"Every day is
a surprise. I wake up and I can't believe this
is my job and I get to do this."
— Hilary Duff |
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News |
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April
26, 2005 |
from
reuters |
Hilary Duff Pacts with
Former Olsen Managers
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LOS ANGELES (Hollywood
Reporter) - Teen screen and
music sensation Hilary Duff
has signed a management pact
with the executives who
helped turn twin pop icons
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen
into household names.
Robert Thorne, former CEO of
the Olsen sisters' Dualstar
Entertainment venture, has
launched a new management
firm, the Beverly
Hills-based Robert Thorne
Co., with Duff as his first
major signing.
Thorne's company also is
partnered with lawyer Greg
Redlitz, who worked
alongside Thorne for years
as executive vice president
at Dualstar.
Duff's recruitment of Thorne
as part of her management
team comes at a time when
the 17-year-old star is
beginning the transition
from her "'tween" persona as
"Lizzie McGuire" -- the
Disney Channel series that
made her a celebrity -- into
more adult-oriented acting
roles.
Duff also has a promising
musical career with two
successful albums under her
belt and another one due
this summer.
"Robert is just the person
to help me write the next
chapter as an entertainer
and a businesswoman," Duff
said in a statement.
Thorne and Redlitz also
bring to Duff's team an
expertise in the world of
retailing and licensed
merchandise, having
spearheaded numerous deals
that turned Olsen-branded
merchandise into a $1
billion-plus Juggernaut for
Dualstar.
Duff already has her own
line of apparel, health and
beauty products, among other
licensed products, but there
is ample opportunity to
expand Duff's business
ventures with top retailers
and manufacturers, Thorne
said.
"The first thing that we
have to do is ensure that
everything Hilary does is
the highest quality that it
can be," Thorne said. "And
she has a wonderful
opportunity to maintain high
visibility through all of
the major media companies
that want to work with her."
Among Duff's upcoming
feature projects are
Universal's "Perfect Man,"
set for release in July, and
"Material Girls,"
co-starring her younger
sister, Haylie Duff.
Duff's management entourage
will continue to include her
mother, Susan Duff, Susan
and Cami Curtis of Curtis
Talent Management and Andre
Recke of Boo Management on
the music and touring side
and attorney Kevin Kelly of
Gendler & Kelly.
Thorne and Redlitz were
understood to have received
a multimillion-dollar buyout
from the Olsen sisters as
part of their exit from
Dualstar earlier this year.
As the two began scouting
new management opportunities
a few weeks ago, Duff was at
the top of their list, in
part because Susan Duff had
contacted them a few years
ago about becoming involved
in Hilary Duff's career,
Thorne said.
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