Jerry Weintraub, 77, longtime Hollywood producer

NEW YORK - Jerry Weintraub, 77, the dynamic producer and manager who pushed the career of John Denver and produced such hit movies as Nashville and Ocean's Eleven, died Monday of cardiac arrest in Santa Barbara, Calif.

Mr. Weintraub rose from talent agency mail-room employee to top concert promoter - working with the likes of Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra - and shaping Denver's career before tackling the movie business starting in the 1970s.

His attempt to found his own studio, Weintraub Entertainment Group, ended in bankruptcy. But his success as an independent producer spanned decades, from Karate Kid to 2013's Emmy-winning Liberace drama Behind the Candelabra, a film he took to HBO after all the studios passed.

"Jerry was an American original, who earned his success by the sheer force of his instinct, drive, and larger-than-life personality," said former President George H. W. Bush, a longtime friend. "He had a passion for life, and throughout the ups and downs of his prolific career it was clear just how much he loved show business."

A telephone-wielding impresario, Mr. Weintraub fashioned himself in the mold of Mike Todd, Cecil B. DeMille, and P.T. Barnum. He titled his 2011 memoir, When I Stop Talking, You'll Know I'm Dead. At the time, he joked he might write another: "Dead, But Still Talking."

Mr. Weintraub left numerous projects behind. He's the executive producer of the recently debuted HBO series The Brink and a producer on an upcoming remake of Tarzan.

Mr. Weintraub's career as a promoter took a giant step in 1970 when after a lengthy courtship he persuaded Elvis Presley's manager, Col. Tom Parker, to let him promote Presley concerts. It was at a time when Presley was beginning to do live shows after years of concentrating on movies.

According to Peter Guralnick's book Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley, Parker kept control of the finances, but Mr. Weintraub and partner Tom Hulett introduced such improvements as a modern sound system for Presley. The experience helped propel Mr. Weintraub into the top ranks of promoters.

He became chief of United Artists in 1985 but was ousted after just five months amid reports of disagreements with financier Kirk Kerkorian. He later reached a settlement with the company.

In 1987, he attempted to establish his own studio, Weintraub Entertainment Group. But it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1990 after a string of flops including My Stepmother Is an Alien.

Starting in the 1980s, Mr. Weintraub became known as one of the Republican Party's most loyal supporters in Hollywood. He had been close to Bush years before he became president, and in 1991, he hosted a star-studded party for the president at his Malibu home and played golf with Bush and former President Ronald Reagan.

Mr. Weintraub was born in 1937 in Brooklyn, N.Y. He got into show business in the mail room of the William Morris Agency. He then was hired by Lew Wasserman at MCA, where he worked as advance man for the agency's stars.