Valenti recovering from stroke
Jack Valenti, Hollywood’s top official in Washington for 38 years, is making progress at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore after suffering a stroke last week.
Texas native Valenti, 85, joined the Motion Picture Assn. of America in 1966 after serving as a senior aide to President Lyndon B. Johnson. Valenti served as head of the MPAA until his retirement in 2004, when he was succeeded by Dan Glickman.
Since leaving the MPAA, Valenti has been working on behalf of world health issues and as a consultant to the entertainment industry on teaching parents how to block objectionable TV shows. Valenti is the father of Hollywood’s movie ratings system. He also has been working on his memoirs.
In a statement issued Tuesday through Warner Bros. Chairman Barry Meyer, Valenti’s wife, Mary Margaret, and his children expressed “their deep appreciation of the outpouring of love, support and prayers.”
Meyer said that out of respect for the Valenti family’s privacy, no additional information would be released at this time.
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