Promises I Made My Mother

Haskell, Sam, with Rensin, David

ISBN 10: 0345506553 / ISBN 13: 9780345506559

Published by Ballantine Books, New York, 2009

About this Item

The format is approximately 5.625 inches by 8.5 inches. xxiv, 236, [10] pages. Illustrations. DJ has slight wear and soiling. Inscribed by the author on the half-title page. Inscription reads For Linda--Another great mother of two! Enjoy my stories of hope, faith, & Hollywood! Love, Sam Haskell. Foreword by Ray Romano. Selected Poetry. Photo Appendix. Sam Haskell was born on June 24, 1955 in Mobile, Alabama, USA. Haskell spent 26 years of his career at the William Morris Agency, a prominent talent agency where he rose to the rank of Executive Vice President and Worldwide Head of Television. He left in 2004, but not before managing prominent clients such as Bill Cosby. He is a producer, known for Dolly Parton's Heartstrings (2019), Dolly Parton's Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love (2016) and Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Colors (2015). He and his wife, Mary Donnelly Haskell, were the only American couple invited by Queen Elizabeth II to attend the royal wedding of His Royal Highness Prince Edward (aka Prince Edward) to Sophie Duchess of Edinburgh. Magnolia Hill Productions is a film and television production company founded by Sam Haskell, former executive vice president and worldwide head of television at the William Morris Agency. Established in 2013, Magnolia Hill was created to bring forth family friendly and inspirational content. The company has produced multiple shows with the country music icon Dolly Parton. Most recently, Magnolia Hill produced Dolly Parton's Heartstrings for Netflix, an eight-episode anthology series based on Parton's songs and stories. What would my mother say? How would she want me to handle this situation? How can I make this tough decision and stay true to myself? Sam Haskell still asks himself these questions every day. When Haskell was young, his devoted mother, Mary, instilled in her son the values of character, faith, and honor by setting an example and asking him to promise to live his life according to her lessons. He did, and those promises have served Haskell consistently from his Mississippi boyhood to his long career at the venerable William Morris Agency in Beverly Hills. In this inspiring memoir full of touching stories and amusing anecdotes, Haskell reveals how he kept his pledge to his mother to live a decent life-even in the shark-infested waters of Hollywood, where he handled the hottest stars and packaged the highest-rated shows-by refusing to become the cliché of an amoral agent. Here is Haskell as a child in Amory, Mississippi (pop. 7,000), discovering the power of hope as he waits for an unlikely visit from the "Cheer Man" (a representative of the detergent company who gave ten dollars to anyone using the brand), learning humility after pursuing an eighth-grade "Good Citizenship" award he cockily assumed he'd win, confronting the complications of human character when a near-fatal car crash exposed his judgmental father's true nature. Years later, in Hollywood, Haskell would rely on his mother's teachings-honesty, self-reliance, and belief in God-as he swiftly rose from the William Morris mailroom to eventually become the company's Worldwide Head of Television. His capacity for friendship and his insistence on living his version of the Golden Rule (being "thoughtfully political") allowed him to handle various client crises and the tense negotiations that nearly scuttled the last years of Everybody Loves Raymond and the entire existence of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Haskell has achieved success through self-respect, and from his story we learn how we, too, can maintain our dignity when faced with life's challenges. This stirring memoir is a testament to mothers everywhere who instill in their sons the lasting values they need to become good men and devoted fathers. First Edition [Stated], First Printing [Stated].

Seller Inventory # 88634

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Promises I Made My Mother
• Publisher: Ballantine Books, New York
• Publication Date: 2009
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0345506553
• ISBN 13: 9780345506559
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Mary Ann Halpin (Author photograph)
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Very good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Very good
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis

What would my mother say? How would she want me to handle this situation? How can I make this tough decision and stay true to myself?What would my mother say?Sam Haskell still asks himself these questions every day.When Haskell was young, his devoted mother, Mary, instilled in her son the values of character, faith, and honor by setting an example and asking him to promise to live his life according to her lessons. He did, and those promises have served Haskell consistently from his Mississippi boyhood to his long career at the venerable William Morris Agency in Beverly Hills.In this inspiring memoir full of touching stories and amusing anecdotes, Haskell reveals how he kept his pledge to his mother to live a decent life–even in the shark-infested waters of Hollywood, where he handled the hottest stars and packaged the highest-rated shows–by refusing to become the cliché of an amoral agent. Here is Haskell as a child in Amory, Mississippi (pop. 7,000), discovering the power of hope as he waits for an unlikely visit from the “Cheer Man” (a representative of the detergent company who gave ten dollars to anyone using the brand), learning humility after pursuing an eighth-grade “Good Citizenship” award he cockily assumed he’d win, confronting the complications of human character when a near-fatal car crash exposed his judgmental father’s true nature.Years later, in Hollywood, Haskell would rely on his mother’s teachings–honesty, self-reliance, and belief in God–as he swiftly rose from the William Morris mailroom to eventually become the company’s Worldwide Head of Television. His capacity for friendship and his insistence on living his version of the Golden Rule (being “thoughtfully political”) allowed him to handle various client crises and the tense negotiations that nearly scuttled the last years of Everybody Loves Raymond and the entire existence of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.Haskell has achieved success through self-respect, and from his story we learn how we, too, can maintain our dignity when faced with life’s challenges. This stirring memoir is a testament to mothers everywhere who instill in their sons the lasting values they need to become good men and devoted fathers.

About the Author

Sam Haskell moved from Mississippi to Los Angeles in 1978 to work at the William Morris Agency. He became an agent in 1980, senior vice president by 1990, executive vice president by 1995, and Worldwide Head of Television by 1999. After a twenty-six-year career, he retired in 2004 to pursue philanthropic endeavors. In 2007 he was named one of the 25 Most Innovative and Influential People in Television over the last quarter century by TV Week. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Mary Donnelly Haskell (his college sweetheart and a former Miss Mississippi), and their two children, Sam IV and Mary Lane.

David Rensin has written or co-written thirteen books, five of them New York Times bestsellers. His most recent titles are All for a Few Perfect Waves: The Audacious Life and Legend of Rebel Surfer Miki Dora and The Mailroom: Hollywood History from the Bottom Up.