Brian Grazer

THE SHOWMAN

BRIAN GRAZER

Producer, Author, Philanthropist

photographed by JEFF VESPA at HIS HOME

IN A PERIPATETIC career spanning four decades, Grazer, with director Ron Howard, has produced movies and television shows nominated for 43 Academy Awards and 138 Emmys. He’s also penned a New York Times best-seller and become one of L.A.’s most dedicated and hands-on philanthropists. Grazer prefers to give to causes he can personally apprehend; having raised an autistic son, he experienced the paucity of available treatments and facilities. “I produced A Beautiful Mind because I saw people all over yelling at garbage cans, screaming at walls,” he says. “I’m not rich enough to give to vague causes. I like to keep it local.” —M.W.