The Gary Cooper Estate Case Study

 The Ultimate Revival of a Legendary American Film Icon

Gary Cooper was born Frank James Cooper in Helena, Montana, one of two sons of an English farmer from Bedfordshire, who later became an American lawyer and judge, Charles Henry Cooper (1865-1946), and Kent-born Alice (née Brazier) Cooper (1873-1967).

Completing 102 films, one of the few Actors to have a successful transition from Silent movies to “talkies”, He became the International Oscar Winning film Icon. His life was tragically cut short due to cancer in May of 1961. He is often referred to as the greatest male film star in the golden age of Hollywood, the stoic, strong silent type and created the most authentic Cowboy framework of masculinity. 

His daughter Maria Cooper Janis set out to preserve his legacy and we were awarded the honor of being the Agency that has brought his legacy into the 21st century with a revival and an on-going tribute to an American icon.

Our Scope of Work

After reviewing the contents of dozens of storage bins of family-owned assets and imagery, it was apparent that the Cooper Family was one of the most well-archived in the Entertainment industry. Largely due to Rocky Cooper, Coop’s wife, and his daughter Maria, we had and still have a lot of work to do in revealing the many facets of on and off screen persona.

We started with the simple things that bring a legacy brand to life with a viral footprint, and we have evolved over the years. Most recently we conceptualized, curated and executed a 72-hour whirlwind tour in Hollywood to honor Gary Cooper’s life and legacy tying it to the 70th Anniversary of High Noon.

The Engagement Includes:

  • Web strategy reflecting the life and times of a world-renowned legendary film actor in its third iteration

  • Focused on raising awareness on this Hollywood icon’s career and legacy after passing away over 60 years ago

  • Established and curate social media accounts along with his daughter Maria Cooper Janis

  • Created an archive of on and off camera and screen of images and home movies by decade, family time and travel, plus his filmography history

  • Establish licensing decks and event creation

  • Execute licensing and clip usage clearance

  • After the pilot episode of The Sopranos, 5 presidents have referred to their “High Noon” moment

  • Executed the press and red-carpet events for the Cartier Maison renovation and re-opening for Maria Cooper Janis for the Gary Cooper Cartier Watch suite

  • On-going cataloging the career of the Cooper Family with imagery, personal effects, props and other Cooper family assets

  • Responsible for chronicling Gary Cooper’s life and capturing the essence of the man for opportunities in potential marketing and branding campaigns

  • Book launch and promotion of Gary Cooper Enduring Style

  • Gary Cooper Off Camera, A Daughter Remembers book relaunch and new sales campaign for cases unearthed in a storage bin through social media and the garycooper.com website

  • Relaunched The Gary Cooper Endowed Fund for Student Support for Native American Indians and Indigenous Cultures at USC, School of Cinematic Arts and created a retrospective & exhibition launched through a series of events at USC, in Hollywood and around the globe

  • Press and relevance of Gary and his legacy continue to be spotlighted which most recently included an introduction of Maria Cooper Janis at the annual TCM Film Festival screening of High Noon on Sunday, April 24th as well as a screening at USC, School of Cinematic Arts in conjunction with the  Los Angeles Times Festival of Books

  • Created a panel with Maria Cooper, Dr. Amanda Foreman, the daughter of Carl Foreman, and  Pulitzer Prize winning author Glenn Frankel on the significance of High Noon then and now, including a book signing held at the Los Angeles Historic Theater Foundation (LATHF) at The Pantages, where Gary Cooper received his Academy Award for Sergeant York