Sanford “Sandy” Wernick, a longtime talent manager of clients including Adam Sandler, Lorne Michaels, Tim Herlihy, John Davies and Rob Schneider, who also became partner and senior executive VP at Brillstein Entertainment Partners, died on Thursday. He was 86.
Wernick died in Rancho Mirage, California, after a brief illness, surrounded by his family and loved ones, a family representative told The Hollywood Reporter.
Born on March 22, 1939, in the Bronx, New York, Wernick went on to serve in the Army from 1960 to 1962 and also graduated from NYU.
Before becoming a manager in the 1970s, he worked as an agent and made his way from the mailroom at MCA to vice president of the TV division at ICM. Later in his career, he became a partner and senior executive VP of Brillstein Entertainment Partners.
While working in television, Wernick co-created and executive-produced Def Comedy Jam. He was also involved in packaging and producing shows such as Saturday Night Live, The Muppet Show, The Sopranos, Politically Incorrect, Just Shoot Me, NewsRadio, Alf and The Larry Sanders Show.
On the film side, he served as an executive producer on several of Sandler’s movies, including Happy Gilmore, Billy Madison, The Wedding Singer and Bulletproof. He also made cameos in several films and TV shows.
As a manager and agent, his clients included Sandler, Herlihy, Davies, Akira (Leo) Yoshimura, Michaels, Ray Klausen, Don Mischer, Stan Lathan, Jeff Ross, Marilyn Wilson, Marty Pasetta, Victor Levin, Buz Kohan, Colin Quinn, Schneider, Norm Crosby, Peter Falk and Alexandra Pelosi, among others.
Wernick also spent years as an adjunct professor at the USC School of Cinematic Arts’ Peter Stark Producing Program and volunteered in the Cedars Sinai emergency room. In his free time, he liked to golf and was also a former yo-yo champion.
He is survived by his wife Barbara of 64 years, daughter Michele, son Barry, daughter-in-law Jillian, grandson Sammy, sister Joyce and brother-in-law Jules, as well as several nieces, nephews and cousins.
A private service will be held in Palm Desert, followed by a memorial celebration in Los Angeles at a later date.
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