born July 23, 1891, New York, N.Y., U.S.
died Feb. 27, 1958, Phoenix, Ariz.
U.S. film producer and cofounder of Columbia Pictures .
He worked for a film distributor before cofounding C.B.C. Film Sales Co. (1920), later named Columbia Pictures Corp. In 1932 he became president of the company, which he built into a major studio. Though he came to epitomize the ruthless philistine movie mogul, he was credited with discovering many stars, including Rita Hayworth , and promoting such directors as Frank Capra .