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Stan Kamen was hired by the William Morris Agency as a lawyer. He hated law. He was almost fired by Nat Lefkowitz his first week on the job when he caught hepatitis.

"Kamen was quiet and private..." (The Agency, pg. 199) According to the book The Agency, Kamen was gay. (pg. 254) He was also buttoned down and zipped up. (pg. 342)

Kamen became head of William Morris's motion picture department in 1975. He and Sue Mengers were the top two movie agents in town. Mengers loved publicity while Kamen avoided it.

When Michael Chimino ran over budget on Heaven's Gate in 1979, United Artists executive Peter Bach sought advice.

"''Hit him'' was the recommendation of Cimino's own agent, Stan Kamen, with whom Bach conferred. Kamen was apparently not advising a quick belt in the chops, which by this time Bach would have been entitled to try. No, he was advising verbal smacking, somewhere in the region of the ego, which in this case was as big as all outdoors. ''You have to understand that the only thing he understands is force,'' said the agent." (Fortune 8/19/85)

During the 1980s, Kamen steadily lost clients to Mike Ovitz's CAA. Stan's health declined. He was diagnosed with AIDS. He died 2/20/86.