A Man with a Gold Rolodex: David Mirisch

Longtime Hollywood publicist and Westlake Village resident David Mirisch has been known throughout the entertainment industry as the “Man with the Gold Rolodex.” For the past five decades, Mirisch has provided celebrity talent for more than 2,500 fundraising events, helping to raise over $35 million dollars for noteworthy causes. Mirisch is a member of the famed Mirisch Film Company family that produced 72 feature films and won 28 Academy Awards including three Best Picture Awards. Feature films included West Side Story, The Great Escape, The Pink Panther, Some Like It Hot, In the Heat of the Night, Midway and The Magnificent Seven.

On July 15, an exhibit showcasing photographs, awards and memorabilia from the publicist’s past 50 years of work will open at the Museum of Ventura County, 100 E. Main Street, Ventura. Renowned celebrities such as Muhammad Ali, Farrah Fawcett, Peter Sellers, Wilt Chamberlain, Frank Sinatra and others will be featured in this star-studded display. The exhibit will be on display Wednesdays and Saturdays and by appointment through August 18. Mirisch will give a Museum talk about his experiences in July.

Mirisch continues to lend his support to outstanding charities, including High Hopes, an Orange County-based nonprofit that services people with brain injuries. On Monday, October 22, High Hopes is holding “The David Mirisch Celebrity Invitational Golf Classic” at Mountain Gate Country Club in Los Angeles, featuring many show-business and sports celebrities.

Mirisch also works with the Special Olympics, City of Hope, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, American Cancer Society, Muscular Dystrophy Association, and many other organizations. He helped transform the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PANCAN) into the largest of its kind in the United States and the Los Angeles chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation into the most prominent chapter in the country.

For more information, visit venturamuseum.org. To learn more about David Mirisch, visit dmirisch.com.

by Lori Berezin