ICM Partners was a talent and literary agency with offices in Los Angeles, New York City, Washington, D.C., and London.[Vincent, Roger. " Energy cells help power Century City skyscraper." Los Angeles Times. February 5, 2012. Retrieved on February 5, 2012.]
History
Formation and growth
International Creative Management was formed in 1975 through the merger of
Marvin Josephson's International Famous Agency and
Freddie Fields' Creative Management Associates (CMA).
ICM's first president was Freddie Fields,
although he did not last long in the role.
Other important figures in the merger were
Sam Cohn and
Guy McElwaine of CMA.
In 1985, ICM acquired London-based talent agency Duncan Heath Associates, which in 1991 merged with ICM London, with Heath became chairman of the merged company.
In 1992, Josephson relinquished direct control of ICM to a triumvirate composed of Jeff Berg, Sam Cohn, and Jim Wiatt. Despite this transfer of leadership, Josephson retained a significant role within the agency, maintaining an active leadership position and continuing to manage his personal client roster.
In 2005, the company raised a financing round of $75 million from Rizvi Traverse.
In 2006, ICM acquired the literary agency Broder Webb Chervin Silbermann.
ICM Partners
In 2012, the agency completed a management buyout and formed a partnership with the new name,
ICM Partners.
In March 2018, ICM acquired the Just For Laughs comedy festival, as part of a partnership with the Canadian entertainer Howie Mandel.
In December 2019, ICM Partners sold a one-third equity stake in the company to Crestview Partners, with the expressed goal to grow the company within the representation business with an emphasis on International growth.
In March 2020, ICM partnered with Primary Talent International, a London-based music touring agency with over 700 touring clients.
In July 2021, ICM Partners and ICM Stellar Sports purchased one of the leading NFL representation agencies, Select Sports Group, a Texas based company headed by Jeff Nalley and Erik Burkhardt.
Acquisition by Creative Artists Agency
In September 2021, it was announced that ICM would be acquired by Creative Artists Agency (CAA).
The deal closed in June 2022 at a value of $750 million. Following the acquisition, 105 positions from ICM were set to be eliminated, with about 425 staffers and agents joining CAA.
Departments
Television and movies
ICM Partners' television and motion picture departments represented film actors, actresses, directors and writers. The departments also featured a division dedicated to production professionals such as cinematographers, editors,
second unit directors, composers, production designers, costume designers and visual effects supervisors. The television department also represented on-air and creative talent.
Publishing
ICM Partners represented writers and editors including Patricia Cornwell,
,
, E.L. Doctorow,
Walter Isaacson,
Carl Hiaasen,
Tom Bissell,
,
Chris Cleave,
Candace Bushnell,
John Feinstein,
, Carol Higgins Clark, and
Steve Martin. In addition, the agency represents the estates of Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss),
Arthur Miller,
E.B. White, and Tennessee Williams, among others.
Music, comedy, and lectures
ICM Partners' concert and live appearances department represented artists in music and comedy as well as lecturers. ICM Partners acquired New York City speakers agency Royce Carlton, Inc. in 2017.
From the acquisition until late 2019, the lecture division still went by the Royce Carlton name. On October 16, 2019, the division rebranded to
ICM Speakers and relocated to the Washington, D.C., office. ICM Speakers' division services included the management and representation of professional public speakers. A few notable clients included author
Mitch Albom,
author
Jon Meacham, TV host
Karamo Brown,
and activist
Nadia Murad.
Branded entertainment
ICM Partners' global branded entertainment division's services ranged from celebrity endorsements, product placement, and music tour sponsorship
to brand integration, such as the creation and packaging of original branded films and television shows.
The agency's celebrity endorsements department serviced all ICM Partners' film and television talent for on-camera, print and voiceover commercial work as well as for paid media campaigns.
External links
