George Shapiro, Producer and Manager of Jerry Seinfeld and Andy Kaufman, Dies at 91

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorGeorge Shapiro, producer and longtime manager of Jerry Seinfeld, Carl Reiner, Andy Kaufman and other comedy stars, died May 26 at his home in Beverly Hills. He was 91.Shapiro was co-founder and partner in Shapiro/West Associates, the prosperous talent management banner that helped assemble the mammoth NBC hit “Seinfeld” and numerous projects for Andy Kaufman.

More recently, Shapiro served as executive producer of the Crackle/Netflix series “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee,” hosted by Seinfeld.A vivacious personality, Shapiro was known for his long relationships with clients and for his infectious enthusiasm for the business of entertainment. “Shapiro’s love of laughter and reverence for those who inspire it helped him build a career in comedy as an unabashed supporter of comic performers and comedy writers,” Shapiro’s family stated.

Shapiro’s role as a force in the comedy business for more than a half-century was saluted in a statement from the National Comedy Center in Jamestown, N.Y., for which he was a founding advisory board member. “He believed deeply in our mission to celebrate and preserve comedy’s heritiage,” said Journey Gunderson, executive director of the center.Raised in the Bronx, Shapiro had a decades-long partnership with West, who was a childhood friend.

Shapiro was related to Reiner by marriage, as a nephew to Reiner’s wife, Estelle Reiner. Shapiro’s formative years were chronicled in 2019 in the HBO documentary “The Bronx, USA.”As a teenager, Shapiro spent his summers working as a lifeguard at the famed Tamiment Resort in the Poconos where he was exposed to the inner workings of showbiz and performers such as Dick Shawn, Pat Carroll and Carol Burnett as well as singer