Warren Cowan's Passing Marks the End of an Era

Hollywood has its share of characters, and we throw around words like "legendary" and "iconic" easily. Warren Cowan was a character the best writer couldn't have invented and deserved the labels like legend and icon. He passed away Wednesday night, marking the end of an era in Hollywood.

It's not enough to say Warren was a publicist, a PR man or a press agent. He was all of the above, plus a combination of P.T. Barnum, Harry Houdini, Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison and the super-salesman Willy Loman would never be. He represented Aaron Spelling Productions and many of my husband's shows -- Dynasty, Fantasy Island, The Love Boat, 7th Heaven, Vega$ and many others -- for decades.

To Warren, everything was a "milestone," an excuse for an "event" with photographers, press and camera crews. The 100th episode of a show was a celebration, and the 200th taping was a gala. A show's anniversary was always unique or unprecedented for some reason in Warren's mind (and soon the public's consciousness), and guest stars on the shows made history or set some kind of record in Warren's fertile mind, which then translated to publicity. We always had a "first" or a "most" or an "ist" which Aaron and Warren conceived for the shows. We often joked that he made it up as he went along, and I suspect that's true. His short attention span was balanced perfectly by his creativity. On to the next "special celebration."

When we realized that Aaron had probably produced more hours of television than anyone, Warren assigned his staff to count the shows and hours. Knowing Warren, he personally counted them when they were done, just to make sure they were right. The result: The Guinness Book of World Records honored Aaron as the "most-prolific television producer" because of his astounding 3,842 hours of television -- which could have filled three-and-a-half years of prime time, seven nights a week, without any reruns. Warren kept the Guinness people on track, and recently determined that Aaron's total was more than 4,500 hours. Warren never liked that three-and-a-half years. He would say "close to four years" of programming. He always thought bigger than most people, and exaggeration was part of his DNA.

He enjoyed his work so much. He always giggled when he called Aaron to say he arranged a column item or a story, while trying to sound casual. He worked tirelessly, and would call, and later email, with an idea any time of day or night. They weren't all the greatest ideas, but he never stopped creating. I think Warren and Aaron were a team for so many years because of that little boy excitement, enthusiasm, love of show business and work ethic they shared.

Warren trained many of Hollywood's most creative publicists and successful executives, which will continue his legacy for at least another generation. He will always hold a special place in entertainment history and in my heart.

Comments

[wayoutleft]

ms. spelling, you left out charmed on your list of his productions that defined dramatic prime-time tv as we know it. please post a blog note here frequently- like these thoughts, and your thoughts on suzanne pleshette a while ago...

[LiberalBuzz]

What a nice eulogy.

Nothing like honoring those most of us will never know a thing about without posts like this.

[Newyorkgal]

Thanks, Mrs. Spelling. I was in a few meetings with him over the years, and he always seemed to jump up with an idea -- as if he couldn't contain the idea one fraction of a second longer. I also worked briefly with your husband, and he was a creative genius.

[AmbivalentGuy]

Mrs. Spelling,
thanks for this. I only read it because of a daring title
(you're right - I didn't know who he was), and a vague
interest "Is she related to Aaron Spelling?".

I'll admit it, I never really liked many of his shows,
but, honestly, they weren't made for people like me.

However, he was a man I admired. He knew how to
craft an accessible, dependable product. Even if you
didn't like the show, but had to watch it, you could relax,
stop thinking (see why I'm not his demo?) and enjoy the ride.
You weren't going to be offended, and if you were bored there
were always such pretty people to look at.

It takes a special kind of genius to know how to connect with
popular culture as strongly as Aaron Spelling did, and
he did it successfully for decades.

[jeff01]

I was in a meeting with him once, and I still haven't absorbed everything he said. Truly amazing man and obviously the male model for the Energizer Bunny.

[ThreeCentsWorth]

He was an incredible man who spewed creative ideas while the rest of us were still pondering the question. He will be missed by all who knew him and those who were entertained by his antics.