Management In 1969, only a week after beginning college in
Columbus, Ohio, Sammeth sustained a
brain concussion from a
horseback riding injury and was sent home to his parents in California on a medical leave of absence. His father soon arranged a job for him in the mail room of a public relations firm in
Hollywood that represented many celebrity personalities including
The Osmond Brothers. Sammeth and the Osmond Brothers became fast friends and Sammeth continued to work with the Osmond Brothers as their public relations representative even while attending school. Sammeth dropped out of college in 1971 and began work at
MGM records for
Mike Curb. Soon after,
Osmondmania became a worldwide phenomena, and at the age of 21, he was credited with launching the Osmondmania craze in teenage publications throughout the world. writing weekly articles under Donny's name, making all traveling arrangements, touring with the Osmonds and overseeing the licensing of everything from Osmond lunch boxes, pillow cases, bubble gum and Halloween costumes. He soon became the scale show booker for Katz-Gallin, booking clients on shows such as
Hollywood Squares,
The Merv Griffin Show, the
Mike Douglas Show,
Dinah!, and
The Tonight Show. In 1983, Sammeth left Katz-Gallin and set up his own agency,
The Bill Sammeth Organization, which is still in existence. His first clients were Cher, Joan Rivers, Olivia Newton-John and
KC and the Sunshine Band. For the second season, the judging team consisted of Sammeth,
Martine McCutcheon, and
Michael Ball. Sammeth also wrote for
The Late Show starring Joan Rivers which aired on
Fox from 1986 to 1988. He executive produced the TV Movie
Joan Rivers and Friends Salute Heidi Abromowitz in 1985, as well
Cher...at the Mirage in 1990. He also appeared in the documentary
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work.
Lawsuits In 1999, after being fired by Cher, days before singing the national anthem at the
Super Bowl, Sammeth sued the singer/actress for "unspecified damages", claiming that he was to receive 15% of the profits of Cher's album
Believe. Sammeth sued Joan Rivers for defamation and owed money, after he was fired directly after Rivers' win on
The Celebrity Apprentice. He claims that her portrayal of him as the "missing manager" in her documentary
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work was defamatory to his career and that she owed him money for expenses he covered with his own credit cards during the filming of
Celebrity Apprentice.
Awards and nominations Sammeth was nominated as
Personal Manager of the Year in the
Pollstar Awards and was awarded
Personal Manager of the Year by the
Conference of Personal Managers in 1985. ==References==