Jay Weston, Producer of ‘Lady Sings the Blues’ and ‘For Love of Ivy,’ Dies at 93
thewrap.comJay Weston, a veteran producer of Hollywood films including 1972’s “Lady Sings the Blues” starring Diana Ross and 1968’s “For Love of Ivy” starring Sidney Poitier, has died at the age or 93.Weston, who also built a respected career as a restaurant critic, died at the Motion Picture Home in Woodland Hills, California.Weston’s most notable producing efforts likely came on “Lady Sings the Blues,” which was nominated for five Academy Awards.
Other features included “Buddy Buddy” (notable for being Billy Wilder’s final film), “Chu Chu and the Philly Flash” and “W.C.
Fields and Me.”Weston was born in Brooklyn, New York, on March 9, 1929, to Phillip and Shirley Weinstein. He went to NYU as a pre-med student, but soon switched to an arts curriculum.
After earning a BA, he began a career in publicity before being drafted and sent to Korea in 1952. There he started a newspaper, The Hialean, which won the Army Commendation Medal as the best newspaper in Korea.After discharge, he came back to New York and started a publicity firm representing many young stars, including Paul Anka, and then became public relations counsel for Cinerama Inc., where he worked for a decade.
Read more on thewrap.com