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Dethroning the King: The Hostile Takeover of Anheuser-Busch, an American Icon Audiobook
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(3.10) - 220 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
How did InBev, a Belgian company controlled by Brazilians, take over one of America's most beloved brands after barely a whimper of a fight? Timing, and some unexpected help from powerful members of the Busch dynasty, the very family that had run the company for more than a century.
In Dethroning the King, Julie MacIntosh, an award-winning financial journalist who led coverage of the takeover for the Financial Times, details how the drama that unfolded at Anheuser-Busch in 2008 went largely unreported as the world tumbled into a global economic crisis second only to the Great Depression. Today, as the dust settles, questions are being asked about how the "King of Beers" was so easily captured by a foreign corporation, and whether the company's fall mirrors America's dwindling financial and political dominance. In Dethroning the King, MacIntosh:
—Discusses how the takeover of Anheuser-Busch will be seen as a defining moment in U.S. business history
—Reveals the critical missteps taken by the Busch family and the Anheuser-Busch board
—Argues that Anheuser-Busch had a chance to save itself from InBev's clutches, but strong forces behind the scenes forced it to capitulate
From the very heart of America's heartland to the European continent to Brazil, Dethroning the King is the ultimate corporate caper and a fascinating case study that's both wide-reaching and profound.
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"In-depth history written by a journalist in the midst of the hostile take-over of Anheuser-Bush. Not only does it capture the personalities of the Busch family, it covers opportunities lost by failure to recognize global trends. Well done!"
— Les (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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MacIntosh . . . earns extra credit for staying on the Anheuser-InBev case despite considerable macrocosmic distractions. . . . The author's persistence pays off in her account of the Busch family's searing internecine strife.
— The New York Times
Dethroning the King Listener Reviews
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" Interesting story about the Anheuser-Busch hostile takeover by InBev. I enjoyed reading about the rise and the personalities of those that built the empire. The book got pretty deep into discussing mergers and acquisitions, which is not my first choice in reading material, but the characters kept it moving along. This book did really show how inertia and arrogance can harm a company. The actions of August III were amazing and how he sold out his own son and father. "
— Mary, 2/12/2014 -
" Facinating look behind the curtains of the Takeover of A-B "
— David, 2/4/2014 -
" The first part of the book was especially interesting about the Busch dynasty and men. "
— Kirsten, 1/28/2014 -
" An interesting insight into the gargantuan merger that rocked St. Louis in 2008. A sad tale of missed opportunities and financial pressures and an aged beer baron willing to cash in his family's legacy rather than hand it off to his son. The book is populated with the bankers and lawyers who made the deal happen, and an external view of the personalities of the men in charge of Anheuser-Busch, InBev, and Groupo Modello (the Mexican brewery that might have offered AB a way of fending off InBev). "
— Jeff, 1/18/2014 -
" Interesting insight into the takeover of AB...a little too technical for my liking, but good "
— Ginger, 1/16/2014 -
" A well researched and written book by Julie MacIntosh. Great information on hostile takeovers and good insight into an American icon. "
— Kenneth, 1/13/2014 -
" Provides insight to the megalith A-B and the striking personality differences between father ("the third) and son ("the fourth"). "
— Matt, 12/20/2013 -
" It's a remarkable account of how once-upon-a-time mighty and powerful player had to fight for mere survival and compete with seemingly unimportant competition. Must read non-fiction! "
— Vinay, 12/20/2013 -
" Tough to read but extremely interesting - I learned a lot about AB. "
— Peggy, 11/20/2013 -
" Entertaining read. I remember reading about the AB takeover story when it happened but this book puts it all together "
— Chris, 9/26/2013 -
" The behind-the-scene look at the dysfunctional Busch family was fascinating, if not tragic. Very interesting read. The boardroom intrigue, the strange father/son agendas, how the whole deal played out-great stuff. "
— Thatsrite, 9/8/2013 -
" Interesting to read how anheuser busch got purchased. Its a true comedy of errors. "
— Brad, 8/3/2013 -
" Powerful story made even more so by the stunning behind-the-scenes detail MacIntosh uncovers. A must-read! "
— Charles, 1/1/2013 -
" A must read for individuals who worked/work for Anheuser-Busch! "
— Kim, 5/18/2012 -
" The first 100 pages were a really fast read. It got bogged down in the middle but picked it up at the end. I could not put it down and read it in less then 24 hours. "
— Jared, 3/9/2012 -
" Excellent and informative but somewhat slow giving the amount of information conveyed. "
— Drew, 3/3/2012 -
" Fascinating to see the politics of this company and the behind the scenes decision-making. "
— Jennifer, 11/21/2011 -
" Very interesting chronicle of the downfall of a major American company. Good read. A little hard to get into in the beginning, but then picks up as the wheeling and dealing begins. "
— Joy, 10/19/2011 -
" A well researched look into the history and takeover of Anheuser-Buch "
— Brad, 10/14/2011 -
" I just don't think I can finish it... good god it's redundant and pompous and confusing. I am thinking I just don't care... "
— Traci, 9/16/2011 -
" The behind-the-scene look at the dysfunctional Busch family was fascinating, if not tragic. Very interesting read. The boardroom intrigue, the strange father/son agendas, how the whole deal played out-great stuff. "
— Thatsrite, 5/22/2011 -
" Entertaining read. I remember reading about the AB takeover story when it happened but this book puts it all together "
— Chris, 11/16/2010 -
" Powerful story made even more so by the stunning behind-the-scenes detail MacIntosh uncovers. A must-read! "
— Charles, 11/10/2010 -
" The first 100 pages were a really fast read. It got bogged down in the middle but picked it up at the end. I could not put it down and read it in less then 24 hours. "
— Jared, 11/9/2010 -
" Interesting to read how anheuser busch got purchased. Its a true comedy of errors. "
— Brad, 10/30/2010
About Julie MacIntosh
Julie MacIntosh, the author of Dethroning the King and an award-winning journalist, led the Financial Times' coverage of the takeover of Anheuser-Busch as its US mergers and acquisitions correspondent. She also covered the fall of Lehman Brothers, the government takeovers of AIG, General Motors, and Chrysler, and the near-collapse of the global banking system while on the mergers beat at the FT and, before that, wrote as a columnist for the newspaper’s highly influential Lex opinion page. MacIntosh, who is now based in Los Angeles, has also worked as a reporter and correspondent for Reuters, and in 2003 was named one of NewsBios’ Top 30 Business Journalists under 30. She won a Knight-Bagehot Fellowship in business journalism at Columbia University and earned a master’s in journalism from Columbia’s Graduate School of Journalism. After receiving the competitive Wiegers Fellowship, she then earned an MBA from Columbia’s Graduate School of Business. She received her undergraduate degree from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
About Joyce Bean
Joyce Bean is an accomplished audiobook narrator and director. In addition to having won several AudioFile Earphones Awards, she has been nominated multiple times for the prestigious Audie Award. Equally adept at narrating fiction and nonfiction, and she also narrates audiobooks under the name Jane Brown.