh . retrieved 29 january 2016 . robert hofler 2003 05 09 . caa opening gotham digs . variety.com . retrieved 2015 04 27 . finke nikki 2009 04 27 . latest wma endeavor merger update hollywood history in the making today endeavor and william morris vote yes . deadline . it s a takeover not a merger . la weekly . may 28 2009 . michael cieply december 26 2009 . layoffs in the william morris endeavor merger . the new york times . finke nikki 2009 10 09 . wme will stay in endeavor headquarters instead of moving to new morris building . deadline . rose frank 1996 . the agency first ed . . new york harper business . isbn 0887308074 . a b rensin david 2003 . the mailroom first ed . . new york ballantine books . isbn 0345442350 . further reading edit haskell sam . promises i made my mother . isbn 978 034550655 9 . rensin david . the mailroom hollywood history from the bottom up . isbn 978 034544234 5 . rose frank . the agency william morris and the hidden history of show business . isbn 978 088730749 2 . external links edit official website retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title william morris agency & oldid 742331469 categories 1898 establishments in new yorkcompanies based in beverly hills californiacompanies based in new york cityentertainment companies of the united statestalent and literary agenciesamerican companies established in 1898hidden categories wikipedia articles with possible conflicts of interest from march 2015articles that may contain original research from march 2015all articles that may contain original researcharticles needing additional references from march 2015all articles needing additional 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