Lee Solters

Lee Solters, (June 23, 1919 – May 18, 2009) born Nathan Cohen, was an American press agent who used his flamboyant style to represent celebrities from stage, movies and sports including 26 years with Frank Sinatra.

Born Nathan Cohen in Brooklyn, New York on June 23, 1919, to Jewish-American parents (Jacob and Gussie) Cohen, Solters attended New York University, where he studied advertising and journalism. After being drafted into the United States Army, he became a writer for Stars and Stripes, the official newspaper of the United States Armed Forces.

After leaving military service, he went into the public relations business with his own company in 1948, achieving early success with stories about clients planted in the columns of Army Archerd, Hedda Hopper and Walter Winchell. He had as many as 60 employees working for him, resisting offers to be bought out by other firms over the years with his insistence that he remain his own boss. Solters began to gain success as his firm Solters & O'Rourke (with partner James J. O'Rourke) gathered clients. Broadway publicist Harvey Sabinson joined the firm, adding his theater division, changing the company's name to Solters, O'Rourke and Sabinson. When Sabinson left to head the League of N.Y. Theatres and Producers, the firm was renamed Solters/Roskin (later Solters/Roskin/Friedman) with Solters heading the west coast branch (in Los Angeles) and Sheldon Roskin heading the east coast branch (in New York City). Monroe Friedman was added to the firm's partnership, assisting Solters on the west coast.In the last 10 years of his life, Solters was partnered with Jerry Digney in Solters & Digney Public Relations.

Solters worked on promotion of some 300 plays and musicals, such as the original Broadway theatre productions of Camelot, Funny Girl, Guys and Dolls, The King and I and My Fair Lady. When one of David Merrick's plays was struggling to get audiences, Solters placed ads that featured quotes from people whose names had been selected out of the phone book because they matched those of noted theater reviewers.

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