David Lonner in the Press

Reconnecting With Israel

“IN HOLLYWOOD, a town full of Jews, there’s a long-standing tradition to be in denial about being Jewish. Asked once why he never made films about Jewish characters, Louis B. Mayer complained: “Rabbis don’t look dramatic.” When Hitler was killing Jews in Europe during the Holocaust, Hollywood studio chiefs kept quiet, rarely giving money to Jewish refugees or, God forbid, making movies about the subject until long after all 6 million Jews were exterminated. Times haven’t changed so much. When The Times went to Hollywood bigwigs for a reaction after Mel Gibson let loose a volley of anti-Semitic slurs after being arrested in Malibu on suspicion of drunken driving in 2006, Sony Pictures’ Amy Pascal was the only studio chief willing to publicly respond.

Hollywood’s attitude toward Israel has been…”

David Lonner: Hollywood’s Outspoken Israel Supporter

“David Lonner is a Hollywood mogul who is also an unwavering and outspoken supporter of Israel. A committed philanthropist, he’s a former and founding board member of the Phase One Cancer Foundation and a former board member of Pardes and the Entertainment Industry Foundation. Today he sits on the board of Yemin Orde Youth Village in Israel.

In Tinseltown, though, he’s best known as the founder of the Oasis Media Group, where he represents writers, directors and producers. He began his career at ICM…”

Hollywood’s Mission to Israel

“‘It's almost like a birthright trip’ for movie industry professionals, says David Lonner, co-head of the Motion Picture Department at the William Morris Agency. He's talking over breakfast at the Montefiore Restaurant in Jerusalem on a brief break from trip he has organized for a distinguished delegation of film-industry elite. The group includes Davis Guggenheim, the director of An Inconvenient Truth, the Oscar-winning film inspired by Al Gore's campaign to alert Americans to the menace of global warming; Amy Pascal, chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group; producer and executive Nina Jacobson; Donald De Line, former president of Paramount and producer of the upcoming…”