Howard Bragman, Hollywood PR veteran, dies at 66
Public relations practitioner Howard Bragman attends the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles (BBBSLA) annual Accessories for Success spring luncheon & fashion show at the Beverly Hills Hotel on April 12, 2013 in Beverly Hills, Cal
LOS ANGELES - Howard Bragman, a decades-long Hollywood public relations veteran and LGBTQ activist, has died. He was 66.
"It is with our heaviest hearts we share that our dear Howard passed away peacefully in his sleep," Bragman's boyfriend Mike Maimone wrote. "The enormity of our shared loss can't be overstated. Howard was a constant in so many of our lives and the brightest star in his wide constellation of friends and family."
Bragman died Saturday night with loved ones by his side, Maimone said in the statement.
"My dear old friend for the last 30 years passed away tonight. RIP Howard Bragman. LBGT warrior. Gentle giant. Wicked humor. Love you eternally. See you on the other side," friend John Duran wrote on social media.
Howard Bragman at GDLA watching one of his clients on the show. / FOX 11 file photo
Bragman worked in the Hollywood public relations scene for more than four decades. He co-founded public relations firm BNC (Bragman Nyman Cafarelli) which merged with PMK to become PMK-BNC, then his own firm Fifteen Minutes PR and later LaBrea Media, which represented high-profile clients including Cameron Diaz, Sharon Osbourne, Monica Lewinsky, Ricki Lake, and Wendy Williams.
In 2021, Bragman contributed $1 million to establish the Howard Bragman Coming Out Fund on the facilities of the University of Michigan,. In announcing the fund, he shared, "As a fat, Jewish, gay kid in Flint, Michigan, I always felt like a Martian. … This campus allows you to be yourself. It allows you to spread your wings in the way you want to spread your wings. I tell people, ‘Stay strong, even when it hurts.’ And, I promise, it hurts sometimes. But, there are places that will help you ease the pain sometimes. That’s what the Spectrum Center did. That’s what Michigan did."
WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA - JANUARY 14: Publicist Howard Bragman attends Howard Bragman's "Where's My Fifteen Minutes?" Book Release Party at the Chateau Marmont on January 14, 2009 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by Amy Graves/WireImage)
In 2008, he published a book, "Where’s My Fifteen Minutes?: Get Your Company, Your Cause, or Yourself the Recognition You Deserve."