Television lit agents Ted Chervin and Chris Silbermann have been upped to partners at stalwart literary boutique Broder, Kurland, Webb, Uffner Agency.
Chervin and Silbermann join agency founders Bob Broder and Norman Kurland as well as Elliot Webb as partners and the top management execs at the agency.
Working as equal partners with the others (and with equity stakes in the company), Chervin and Silbermann will expand their duties to helping oversee the day-to-day administrative and management aspects of Beverly Hills-based BKWU.
The promotions mark the first additions to BKWU’s partnership ranks since 1988, when Beth Uffner joined the executive team (Webb joined the agency in 1983). Uffner, who lives in New York, now serves as an executive consultant to the agency and is no longer involved in the firm’s daily management.
“Ted and Chris have emerged as leaders both in the company and in our industry,” said Broder. “Their enormous contributions ensure that the agency and its clients will remain strong and vibrant well into the future.”
Between them, Silbermann and Chervin repped such TV writers, directors and producers as Bill Lawrence (“Spin City”), Robert Kushell (“3rd Rock From the Sun”), Jeff Astrof & Mike Sikowitz (“Friends,” “Veronica’s Closet”), Tracy Newman & John Stark (“Ellen,” “Drew Carrey”), Pamela Fryman (“Just Shoot Me,” “Frasier”), Ed Redlich (“The Practice”), Rob Greenberg (“Frasier”), Vince Gilligan (“The X-Files”) and Michael Watkins (“NYPD Blue,” “X-Files”).
Chervin and Silbermann started with BKWU in 1992. Before then, Chervin worked as a federal prosecutor in New York; Silbermann began his career in the mail room of the now defunct Triad Artists Agency.
Since Broder and Kurland formed the agency in 1978, BKWU has become a powerhouse on the television literary arena.
Among the writers, directors and producers the firm reps are James Burrows (“Will & Grace”), Chris Carter (“X-Files”), Garry Trudeau (“Doonesbury,” “Killer App”), Chris Lloyd (“Frasier”), Chuck Lorre (“Dharma & Greg”), Barry Kemp (“Coach”) and Glen and Les Charles (“Cheers”).
While BKWU has fortified its position as a television power, in recent years, the agency has mounted a campaign to build its feature film ranks.
Among the film-oriented clients BKWU reps are director Andy Tennant (“Anna and the King”) and writersJim Uhls (“Fight Club”), Bruce Joel Rubin (“Ghost”) and Gerald DiPego (“Phenomenon”).
However, the 22-agent firm’s emphasis and leadership is skewed firmly to the television side, a factor that makes BKWU stand out from its competitors, which tend to either blend management from both areas or draw more heavily from its film reps for leadership positions.
