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The Men Who Would Be King: An Almost Epic Tale of Moguls, Movies, and a Company Called DreamWorks Audiobook
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(3.04) - 359 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
For sixty years, since the birth of United Artists, the studio landscape was unchanged.Then came Hollywood's Circus Maximus—created by director Steven Spielberg, billionaire David Geffen, and Jeffrey Katzenberg, who gave the world The Lion King—an entertainment empire called DreamWorks. Now Nicole LaPorte, who covered the company for Variety, goes behind the hype to reveal for the first time the delicious truth of what happened.
Audiences will feel they are part of the creative calamities of moviemaking as LaPorte's fly-on-the-wall detail shows us Hollywood's bizarre rules of business. We see the clashes between the often otherworldly Spielberg's troops and Katzenberg's warriors, the debacles and disasters, but also the Oscar-winning triumphs, including Saving Private Ryan. We watch as the studio burns through billions, its rich owners get richer, and everybody else suffers. We see Geffen seducing investors like Microsoft's Paul Allen, showing his steel against CAA's Michael Ovitz, and staging fireworks during negotiations with Paramount and Disney. Here is Hollywood, up close, glamorous, and gritty.
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"An intriguing insight into the business of Hollywood via the chronological history of Dreamworks. Although, as with any othese stories, you have to question the motivation of Nicole Laporte's motivations for writing such a book considering she was is a former Variety journalist. Writing about the three main characters in this book who are part of the (if not, THE) Hollywood elite, and their business affairs, is surely a career limiting move. Nonetheless, wonderful read and startling to see how truly enormously egocentric humans can be."
— Andy (5 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“LaPorte’s lenghty narrative is the definitive history of the studio, an achievement of dispassionate reporting in the genre of corporate decline-and-fall…Hollywood, with its penchant for sunny publicity and an obsession for secrecy, is a notoriously difficult business in which to uncover the truth…Most reporters are not up to the task. LaPorte is…The Men Who Would Be King will be required reading for anyone interested in the story of DreamWorks.”
— LA Times -
This rise and fall and clash of the titans account can be a thrilling ride.
— The Boston Globe
The Men Who Would Be King Listener Reviews
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David Hoberg, 5/15/2017
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" Entertaining look at the beginning and end of a vanity created studio. It hurts not having the participation of Spielberg, Katzenberg or Geffen - but since the book is not very flattering, it's not surprising. "
— Joe, 2/19/2014 -
" Intriguing back story of the formation of the Dreamworks empire; and the egos that made it work; and helped it falter. "
— Pat, 2/12/2014 -
" A well-written, fascinating look at the founding and early days of Dreamworks SKG. It's interesting to learn more about each of the major players, as well as to mull over the astronomical sums spent/received on films. An immensely readable book for anyone who's interested in films. "
— Wendy, 1/26/2014 -
" I read the first chapter at the book store and was engrossed. The one frustrating point is that the book contains no interviews with the three people who are the subject of the book. "
— Ben, 1/20/2014 -
" Great caricatures of Hollywood power players in the 90's and a nice portrait of Dreamworks' effect on the Hollywood landscape. Dramatic and informative, I was bogged down with some of the Dreamworks video game stuff, but it was a good read over all :) "
— Giorgiana, 1/14/2014 -
" Good stuff. More Hollywood stories, very behind-the-scenes. "
— Terry, 1/12/2014 -
" Excellent story of best intentions coming up against creative difference, business and ego. "
— Dan, 1/5/2014 -
" This expose shows how greed, egos, and arrogance can ensure that even a "can't miss" enterprise can fail. I learned more about the inner conflicts of the entertainment industry than I would ever want to know. Entertaining and disappointing at the same time. "
— Carol, 12/23/2013 -
" I actually liked this better as an audio book. The writing and research weren't as strong when you see everything written down. "
— Danielle, 9/8/2013 -
" Good book if you are interested is learning about the history of Dreamworks and the founders behind it and studio politics in general. The Author has a bias that noticeably fills in gap with assumed facts but its nice to get a glimpse into the world ignoring this bias. "
— Justin, 8/8/2013 -
" Kind of dissapointed. "
— Niko05, 2/20/2013 -
" A should-read company profile for knowledge workers, managers, directors, C-levels, and entrepreneurs. "
— Lori, 2/3/2013 -
" I read about a third of this book. It's well written and dramatic but I couldn't stay focused on it so I stopped there. Since I'm not in the know about Hollywood, I felt like I needed a chart with everyone's names and what they do. "
— S., 8/7/2012 -
" Super-interesting backstory to the personalities that drive so much of what happens in Hollywood. I could do without much of the style of the book, which seems to be written like a gossip magazine article, but really cool behind-the-scenes peeks at what happened to DreamWorks. "
— Greg, 3/29/2012 -
" good, perhaps a bit reliant on gossip and rumor. but interesting, especially if you can identify the facts for yourself. "
— ThomasAD, 11/8/2011 -
" Great quick read on the birth and eventual semi-demise of Dreamwork SKG. "
— Dheilan, 11/3/2011 -
" was not really about the three moguls, they were usually mentioned in terms of the many little petty squabbles concerning artists, agents, production companies and executives...pretty boring "
— Rachel, 5/1/2011 -
" Great overview of Dreamworks. "
— Stevebri, 2/24/2011 -
" Very interesting look at how DreamWorks came to be. "
— Lance, 2/18/2011 -
" Entertaining look at the beginning and end of a vanity created studio. It hurts not having the participation of Spielberg, Katzenberg or Geffen - but since the book is not very flattering, it's not surprising. "
— Joe, 12/20/2010 -
" Good book if you are interested is learning about the history of Dreamworks and the founders behind it and studio politics in general. The Author has a bias that noticeably fills in gap with assumed facts but its nice to get a glimpse into the world ignoring this bias. "
— Justin, 10/13/2010 -
" very interesting book- an inside story. "
— Sandy, 8/23/2010
About Nicole LaPorte
Nicole LaPorte is the author of Guilty Admissions and The Men Who Would Be King: Movies, Moguls, and a Company Called Dreamworks. She is a Los Angeles based senior writer for Fast Company. She previously was a columnist for the New York Times and a staff writer for Newsweek, the Daily Beast, and Variety. She also wrote the “Rules of Hollywood” column for the Los Angeles Times Magazine.
About Stephen Hoye
Stephen Hoye has worked as a professional actor in London and Los Angeles for more than thirty years. Trained at Boston University and the Guildhall in London, he has acted in television series and six feature films and has appeared in London’s West End. His audiobook narration has won him fifteen AudioFile Earphones Awards.