Mary Martin, Who Gave Many Music Stars Their Start, Dies at 85

Mary Martin, a Grammy-winning talent scout, manager and record executive who helped start the careers of a long list of future legends, including Leonard Cohen, Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell — and who introduced Bob Dylan to the Band — died on July 4 in Nashville. She was 85.

Mikayla Lewis, a documentary filmmaker and close friend, said she died in a hospice from complications of cancer.

Among the musicians whose work exists somewhere between rock, country, folk and Americana, Ms. Martin was a legend in her own right, widely respected for her fierce loyalty to artists and her keen eye for budding talent.

“She saw the bumpkin in me, and she also saw something that was going to develop,” Mr. Crowell said in an interview. “She was one of those people who just said, ‘Shut up and let me show you something of the world that you may not have seen.’”

A chain smoker with a keen love of football, she seemed to know everyone, and she had a knack for being in the right place at the right time.