Arthur Brian Krim (April 4, 1910 – September 21, 1994) was an American entertainment lawyer, the former finance chairman for the U.S. Democratic Party, an adviser to President

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...

and the former chairman of Eagle-Lion Films (1945–1950),

United Artists United Artists (UA) is an American film production and film distribution, distribution company owned by Amazon MGM Studios. In its original operating period, it was founded in February 1919 by Charlie Chaplin, D. W. Griffith, Mary Pickford an ...

(1950–1978), and

Orion Pictures Orion Releasing, LLC (Trade name, doing business as Orion Pictures) is an American film production and film distribution, distribution company owned by the Amazon MGM Studios subsidiary of Amazon (company), Amazon. It was founded in 1978 as Ori ...

(1978–1994). His more than four decades as a movie studio head is one of the longest in Hollywood history.

Biography

Born to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, he received his B.A. from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in 1930, and graduated from

Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (CLS) is the Law school in the United States, law school of Columbia University, a Private university, private Ivy League university in New York City. The school was founded in 1858 as the Columbia College Law School. The un ...

two years later. Krim was a partner at the firm of Phillips Nizer Benjamin Krim & Ballon. He worked as an entertainment lawyer for clients such as

Clifford Odets Clifford Odets (July 18, 1906 – August 14, 1963) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and actor. In the mid-1930s, he was widely seen as the potential successor to Nobel Prize–winning playwright Eugene O'Neill, as O'Neill began to withd ...

and

John Garfield John Garfield (born Jacob Julius Garfinkle; March 4, 1913 – May 21, 1952) was an American actor who played brooding, rebellious, working-class characters. He grew up in poverty in New York City. In the early 1930s, he became a member of ...

. He served in the U.S. Army Service Forces in the Pacific Theatre of Operations of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

where he rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel.

Film

In 1946 Krim and his partner Robert Benjamin managed the American portion of Eagle-Lion Films where they sought top talent to produce their films. When Krim and Benjamin took over

in 1951, stockholders gave them three years to turn a profit; they did it in six months. Krim remained with UA until 1978 when he created

Democratic Party

Krim became an influential Democrat, head of the Democratic Party Financing Committee and advised Presidents John F. Kennedy,

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

and

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

Personal life

He was married to Mathilde Krim. He died in New York City in 1994, aged 84. Upon

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...

's release and subsequent freedom tour in 1990, Krim hosted a $1,000 per person cocktail party at his East Side townhouse where attendees hoped to greet the newly freed Mandela.

References

External links

*
Oral History Interviews with Arthur B. Krim, from the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library

Arthur Krim papers, 1920 - 1990
at the Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University, New York, NY {{DEFAULTSORT:Krim, Arthur B. 1910 births 1994 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American lawyers American entertainment lawyers American film production company founders American film studio executives American lawyers Businesspeople from Los Angeles Columbia College (New York) alumni Columbia Law School alumni Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award winners Jewish American military personnel Military personnel from New York City Military personnel from New York (state) Orion Pictures United States Army colonels United States Army personnel of World War II United Artists people