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B I R M I N G H A M
54 | OCTOBER 12 • 2023
here’s to
CATCH is
dedicated to
improving the
quality of life
for pediatric
patients and
their families
at Children’s
Hospital of Michigan and Henry
Ford Hospital. CATCH Night
of Champions Hall of Fame
induction was held recently
for Vinnie Johnson, Linda
Solomon and Mike Tirico.
Former resident of
West Bloomfield
Dave Devries has
joined Mark Amin
and Cami Winikoff’s
Sobini Films in Los
Angeles as vice
president. He will
oversee development across
film and TV for the company’s
production and financing
endeavors. Devries joins from Rob
Hardy’s Rainforest Entertainment,
where he served as head of
development for a little more
than two years, overseeing the
company’s slate of film projects and
series through their first-look deal
with Lionsgate Television.
Sheldon G. Larky of West
Bloomfield received the Michael
Franck Award from the State Bar
of Michigan’s Representative
Assembly. The award is given
annually to an attorney who has
made an outstanding contribution
to the improvement of the
legal profession. With more than 50 years’
experience, he is regarded as the longest-
serving living member of the Representative
Assembly. He is a full-time mediator who has
handled more than 3,000 cases and serves as
part-time magistrate for the 52-4 Court. He’s
written more than 100 articles and served as
editor of the official magazine for the Oakland
County Bar Association. His volunteer service
with the State Bar of Michigan is extensive.
He and his wife are long-time members of
Congregation Shaarey Zedek, where he serves
as head gabbai.
E
lliott Milstein of Novi
credits his father with
much of the success
he has enjoyed in life.
“I went to the University
of Dad,” he says. “He was
a genius, and I owe him
everything.”
Milstein, who recently
celebrated his 70th birthday,
comes from a long line of
entrepreneurs. Writing a
post on his LinkedIn page
two years ago, he extolled
the value of the strong work
ethic instilled in him by his
father and, by example, his
grandfather.
“My grandfather, a poor,
ignorant, illiterate peasant,
came to this country in 1905
and, unable to secure work,
bought a horse and sold fruit
and vegetables on the streets
of Detroit,” wrote Milstein.
“His son, my father, went
to college, where he got
several degrees, worked in a
war plant and then started a
pharmaceutical company.”
His late father founded
C&M Pharmacal in 1943.
A dermatological business
primarily known for selling
dermatological products
to treat acne, warts and
other diseases of the skin,
all of C&M’s products were
developed by the elder
Milstein, a trained chemist.
The thing is, his son, who
established the company’s
first-ever outside sales force,
growing the business’ annual
revenue from $500,000 to $3
million when he took over
the reins of the operation,
knew absolutely nothing
about pharmaceuticals or
chemistry.
So just how did Milstein
accomplish that? By
jettisoning 25 percent of
C&M Pharmacal’s existing
product line in favor of the
development of Glytone — a
line of skincare products that
reportedly exfoliates dead
skin cells to allow the growth
of new, younger skin.
With the development of
the Glytone line, Milstein
An Entrepreneur
and a Poet
Elliott Milstein made his mark in
the skincare business, but he’d
rather talk about his poetry.
DOUGLAS GLADSTONE SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
Elliott Milstein at
his desk at Biopelle,
where he worked
from 2005-2017.