About ATA
Since 1937, the Association of Talent Agents (ATA) has been the official trade association of talent agencies across the U.S., responsible for legislative advocacy and negotiating agency franchise agreements and regulations with the major entertainment guilds.
ATA’s collective voice provides strong and effective support for its members in matters relating to talent-agency business. The association’s one-hundred-plus member companies represent the vast majority of the professional working artists today. ATA provides best practices, a voice in talent-agency related legislation, education, seminars, networking events, conferences, news bulletins, expert opinions and day-to-day support.
ATA provides negotiation, interpretation, construction and advice concerning talent representation agreements. Our lobbyists, staff, elected leaders, political strategists and legislative committee members and the board represent ATA members every day.
The birth of ATA (originally known as Artists Manager Guild) is tied substantially to the proliferation of talent unions and guilds that formed after the Supreme Court upheld the Wagner Act also known as the National Labor Relations Act (1935). The main purpose of the labor legislation was to establish the legal right of workers to organize or join labor unions and to bargain collectively with their employers. In 1937, a group of forward-thinking representatives banded together to protect talent agents’ ability to represent artist clients by maintaining creative and economic success for the agent/client partnership.
ATA engages in advocacy with legislators, unions/guilds and industry partners. ATA provides negotiation, interpretation, construction and advice concerning talent representation agreements. Our lobbyists, staff, elected leaders, political strategists and legislative committee members and the board represent ATA members every day.
ATA’s early pioneers, including, Paul Kohner (opened the Paul Kohner Agency 1938), Zeppo Marx (he and brother, Gummo Marx represented actors and writers), Abe Lastfogel and Morris Stoller (they joined the William Morris Agency in 1912 and 1937 respectively), Bert Allenberg (the Berg-Allenberg talent agency represented a full spectrum of actors, directors and writers), Taft Schreiber (MCA Talent Agency) and James Saphier (James Saphier Agency) were instrumental in forging a meaningful, vocal and strong base that continues to serve the agency community today.
Board of Directors
ATA Board/Officers 2025:
Rita Vennari
President
Harry Gold
First Vice President
Glenn Salners
Second Vice President
Stuart K. Robinson
Third Vice President
Shelly Sroloff
Treasurer
Pearl Wexler
Secretary
Directors:
Louise Bloom
Tina Randolph-Contogenis
Jim Gosnell
Tiauna Jackson
Stefanie Liquori
April Perroni
Denny Sevier
Rebecca Shrager
Craig Wagner
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ATA COMMITTEES 2024/2025