Born to a Jewish family,[2] Zimring attended the drama school, Pasadena Playhouse, from 1936 to 1937 and was a radio actor in Hollywood and Chicago from 1938 to 1941.

He was a captain in the United States Army from 1941 to 1946, heading the theatrical branch of the European Theater of Operations.

His clients over the years included Karl Malden,[4] Carl Reiner,[5] Katharine Hepburn,[6] Gore Vidal,[6] Herbert Lom, Frank Capra,[6] Jean Renoir,[6] and his wife Connie Russell.

[7] In his memoirs, Carl Reiner called Mike Zimring "the most civilized of all Hollywood agents.

Zimring died February 23, 2011, at Midway Hospital in Los Angeles.