Kiefer Sutherland Left WMA For CAA

COMMENTS (21)

• Jon Rosen should be running the agency. Hands down the best left.

  Thank you.

  Comment by anHonestAnswer — Friday November 14, 2008 @ 11:36am PST  Reply to this post

• WMA keeps loosing talent and agents, yet they are still full speed on that huge new development on Beverly. Hmm… sounds like they will soon be having some serious liquidity problems.

  Comment by Johny Drama — Friday November 14, 2008 @ 11:55am PST  Reply to this post

• I thought he was at CTU…

  Comment by Thierry Attard — Friday November 14, 2008 @ 12:08pm PST  Reply to this post

• WMA senior management (Wirtschafter, Wiatt and Weintraub – the three stooges) need to wake up. They are a talent agency – with no talent. They are not an ad agency, nor are they Bain/McKinsey. Not one person in 150 of 151 El Camino (One William Morris Place) has an ounce of creativity and those who are strategic are few and far between. The heritage on which WMA was founded is long gone. They are lost at sea – and a sinking ship. Look at Morgerman – what a joke. Look at the other department heads (with the exception of MAI) – NO leadership skills, no vision and no strategic skills. Idiots – not well respected internally or externally. The place is a disaster. From the sports group (Smoller) to Talent (Morgerman), they have imbiciles as department heads. They are in their jobs due to the fact that they are friends with W, W and W. Look at the financials that they generate – nominal in comparison to other agencies and probably don’t cover their expenses. Too bad that Norman (nor anyone else for that matter) can’t do anything to right the wrongs of senior managment. Its a terrible place to work with the worst senior management. Someone needs to do some investigating – I’m sure what they are doing is illegal – and definitely immoral.

  They will continue to bleed…..

  Comment by Anonymous — Friday November 14, 2008 @ 12:57pm PST  Reply to this post

• HE’S A ROEG AGENT!!!!!!

  Comment by Albert Brooks — Friday November 14, 2008 @ 1:54pm PST  Reply to this post

• I’ve had dealings with WMA, specifically Alan Gasmer. What an asshole. Seriously. The man is a prick.

  Maybe WMA will ask for a government bailout. It’s full of old rot.

  Comment by WMA blows — Friday November 14, 2008 @ 4:06pm PST  Reply to this post

• Dear WMA Blows:

  You should meet Weintraub. He makes Gasmer seem like a saint. W&W aren’t smart enough to clue in as to what is happening. They are just enjoying the sale of the building.

  Karma is a bitch – and will catch up with this truly horrible person someday.

  Comment by Anonymous — Friday November 14, 2008 @ 4:10pm PST  Reply to this post

• If I hear one more time by Wiatt and the other clowns that we’re having the best year ever, yet we have to trim expenses, aren’t expecting bonuses, etc. Such fucking hypocrites.When they are awash in their building money. Hey, Jim, go pitch your wife’s stupid tween clothing store instead of trying to find a client under 60. I am so fucking fed up with this place, no soul, no leadership, no direction…but, hey, we’ll be renters in a new building soon. Yay!

  Comment by Cleotis — Friday November 14, 2008 @ 5:18pm PST  Reply to this post

• That’s okay- Craig Kestel is still there and he is the future of agenting.

  (okay I tried to keep a straight face but failed)

  Comment by Sternboy — Saturday November 15, 2008 @ 11:26am PST  Reply to this post

• WMA blows,
  That’s funny with the Gaz-Bashing.
  Because Alan Gasmer is one of the only guys there I actually like and respect.

  Comment by ReelBusy — Saturday November 15, 2008 @ 2:57pm PST  Reply to this post

• Sternboy,

  Be Nice!!!! Craig is a great guy!!!!

  Comment by Anonymous — Saturday November 15, 2008 @ 6:06pm PST  Reply to this post

• The only strong department they have is their reality division. Mark Itkin is the best agent at WMA, he should be running the company. They considering going after a few of the younger agents at some of the mid-size to smaller agencies. They feel a couple could be great agents if they moved up the Agency latter and they would pump real life into the agency. There is supposedly one they particularly like.

  Comment by Anonymous — Sunday November 16, 2008 @ 10:39am PST  Reply to this post

• I am not sure if I agree with the reality division being the strongest department. Their biggest problem is that they have no heavyweights to compete with the likes of Lourd, Huvane, Jacobs, Emanuel, and twenty other heavy hitting agents. They consider Gaby Morgerman their biggest gun, they have let her chase every good agent they have out the Los Angeles office. Gaby doesn’t even make into the top 20 agents in business. What big signes has she had recently. How could they let Teresa Peters and the others go? What where they thinking? Wake up!! You have the richest history in town. You are William Morris,start acting like it. There is a lot of talented agents out there, they are going after a couple of smart young agents, go get them, but don’t do to them what you did to everybody else. Allow them to grow!!! Rebuild you infrastructure and go get someone who can sign with the big boys.

  Comment by The Inside Man — Sunday November 16, 2008 @ 9:26pm PST  Reply to this post

• How can WMA compete when they have horrible management (with the exception of Itkin)? With no integrity, no sense of loyalty to their rich heritage and ultimate greed on the part of the inner sanctum, they are bound to fail. Look at the amount of agents who don’t bring in any $$. Its too bad. What was once a place of greatness is now a fiasco. Too bad that senior management has no accountability.

  Comment by Anonymous — Monday November 17, 2008 @ 9:47am PST  Reply to this post

• The fact that Anonymous just said that Craig is a “great guy” assures me that it was probably Craig himself who wrote that. He is known as one of the most insecure, catty, backstabbing talent agents who relies on his old boss Cassian to either bring him business, save his business, and/or save his job…

  Now to the real point of my responding:

  WMA does indeed have a great history, but like all company, they collapse sooner or later. WMA’s problem is that the same business model they have used since 1929 (they are over a hundred years old) to cultivate and maintain their business is truly outdated. With the sale of the buildings, they have more cash than their competitors and will probably use it to buy a competitor since they know they are in desperate need of new blood and talent…my guess is Endeavor since they tried to in 2004 but failed since Ari’s role couldnt be finalized by both parties. What WMA needs is the mentality of an Endeavor. If they did acquire, I believe Norm would retire or be Chairman Emeritus, Ari would be CEO, Wiatt would be Chairman and Wirtschafter would stay on as President.

  I wonder where Scott Lambert is getting his financing though…

  Comment by You Cant Handle the Truth — Monday November 17, 2008 @ 11:34am PST  Reply to this post

• Ari is too smart to be in business with the idiots from WMA. What would happen to Weintraub? Hopfully gone.

  Comment by Anonymous — Monday November 17, 2008 @ 12:03pm PST  Reply to this post

• What real talent is left at WMA and why isn’t management seeing that there is a real problem? Could it be that management (or lack of it) is the problem?

  Comment by Anonymous — Monday November 17, 2008 @ 2:57pm PST  Reply to this post

• Also WMA over pays agents like Michael Cooper, Brad Slater, Nicole David and Gaby Morgerman while under paying so many good agents with okay lists. WMA’s talent department under the leadership of Fogelman and Morgerman is bleeding bad and it only gets worse day by day. What is going on there?? There is not a day that goes by that I don’t hear about a client leaving WMA or an agent leaving for another agency. It’s a revolving door over there on El Camino and if they don’t get their act together soon and get rid of Fogelman and Morgerman, they will be a thing of the past and destroy the 100 plus year history WMA has been riding the coat tails of. Good luck Mr. Wiatt.

  Comment by Willy Loman — Monday November 17, 2008 @ 8:20pm PST  Reply to this post

• This is being written by a WMA employee: IRV WEINTRAUB IS A BIG PIG!!!!! I’ve worked there now for a couple of years and believe me when I say, the guy is the least respected person in the company…we laugh behind his back. By the way Nikki, Dave Wirtschafter and John Fogelman tell the trainees that the layoffs of agents is good so now the current trainees will be able to move up in the company…what a load of shit! These guys are such terrible people that I’m ashamed to worked there. I’ll be leaving soon.

  Comment by Anonymous — Monday November 17, 2008 @ 10:37pm PST  Reply to this post

• Pig is an understatement. The guy would stab his mother in the back if it would get him somewhere. Look at his track record with his former colleagues. Speaks volumes about his lack of integrity, loyalty and business acument.

  What goes around comes around. He’ll be out on his fat ass sooner or later. He must have compromising pictures of Jim and Dave.

  Comment by Anonymous — Tuesday November 18, 2008 @ 11:09am PST  Reply to this post

• As a asst. at WMA, I can tell you that Irv, Jim and Dave are horrible managers. In order for this once great agency to survive, there needs to be a management change – and soon. We’ve heard rumblings that more talent is leaving (think FRIENDS).

  Comment by Anonymous — Wednesday November 19, 2008 @ 2:13pm PST  Reply to this post