David Rothenberg (activist)

Rothenberg ran for city councilman in 1985 in Manhattan to raise awareness about AIDS, which at the time was seen as a "gay epidemic." He ran as an openly gay candidate, which prompted significant media attention. He was profiled in the Sunday Daily News and in New York magazine. Dave Fleischer was recruited as his campaign manager and under his direction the campaign raised over $250,000, a record for the city council race. Rothenberg was widely endorsed, including by the Daily News, the Village Voice, and the Amsterdam News, among others. Rothenberg garnered 46% of the vote, collecting the third largest number of votes of any candidate in the city's 38 council race. Unfortunately, his opponent had the second greatest number of votes, thus winning the race.

Rothenberg took out a loan to finance the play and it opened in February 1967 at the Actor's Playhouse in Greenwich Village. Four of the young actors in the play were Terry Kiser, Vic Arnold, Bob Christian, and Bill Moore. Holy Face starred as well.

Rothenberg arrived in NYC in 1958 after release from the US Army. He was inspired to pursue acting after seeing Joseph Mankiewicz's dialogue in the movie All About Eve. Initially, he worked with ad agencies and book publishers as a typist to make ends meet while simultaneously sending out introduction letters to theatrical producers, agents, and press agents listed in the Manhattan directory. He also answered ads listed in the New York Times related to show business. Rothenberg was eventually hired by Bob Larken to cover interviews with actors, directors and producers by TV and radio stations. Through his press coverage of the hit musical Jamaica he met Alvin Ailey. Their acquaintance grew into a friendship and through it Rothenberg was invited to various rehearsals that helped him grow his professional network. As a result, he attained a theatrical apprenticeship with the help of Bob Ullman, who sponsored him for it with ATPAM and arranged a summer job for him as a press rep. Rothenberg spent the summer of 1960 at Lakewood Theatre in Skowhega, Maine. The theatre saw the likes of Joan Fontaine, Shirley Booth and Henry Morgan perform there and gave Rothenberg great access and networking opportunities. In 1962, David Rothenberg joined Alex Cohen's office, continuing as a press rep. This position allowed him access to the pantheon of American theatre. Through his work he met and befriended titans of American theatre such as John Gielgud, Richard Burton, Alfred Drake, Charles Boyer, Ralph Richardson, and Elizabeth Taylor. Rothenberg was Taylor's date to the opening of Hamlet on Broadway, for which he did press. His first Broadway production was Beyond The Fringe, which emerged to be one of the biggest hits of the decade. It ran for years and many of the cast went on to have distinguished careers. Notably, the production opened at the Golden Theatre on the first day of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Following his success, Rothenberg began representing plays by Pulitzer Prize winning playwrights Edward Albee, Tennessee Williams and England's Harold Pinter, as well as more than 200 Broadway shows over the course of his career. In 1966 Rothenberg was invited by Jordan Charney and Nancy Cooperstein to workshop Megan Terry's Viet Rock, which gave him the opportunity to participate in escalating antiwar protests. Viet Rock was staged at the Sheridan Square Playhouse. By the time Viet Rock opened in New York, Rothenberg had already begun working with Fortune and Men's Eyes, his second standalone production.

Rothenberg was born in Teaneck, New Jersey to parents Leo and Leonore Rothenberg. His parents were both born in New York City. He graduated in 1951 from Teaneck High School. His childhood dream was to pursue sportswriting. His parents were the first Jewish family in northern New Jersey, while one of his grandmothers converted to become a devout Christian Scientist. He attended the University of Denver, where he was part of the Freshman Honor Society. He later became campus president of Students for Democratic Action. His first political hero was Jackie Robinson. Building on his dream to pursue writing, he became the editorial page columnist for the undergraduate newspaper, Clarion. Eventually, Rothenberg became editor in chief in the student academic years '54 and '55, even though a petition was circulated alleging he was a communist, likely as a result of his participation in social and political protests. While at the paper, he exposed the rape of fraternity boys at the university by Francis Van Derbur, the father of former Miss Colorado and Miss America, Marilyn Van Derbur who exposed her father's sexual abuse decades later. This story was suppressed by Francis Van Derbur due to his high standing in the business community and his position on the Alumni Association at the university

Rothenberg's office on West 46th Street became the de facto headquarters of the organization, and the group began fundraising at Tuesday night discussions. In an effort to raise awareness, four men from the society went on The David Susskind Show. Clarence Cooper, Frank Sandiford, Eddie Morris, and Rob Freeley were panelists on the show, leveraging their social status and celebrity. Susskind informed the audience that the men were all part of a new organization, and urged them to connect with them at the Fortune Society at their office address.