Cyme Rubin (born Cyma Saltzman, May 23, 1926) is an American producer, writer, and director. She is also the president of Business of Entertainment, Inc., a corporation she had created in 1991. She is a graduate of North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering and The New York School of Interior Design. Her daughter is actress

Loni Ackerman Loni Ackerman (born April 10, 1949) is an American musical theatre performer and cabaret singer. Career Ackerman was born in New York City to Cyma Rubin, a theatre and film producer, and Martin Ackerman, an ophthalmologist. Her stepfather was ...

Early life and career

Rubin was born Cyma Saltzman in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, New York, on May 23, 1926, and grew up in

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. In 1949, she graduated with a degree in

textile management Textile management is an interdisciplinary research subject where management issues in the textile and fashion industry (i.e. the value chain of textile products from concept to customer) are studied. Textile management can be described as studies o ...

from North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering (later

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and p ...

) and became an

industrial design Industrial design is a process of design applied to physical Product (business), products that are to be manufactured by mass production. It is the creative act of determining and defining a product's form and features, which takes place in adva ...

er. She later became a color consultant for architect

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect, academic, and interior designer. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. He is regarded as one of the pionee ...

. She married her first husband, ophthalmologist Martin Ackerman, in 1948. They had a daughter together, Lori, and later divorced.. Rubin founded the

interior Interior may refer to: Arts and media * ''Interior'' (Degas) (also known as ''The Rape''), painting by Edgar Degas * ''Interior'' (play), 1895 play by Belgian playwright Maurice Maeterlinck * ''The Interior'' (novel), by Lisa See * Interior de ...

and

company Cyma Ackerman, Inc. in 1957. In 1961, she married Samuel Rubin, the founder of Faberge Cosmetics. After her marriage to Rubin, she started a career in the entertainment industry. This marriage also ended in divorce.

Career

Production career

In 1969, Rubin and writer/producer Harry Rigby created Rubin and Rigby Productions, Ltd.. Together, they prepared the production for the Broadway musical revival ''

No, No, Nanette ''No, No, Nanette'' is a musical with a book by Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel based on Mandel's 1919 Broadway play ''My Lady Friends''; lyrics by Irving Caesar and Harbach; and music by Vincent Youmans. The farcical story centers on three coup ...

.'' However, Harry Rigby was struggling to find investors and was removed from the credits as co-producer. Rigby brought the issue to legal arbitration and received a financial settlement from Rubin. The corporation was later amended on December 30, 1970 to become Pyxidium, Ltd., a theatrical production company owned by Rubin. In 1971, Pyxidium produced ''No, No, Nanette'' on Broadway. The show also did a North America tour ending in 1974. In 1973, the show was mounted in London's West End at the

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and listed building, Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) an ...

by her production company. In 1977, the U.S. copyright was registered for the show's poster with Rubin as the author. The poster's lettering with women dancing & swimming around the borders was illustrated by

Hilary Knight Hilary Atwood Knight (born July 12, 1989) is an American ice hockey Forward (ice hockey), forward for PWHL Seattle of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). She is also captain of the United States women's national ice hockey team. She ...

. Following the success of the revival, she then produced the film ''

Greaser's Palace ''Greaser's Palace'' is a 1972 American Western film written and directed by Robert Downey Sr. It stars Allan Arbus as Jesse, a man with amnesia who heals the sick, resurrects the dead and tap dances on water on the American frontier. A para ...

'' (1972), which was written and directed by

Robert Downey Sr. Robert John Downey Sr. ( Elias Jr.; June 24, 1936 – July 7, 2021) was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He was known for writing and directing the underground film '' Putney Swope'' (1969), a satire on the New York Madison Ave ...

The film was not a commercial success. In 1975, she returned to Broadway to produce the musical ''

Doctor Jazz "Doctor Jazz" is a popular tune and song written by Joe "King" Oliver in 1926. Publisher Walter Melrose got his name on it as co-composer, as was often his practice. It enjoyed its initial popularity in the 1920s. It continues to be played by Dixi ...

'' which was choreographed by

Donald McKayle Donald McKayle (July 6, 1930 – April 6, 2018) was an American modern dancer, choreographer, teacher, director and writer best known for creating socially conscious concert works during the 1950s and '60s that focus on expressing the human con ...

''.'' The show's scenic and costume designer,

Raoul Pene du Bois Raoul Pène Du Bois (November 29, 1914 – January 1, 1985) was an American costume designer and scenic designer for the stage and film. He was nominated for two Academy Awards in the category Best Art Direction. Career Du Bois was born on ...

, had been the

production designer In film and television, a production designer is the individual responsible for the overall aesthetic of the story. The production design gives the viewers a sense of the time period, the plot location, and character actions and feelings. Work ...

for ''No, No, Nanette''. In 1978, she produced a revival of the musical ''

Oh, Kay! ''Oh, Kay!'' is a musical with music by George Gershwin, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and a book by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse. It is based on the play ''La Présidente'' by Maurice Hennequin and Pierre Veber. The plot revolves around the adve ...

'' first in tryouts in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Canada, and then as a premiere at the Kennedy Center Opera House in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

However, the show did not have a successful run. Rubin was the executive producer and Robert L. Jacks was the producer for the 1981 television movie ''A Few Days in Weasel Creek''. In 1986, Rubin, Thomas De Wolfe, Robert Berger, and

Herbert Brodkin Herbert Brodkin (November 9, 1912 – October 29, 1990) was an American producer and director of film and television. Brodkin was best known as the producer of the television shows ''Playhouse 90'', '' The Defenders'', the miniseries ''Holoc ...

were the production team of the television movie '' Welcome Home, Bobby.'' Walnut Street Theatre from east

In 1988, she returned to theater with the premier of ''Mike,'' the story of film producer Mike Todd Jr. at the

Walnut Street Theater Walnut Street Theatre, founded in 1808 at 825 Walnut Street, on the corner of S. 9th Street in the Washington Square West neighborhood of Philadelphia, is the oldest operating theatre in the United States. The venue is operated by Walnut Str ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Pennsylvania. In the 1990s, Pyxidium was dissolved by proclamation and Entertainment of Business, Inc. was created. Rubin produced her directorial debut in 1999 for the television documentary movie ''Moment of Impact: Stories of the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

Photographs''. She also curated the traveling exhibition of the photographic works, as well as edited, wrote, and produced the catalogue for the exhibition.

U.S. copyrights

''No, No, Nanette Poster''

*Author: Cyma Rubin *Lettering with women dancing & swimming around borders: Hilary Knight (Illustrator) *Claimant: Broadway Properties, Ltd., Registration Date: 1977 *Source:Rubin, Cyma. K126961. No no Nanette. . Lettering with women dancing & swimming around borders.. By Hilary Knight, author of the print: Cyma Rubin. Colored print; poster. *Broadway Properties, Ltd.;. 3 Nov 77; K126961. JRG, 17 DEC 77,CCY 0091984 https://vcc.copyright.gov/browse

''Greaser's Palace'' (motion picture)

* Produced by Cyma Rubin, Written and directed Robert Downey, Sr. * Claimant: Greaser's Palace incorporated (employer for hire), Registration Date: 1980

''Capture the Moment: the Pulitzer Prize photographs'' (book)

* Edited by Cyma Rubin & journalist Eric Newton/ Written by Eric Newton * Claimant:

Freedom Forum The Freedom Forum is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) foundation dedicated to fostering First Amendment freedoms for all. The organization advances First Amendment freedoms through programs that include Today's Front Pages, the Power Shift Project, the a ...

Newseum The Newseum (April 18, 1997–March 3, 2002 and April 11, 2008–December 31, 2019) was an American museum located first in Rosslyn, Virginia, and later at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, in Washington, D.C., dedicated to news and journalism that ...

(employer for hire), Registration Date: 2002

''A Valuable Property'' (book)

* By Michael Todd Jr. & Susan McCarthy Todd * Party 1: Cyma Rubin Party 2: Michael Todd Jr., Registration Date: 1984

''Welcome Home, Bobby'' (television movie)

* Named on the copyright: Rubin, the production company, the director, & the fellow co-producers. * Claimant: Titus Productions, Registration Date: 1987 * Source:

References

External links

*Cyma Rubin Mini Bio: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0748031/bio/?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm {{DEFAULTSORT:Rubin, Cyma 1926 births Living people American theatre managers and producers American television producers American book editors Mass media people from Brooklyn