Concert Promoter, Manager, Movie Producer Jerry Weintraub Dies

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Jerry Weintraub, the dynamic producer and manager who pushed the career of John Denver and produced such hit movies as ``Nashville'' and ``Ocean's Eleven,'' has died.

Weintraub's representatives say he died Monday of cardiac arrest in Santa Barbara, California. He was 77

Weintraub, who was born in Brooklyn in 1937 to his father, Samuel – a jeweler, and his mother, Rose – a homemaker, according to his official obituary. He grew up in the Bronx, and worked as a teenager as a theater usher and waiter at a Catskills resort, his obituary said.

Weintraub then began his entertainment career as a New York City talent agent, and would go on to segue into talent management in concert promoting. He famously worked with Elvis Presley on his first arena tour, and presented Frank Sinatra at Madison Square Garden in the well-known "first around the world by satellite" concert called "The Main Event," the obituary said.

Weintraub also shaped John Denver's career and also worked with Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, and the Carpenters, the obituary said.

He then tackled the movie business and produced such films as ``Oh, God,'' ``Diner'' and ``The Karate Kid'' and its sequels.

Though Weintraub's attempt to found his own studio ended in bankruptcy, his success as an independent producer spanned decades, including 2013's Emmy-winning ``Behind the Candelabra.''

He died with numerous projects in development, including the recently debuted HBO series ``The Brink'' and an upcoming remake of ``Tarzan.''

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