SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE

NOVEMBER 2, 2003

INDUSTRY BUZZ: Publicist Bares All, Earns Wrath of Her Ex-Boss

Los Angeles -- No business like show business: Meredith Myers caused a minor uproar in New York recently with her solo show "Like a Publicist." She based the piece, in part, on her experiences working for personal publicist Nancy Seltzer, a veteran Los Angeles flack who's represented Whitney Houston, Warren Beatty, Julia Roberts and dozens of other A-listers.

Myers squired Bridget Fonda to red carpets, shepherded cub celebs like "X- 2" performer Shawn Ashmore, discovered that VIP parties were "lame" and watched celeb handlers hold their clients' drinks so the stars wouldn't be accused of being alcoholics. After nine months on the job, Myers got canned.

Myers says the dismissal was unjustified. Seltzer was not available for comment. Shortly before she went public with the autobiographical "Like a Publicist" (a play on Madonna's "Like a Virgin"), Myers was served with papers threatening a lawsuit if she violated her confidentiality agreement with Seltzer.

The show did go on, but names were changed to monikers unsuitable for publication in a family newspaper. "Some publicists do a fantastic job," Myers says from her home in New York, where she's working on a novel about the PR business. "But some of the most powerful publicists are very angry, bitter people. You can never do anything right."

In retrospect, Myers concedes that PR may have been the wrong line of work for her. "I had no idea you had to call people a million times," she says. "I actually hate talking on the phone."

Hugh Hart is a Chronicle correspondent.