Talent agent Ed Limato dead at 73

LOS ANGELES, July 11 (UPI) -- Famed Hollywood talent agent Ed Limato, known for his old-school approach to the industry and his lavish Academy Award and pool parties, died at the age of 73.

Limato, who represented Denzel Washington, Richard Gere, Mel Gibson and Michelle Pfeiffer over the course of his four-decade career, died July 3 of emphysema complicated by pneumonia, a spokesman for his employer, William Morris Endeavor, told The New York Times.

While many of today's talent agents are concerned with extending their reach into sports and business, Limato maintained a solitary focus on representing the talents of the Hollywood elite.

"He was the bridge between old-time Hollywood and Hollywood present," Gere told the Times, adding that Limato "bamboozled" him into accepting a role in the movie musical "Chicago" by telling him the film's director, Rob Marshall, "desperately wanted him" and telling Marshall that Gere "desperately wanted the part" -- neither of which was true, the Times said.

"Ed was a master at orchestrating all of the feelings correctly. He had a rare ability to read a script and see what could be," Gere said.