David Alan Sonenberg is an American music manager, and the founder of the music management company DAS Communications. He is the producer of the Oscar-winning film '' When We Were Kings'' (1997).

Early life and education

Born and raised in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, Sonenberg received a degree in Theater and Political Science at Tufts University and a

juris doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

. Since 1972, he has been a licensed attorney in New York State.

Career

Sonenberg joined the entertainment law firm of Weissberger & Frosch. There, he represented Broadway and

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

musical productions including ''

Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and f ...

'', '' Godspell'' and '' Cabaret''.

DAS Communications

Sonenberg then established his own law firm and began DAS Communications Ltd., a full-service management company located in New York and Los Angeles for artists in the entertainment industry. DAS's first management project, Meat Loaf's '' Bat Out of Hell'', set an industry record for a debut album with worldwide record sales to date of more than 50 million. Other clients of DAS Communications have included Jim Steinman,

Jimmy Cliff James Chambers OM (born 30 July 1944), known professionally as Jimmy Cliff, is a Jamaican ska, rocksteady, reggae and soul musician, multi-instrumentalist, singer, and actor. He is the only living reggae musician to hold the Order of Merit, t ...

, Southside Johnny, Jimmy Iovine, BeBe & CeCe Winans, Keith Thomas,

The Spin Doctors Spin Doctors are an American alternative rock band from New York City, best known for their early 1990s hits "Two Princes" and "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong", which peaked on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart at No. 7 and No. 17, respec ...

, Joan Osborne, Spacehog, The Fugees including Lauryn Hill, The Black Eyed Peas, John Legend,

Kesha Kesha Rose Sebert (; born March 1, 1987), formerly stylized as Ke$ha, is an American singer and songwriter. In 2005, at age 18, Kesha was signed to Kemosabe Records. Her first major success came in early 2009 after she was featured on America ...

, Saraya and Indiggo. To date, artists represented by DAS Communications have written, produced, and performed recordings with sales totaling in excess of 300 million records worldwide. DAS Ventures Ltd., another of the DAS family of companies, entered into agreements with Yoko Ono and the Estate of John Lennon in 1997, which culminated in the launch of The John Lennon Songwriting Contest.

Productions

1997 saw the release of Sonenberg's first film project, the acclaimed documentary ''When We Were Kings,'' about boxer

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...

, for which Sonenberg received an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. In 2002, Sonenberg produced

Dance of the Vampires ''The Fearless Vampire Killers, or Pardon Me, But Your Teeth Are in My Neck'' (shortened to ''The Fearless Vampire Killers''; originally released in the United Kingdom as ''Dance of the Vampires'') is a 1967 British comedy horror film directed b ...

on Broadway.

Personal

Sonenberg has two daughters, and enjoys table tennis.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sonenberg, David Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences alumni Harvard Law School alumni New York (state) lawyers Producers of Best Documentary Feature Academy Award winners