POLLY ANTHONY, R.I.P.

Polly Anthony passed away on Sunday morning after a long, heroic battle with pancreatic cancer, surrounded by her loving family and beloved dogs.

She began her career as an assistant in the promotion department of Epic Records in Los Angeles and rose to become President of the Epic Label Group. There she worked closely with Tommy Mottola, longtime mentor Dave Glew and Michele Anthony. During her illustrious career at Epic, Polly guided the development of and worked closely with such artists as Michael Jackson, Celine Dion, Macy Gray, Rage Against the Machine, Jennifer Lopez, Pearl Jam and Shakira. She also oversaw and drove the historic success of the Titanic and Chicago film soundtracks.

In her days as head of promotion, Polly was considered among the best who have ever held this position. As a label head, her momentum continued as both a mega-successful leader and a mentor to many who worked with her. "Polly was a force of nature, a mentor to many women in the business and my best friend. We will all miss her deeply," said Michele Anthony. Industry leader Irving Azoff sums it up well: "Polly combined old-school passion with new-world charm and intelligence. She had this rare combo in our business. She was everything good about what it was to grow up in the music business."

After Epic, Polly moved to Universal as President of DreamWorks Records and then Co-President of Geffen Records, where she worked closely with Jimmy Iovine and artists such as Mary J. Blige, Snoop Dogg, Common and Nelly Furtado. She then became Head of Television and Film for UMG. While there, Polly guided Universal's attachment to many projects such as the CBS show Cane, the HBO series Off the Record, the independent film Archie's Final Project and the Lifetime movie Betty and Coretta, for all of which she served as Executive Producer.

We will miss her always. The family, her mother Patty, sisters Betsy and Carrie, brothers BJ and Ted and her French bulldogs Meg and Reggie, ask that in lieu of flowers, donations be sent to the City Of Hope.