Jay Bernstein, a publicist, personal manager and tele-vision producer, died Sunday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles after a massive stroke. He was 69.
Bernstein worked as a publicist and manager, representing such figures as Farrah Fawcett, Suzanne Somers, Drew Barrymore, Brooke Shields, Pamela Anderson, Lee Majors, Jim Carrey, Faye Dunaway, Sammy Davis Jr., Glenn Ford, Ernest Borgnine and Tony Bennett.
As a personal manager, he helped make then-unknown actresses Somers, Fawcett and Kristy McNichol into household names. As a publicist, he created memorable campaigns including having Mary Hart's legs insured for $1 million.
Bernstein later became a television producer, producing series including "The Return of Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer," "Mike Hammer," "Mike Hammer, Private Eye," "The E! True Hollywood Story," "E! Mysteries & Scandals" and "Carrie Fisher: The Hollywood Family."
At the time of his death, he had a show in development titled "Public Defender," fact-based stories from the Los Angeles Public Defender's Office.
A native of Oklahoma City, Bernstein began his career in the WMA mailroom, followed by a lengthy stint working at Rogers & Cowan. He then opened his own PR firm in the 1970s before segueing into the management business.
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