Dale Olson papers, 1941-1984

Dale C. Olson (1934-2012) was an American writer and publicist who represented prominent actors and film directors during his career. In 1951, Olson moved to Los Angeles and became the first national secretary for the Mattachine Society, one of the earliest homophile organizations in the U.S. Early in his career, he worked as a reporter and writer for The Hollywood Reporter and Variety and co-founded the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle. In the 1960s, Olson joined the staff of Rogers and Cowan, a Los Angeles public relations firm, where he remained for eighteen years. He eventually became the head of Rogers and Cowan's film division. Olson left the company in 1985 to form his own publicity company. In addition to representing actors and other figures, Olson also worked on the publicity campaigns for major Hollywood films. He launched the campaigns for several Hollywood film franchises during the 1970s, including Rambo, Halloween, Rocky, and Superman. He also headed the Academy Award campaigns for many films, notably Terms of Endearment in 1983, American Beauty in 1999, and Gladiator in 2000. He received the Actors Fund of America Medal of Honor, the organization’s highest honor, in 2012.