Who

An all-around master of hype, Zarem is New York's original celebrity publicist.

Background

The son of a Jewish shoe distributor, Zarem grew up in Savannah, Ga. and spent his childhood years obsessed with the silver screen stars of the 1950s: "I used to walk around Savannah and fantasize that it was Beverly Hills." After attending Yale and a short stint in the National Guard, Zarem landed at Broadway producer Joe Levine's firm. In the late 1960s he moved to Rogers & Cowan where he worked alongside super-publicist Pat Kingsley, before heading out on his own in 1974 and founding Zarem Inc. Since then, he's represented countless celebrities, shilled countless movies and Broadway shows, and planned countless swanky events. Or, as Zarem prefers to describe it, "I'm the guy who kept it out of Page Six that name-withheld was giving head to name-withheld under the table at Elaine's."

Of note

Over his three decades in the biz, Zarem's repped Kirk Douglas, Alan Alda, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Robert Altman, Dustin Hoffman and James Caan; he's promoted dozens of movies that went on to be hits like Saturday Night Fever, Rambo, Scarface, and Dances With Wolves; and he's represented a handful of New York institutions like Tavern on the Green. Along the way, he's even altered the very image of New York: With designer Milton Glaser, Zarem came up with the iconic "I Love New York" ad campaign. But to many New Yorkers who were out and about in the 1970s, he's best known for organizing some of the era's biggest parties. One of his most famous events: the premiere of the rock movie Tommy, when he managed to get 750 of New York's most notable to attend a dinner-dance at the 57th Street subway station, which he'd rented for the occasion. Zarem's also responsible for training a handful of the city's powerhouse publicists, including Liz Rosenberg and Peggy Siegal. As for the latter, supposedly Zarem once threw a typewriter at her in a fit of rage when she mangled a phone message.

Grudges

Zarem has feuded with just about everyone he's ever worked with—and that includes his star clients, colleagues, and friends. He stopped talking to Dustin Hoffman after the star asked him to score some "dope" and never properly thanked him. (Or so he says.) He had a 20-year feud with Liz Smith after he exposed her as the writer of an anonymous gossip column and she retaliated by refusing to cover his clients. He once had a physical run-in with Pat Kingsley when they worked together in the 1970s: He claims that she "literally attacked me with a letter opener" after he moved in on one of her clients. (Kingsley described Zarem's account as "totally insane.") And a dispute a few years ago with producer Jean Doumanian ended up in court. Don't even get him started on ad industry legend Mary Wells Lawrence, who has also taken credit for the "I Love NY" campaign. Zarem's described her on the record as a "fucking cunt."

On screen

The 2002 movie People I Know was partially based on Zarem's life. Al Pacino played the beleaguered pseudo-Zarem, a press agent with a drug problem.

Personal

Zarem says he's never been in a relationship. "I didn't think I was capable of loving another person." (Possibly related: He's been in therapy for 40 years.) Now in his 70s, he doesn't smoke or drink (he does, however, enjoy marijuana) and remains a fixture at Elaine's.

No joke

Zarem claims he's the man who introduced Woody Allen to Mia Farrow.