Theater publicist Nancy Hereford eulogized
Nancy Hereford. Photo courtesy of the Center Theatre Group
A few weeks after her death on August 14, and just one day shy of her 71st birthday, Nancy Hereford was remembered and eulogized at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City, led by the Center Theatre Group’s Michael Ritchie. Many people showed up to speak about Nancy, and there were many tears. In attendance were actors, directors, critics, friends, family, and a diverse range of PR colleagues, all of whom had admired her.
Nancy began as a Mark Taper Forum press associate in 1976, and it wasn’t long before she became the theater’s press director, and eventually would oversee publicity not just for the Taper, but also the Ahmanson and the Kirk Douglas Theatre. These are three of the most revered showcases for new works and revivals in all of Los Angeles.
A graduate of El Segundo High School (and enshrined in its Hall of Fame), Nancy lived for many years in Manhattan Beach before recently moving back to El Segundo.
There was no better press person. She was attentive and kind and with a pleasant sense of humor, but she was also bright, perceptive, and hardworking.
I’ve interviewed hundreds of people, maybe it’s in the thousands by now, but Nancy was the only press person I ever wanted to write about. We talked about this on occasion, even as recently as three weeks before her death (from complications of cancer), but to my deepest regret it never happened. Her story was a noble one and it deserved to be shared. Nancy Hereford’s memorial at the Kirk Douglas Theatre was a fitting tribute and a fond farewell.
Bondo Wyszpolski