Jody Frisch, a communications executive who had stints at the WGA and SAG-AFTRA, died Wednesday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles after a short battle with pancreatic cancer, her friend Joanna Dodd Massey announced. She was 68.
Frisch’s early career included work for producer Cameron Mackintosh to publicize his stage adaptations of The Phantom of the Opera and Miss Saigon and serving in the 1990s as the personal publicist for Family Ties star Meredith Baxter.
With a rare combination of legislative and entertainment experience and work in the nonprofit and government sectors, Frisch directed and executed numerous media campaigns, crisis and reputation management initiatives and public policy advocacy efforts during her career.
She was director of public policy and government affairs for the WGA from 2006-09, splitting her time between Washington and Los Angeles starting in ’07.
After two years at MPRM Communications, she segued to SAG-AFTRA as a strategic communications and public affairs executive in 2015 before exiting.
In Washington, Frisch worked for Planned Parenthood, the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League, the National Foreign Trade Council, the BGR Group and as national director of public affairs for the American Humane Association.
A native of Los Angeles, Frisch was raised in the San Fernando Valley and attended Birmingham High School in Van Nuys and then Northeastern University. From 1994-2001, she worked for producer Craig Anderson’s company based in Culver City. She also had her own PR firm.
She was an animal lover and advocate for women’s rights.
A memorial service celebrating her life and accomplishments will be held in the coming months. She had no immediate family but received support from friends in her final days, Dodd Massey said.
