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Who Is Michael Ovitz?

Page 40

by Michael Ovitz


  Nicita, Rick, 107, 177, 205, 276, 353

  Nides, Tina, 106, 143

  Nightline, 15, 21–23

  Nike, 300

  Nilsson, Harry, 155

  Niwa, Seiichiro, 248

  Nixon, Richard, 232

  Noble Rot, 127–28

  Nomura Wasserstein, 263

  Norris, Chuck, 224

  Northern Exposure, 290

  Novello, Don, 127

  NYNEX, 271

  O’Brien, Conan, 24

  O’Connor, Carroll, 61, 79

  O’Connor, David, 106, 142, 175, 180–81, 184–85, 326, 327, 333–34

  Officer and a Gentleman, An, 204

  Ogilvy & Mather, 285

  Ohga, Norio, 231, 233–34, 240–44, 253

  Ohlmeyer, Don, 219–20

  Oldenburg, Claes, 221

  On Deadly Ground, 228

  One Saturday Morning, 328–29

  Opsware, 339

  Ostin, Mo, 171

  Out of Africa, 141, 150, 167

  Ovitz, Chris, 30, 109, 110–11, 114, 183, 228–29, 312, 348–49

  illness of, 166

  Ovitz, Eric, 109, 111, 229, 348

  Ovitz, David, 33–38, 40, 53, 59, 109, 163, 165, 175, 281, 330, 336

  Seagram’s job of, 33–34, 175, 296

  Ovitz, Kendall, 348

  Ovitz, Kimberly, 109, 110–11, 227, 348

  Ovitz, Mark, 33, 36, 109

  Ovitz, Michael:

  at AMG, 327, 335–37, 343

  art collection of, 3, 163–66, 313, 346–47

  Beverly Hills home of, 346–47

  childhood of, 33–38, 163, 356

  in college, 43, 44, 46, 131

  departure from CAA, 312–20, 333–34

  at Disney, 312, 319–20, 321–32, 333–35

  family of, 109–12, 183, 228, 347–49

  in founding of CAA, 64–71

  Fox tour guide job of, 44–45

  “Gay Mafia” comment of, 337

  grandmother Sarah and, 35, 349

  in high school, 38–39, 163, 223

  marriage of, 46; see also Reich, Judy

  martial arts and, 223–24, 228, 353

  MCA/Universal position considered by, 312–16, 319, 323

  Meyer’s friendship with, 9, 11, 59–60, 186–87, 244–45, 317, 320

  Meyer’s reconciliation with, 351–55

  Meyer’s rupture with, 11, 316–19, 334, 351

  motion pictures as early interest of, 36–37

  Universal Studios tour guide job of, 39–45, 304

  as William Morris agent, 13, 52–58, 59–67

  William Morris mailroom job of, 47–52

  Ovitz, Sylvia, 33–35, 37, 109, 163, 165

  Pace Gallery, 164, 270

  Pacino, Al, 95, 134, 138, 153, 177

  PacTel, 271

  Page, Larry, 339

  Palantir, 343, 344

  Palatucci, Mark, 345

  Paley, Bill, 233

  Panasonic, 247, 249

  Paper Moon, 273

  Paramount, 22, 43, 80–82, 108, 110, 115, 127, 128, 143, 149, 150, 172, 176, 235, 251, 257, 267–69, 277, 324

  Parker, Alan, 8–9

  Parker, Ed, 95, 223

  Parretti, Giancarlo, 259, 272–73

  Parton, Dolly, 120

  Pascal, Amy, 244

  Patton, 190

  Paul Kohner Agency, 59

  Pax, 349

  PayPal, 342

  Peacock, Warwick, 182

  Peck, Gregory, 94

  Pei, I. M., 16, 197–201, 300, 333

  Penguin Random House, 324

  People, 89, 194, 336

  Pepsi-Cola, 203, 280–81, 286, 290

  Perelman, Ronald, 306

  Periscope I Red, Yellow, Blue (Johns), 164

  Perkins, Diane, 74

  Perkins, Rowland, 63–65, 67, 74–75, 79, 100, 186

  Perlman, Laurie, 187

  Perpetua Labs, 344

  Personal Best, 327

  Pesci, Joe, 151, 155–56

  Peters, Jon, 243, 244

  Peterson, Pete, 232, 239–40

  Pfeiffer, Michelle, 91

  Phoenix, River, 117

  Picasso, Pablo, 165, 270, 273

  Pileggi, Nick, 154

  Pinter, Harold, 330

  Pitt, Brad, 141

  Pixar, 331, 342

  Places in the Heart, 132

  Playhouse 90, 125

  Poitier, Sidney, 79, 273

  Pollack, Claire, 122, 125, 141, 220

  Pollack, Sydney, 4, 6, 83–86, 94–96, 98, 120, 122–25, 132, 138–42, 186, 220, 268–70, 273

  Pollock, Tom, 86, 112, 150–52, 160, 251, 302

  Polygram, 304

  Powell, Michael, 155

  Powers, Stefanie, 190

  Premiere, 194–95

  Presley, Elvis, 116

  Price, Frank, 97, 116, 117, 121, 134, 173, 178, 243

  Price, Richard, 144

  Prince, 226–27

  Ptak, John, 354

  Puck, Wolfgang, 169–70

  Purple Rain, 227

  Putnam, 324, 328

  Puttnam, David, 134, 237

  Queen of the Jungle, 37

  Quintet, 137

  Radner, Gilda, 112

  Raging Bull, 142, 153

  Raiders of the Lost Ark, 251

  Rain Man, 4–9, 119, 129, 243

  Ramis, Harold, 116, 119, 125, 131, 134, 135

  Random House, 324

  Rapke, Jack, 5, 178, 179, 276, 301

  Rauschenberg, Robert, 16, 221, 252

  Ray, Rick, 76, 77

  Razor’s Edge, The, 114

  RCA, 251

  Reagan, Ronald, 300

  Real Life, 4

  Redford, Robert, 76, 83, 84, 86, 88, 94–95, 98, 106, 119, 140–42, 153, 176, 177, 195, 204, 267–68, 309

  Reds, 285

  Red Shoes, The, 155

  Redstone, Sumner, 237, 257

  Reed, Jerry, 56

  Reich, Judy (wife), 8, 48, 55, 56, 59, 65, 66, 74, 75, 79, 94, 122, 131, 152, 163, 166, 167, 169, 182, 183, 196, 206, 208, 218, 228, 229, 249, 252, 265, 323, 330

  family life of, 109–10

  Ovitz’s marriage to, 46

  Ovitz’s meeting of, 45–46

  Ovitz’s separation from, 347

  Reiner, Rob, 61, 66, 117, 146, 180, 290, 354

  Reinhardt, Ad, 348

  Reischauer, Edwin, 230

  Reitman, Ivan, 18, 84, 112, 115, 116, 119, 131, 134–35, 150, 196, 203–5, 279–80

  Rhinestone, 120

  Rhyme and Reason, 74

  Rhythm & Hues, 290

  Rich Little Show, The, 74

  Rifkin, Joe, 64

  Rimer, Danny, 342

  Risky Business, 146

  RKO Pictures, 36–38, 44

  Roberts, Julia, 120, 276

  Rock, The, 90

  Rockefeller, David, 205–6

  Rocky, 127

  Rogers, Ginger, 62

  Rohatyn, Felix, 3, 133, 257–58, 260, 262–64, 297, 298

  Rollins, Jack, 14

  Room with a View, A, 120

  Roots, 80, 81

  Roseanne, 221

  Rosenberg, Lee, 76, 88

  Rosenfeld, Mike, 63–68, 74–77, 100, 137–38

  Rosenthal, Jane, 154

  Ross, Steve, 99, 170–71, 232, 235, 243, 297–98, 304

  Ross, Tom, 189

  Rotary Club, 39

  Roth, Joe, 322, 324

  Roth, Steve, 96, 97

  Rothko, Mark, 85

 
Rothman, Frank, 273–74

  Rothman, Robb, 175

  Rothschild, Nathaniel, 36

  Rubenstein Associates, 211

  Russell, Kurt, 196

  Russia House, The, 90, 272

  Ruthless People, 230

  Ryman, Robert, 348

  Sacks, Sam, 50, 167

  St. Elsewhere, 290

  Saint John’s Health Center Foundation, 166–67

  Sajak, Pat, 15

  Sakamoto Brothers, 223

  Sandberg, Sheryl, 342

  Saturday Night Live (SNL), 112, 125, 127, 131, 177, 282, 291, 324

  Schindler’s Ark (Keneally), 157

  Schindler’s List, 157–62

  Schisgal, Murray, 121

  Schlemmer, Oskar, 200

  Schoonmaker, Thelma, 150, 155

  Schreter, Jonathan, 286–87

  Schulhof, Mickey, 233–35, 238, 241–44, 256

  Schwartz, Tony, 323

  Schwarzenegger, Arnold, 135, 153, 173, 225, 276

  Schwarzman, Steve, 232, 239–40

  Scientology, 193

  Scorsese, Martin, 83, 84, 104, 134, 142–52, 154–60, 166, 177, 184, 273

  Scott, Ridley, 146

  Scott, Tony, 146

  Screen Actors Guild (SAG), 68, 285

  Seagal, Steven, 11, 224–26, 228

  Seagram Company, 33–34, 175, 296–99, 314–15

  MCA purchased from Matsushita by, 299, 303–7, 312

  Sealey, Peter, 284, 285, 287, 288, 291, 292

  Secret of My Success, The, 204

  Seed, 349

  Seidenberg, Ivan, 271–72

  Seinfeld, 57

  Sellers, Peter, 79

  Semel, Jane, 176

  Semel, Terry, 85, 154, 156, 173, 176, 199, 225, 273, 310, 321

  Senior, Enrique, 238

  Sequoia Capital, 342

  Shaffer, Paul, 26

  Shampoo, 85, 121

  Shapiro, Bob, 187

  Shapiro, George, 57

  Shapiro, Sandy, 187

  Shatner, William, 190

  Sheinberg, Sid, 151–52, 160, 178–79, 217–18, 235, 251, 256–57, 259–62, 264–66, 295, 302, 303–6, 313, 314

  Shining, The, 159

  Shoah Foundation, 162

  Shōgun, 4, 79–82, 230, 261

  Shuler, Lauren, 130–31

  Silicon Valley, 338–45

  Silver, Joel, 354

  Silverman, Fred, 61

  Simpsons, The, 176

  Sinatra, Frank, 34, 94

  Singerman, Brian, 345

  Singh, Gurjeet, 345

  Slap Shot, 137

  Sly and the Family Stone, 52–53

  Smashing Pumpkins, 110

  Smith, Joe, 201

  Smith, Quincy, 342

  Smothers Brothers, 61

  Sofman, Boris, 345

  SoftBank, 325

  Something Wild, 154

  Son, Masayoshi, 325

  Sonny Boy, 61

  Sony, 3, 178, 203, 206, 230–45, 247, 249, 253, 278, 293, 328, 355

  CBS Records acquired by, 230–34, 244

  Columbia acquired by, 235–45, 247, 251, 252, 256, 264, 265, 280

  Sophie’s Choice, 159

  Sopranos, The, 154–56, 324

  Sound of Music, The, 147

  Spago, 148, 169, 202

  Spartans, 37, 104, 105

  Specktor, Fred, 103, 354

  Speed-the-Plow (Mamet), 86

  Spelling, Aaron, 129–31, 169

  Spiegel, Sam, 50

  Spielberg, Steven, 5, 91, 119, 139–40, 157–62, 178, 179, 182, 193, 217–20, 262, 273, 280, 320

  Splash, 145

  Springsteen, Bruce, 231

  Stallone, Sylvester, 93, 120, 153, 173, 175, 185–86, 196, 211, 310

  Stand by Me, 11, 117, 285

  Stanfill, Dennis, 172

  Stapleton, Jean, 61

  Star is Born, A, 273

  Stark, Ray, 108, 187, 236

  Starland Vocal Band Show, The, 13

  Star Wars, 95, 150, 251

  Stearns, Steve, 104

  Steel, Dawn, 309

  Steele, Danielle, 77

  Steiger, Rod, 79

  Stein, Jules, 207

  Steinberg, Herb, 40

  Stemcentrx, 345

  Stern, David, 202

  Stewart, Jimmy, 41, 43, 62

  Sting, The, 137, 139–41, 147

  Stone, Oliver, 146, 273

  Stone, Sly, 52–53

  Strauss, Bob, 260, 262–64

  Streep, Meryl, 134, 153, 184, 276

  Streisand, Barbra, 86, 94–95, 273, 309–10

  Strickland, Tom, 188

  Stringer, Howard, 21, 22, 24, 26, 30, 271

  Stripes, 97, 114, 116, 123, 134, 135, 239

  Struthers, Sally, 61, 66, 354

  Sun Tzu, 105, 339

  Sun Valley Conference, 236–37, 318, 340

  Superman, 95, 97, 289

  Sutherland, Donald, 141

  Swedlin, Rosalie, 119, 211–12, 269

  Sweet Deception, 127

  Sword of the Valiant, 89

  Systrom, Kevin, 342

  Tanii, Akio, 248, 253, 263, 266, 302

  Tappeiner, Hanns, 345

  Taps, 145

  Tartikoff, Brandon, 21, 108

  Taxi Driver, 143, 158

  Taylor, Renée, 74–75

  Tele-Communications, Inc. (TCI), 237, 304

  Terminator 2, 1

  Terms of Endearment, 204

  Tevis, Walter, 143–44

  Thalberg, Irving, 42, 75

  They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?, 94

  Thiel, Peter, 342–44, 348

  Thomopoulos, Tony, 129, 219

  Thompson, Hunter S., 115

  Thrive Capital, 342

  Thunderball, 88

  Tim Conway Show, The, 55

  Time, 151, 292, 297, 338

  Time Warner, 171, 243, 251, 297–99, 312, 315

  Tisch, Larry, 231–33

  T. J. Hooker, 190

  Tonight Show, The, 13–30

  Tootsie, 4, 8, 97, 120–25, 153, 239

  Top Gun, 146, 150–51, 204

  Touch of Evil, 84

  Touchstone Pictures, 145

  Towering Inferno, The, 137, 148–49

  Towne, Robert, 85, 119, 270, 327

  Towne, Roger, 119

  Toyonaga, Keiya, 255, 260, 261, 266, 303

  TPG, 340

  Tracy, Spencer, 8

  Travolta, John, 169

  Triad Agency, 189

  Tribeca Film Center, 154

  TriStar, 132, 235, 237, 309

  Trump, Donald, 348

  Turner, Ted, 236, 272, 274

  21 Jump Street, 190, 197

  Twins, 135, 218

  Twombly, Cy, 164

  2001: A Space Odyssey, 159

  UCLA, 43, 44, 110, 131

  Medical Center, 167, 181, 182, 300

  Ufland, Harry, 143

  United Artists, 5, 6, 84, 129, 219, 235, 251, 274, 275, 277, 278

  Universal, 11, 43, 57–58, 63, 75, 126, 127, 139–40, 150–52, 154, 160, 178–79, 217–19, 235–36, 250–51, 255, 302–3

  Matsushita’s acquisition of, 247–66

  Meyer as second in command of, 11, 316, 317, 334

  Ovitz considered to head, 312–16, 319, 323

  studio tours at, 39–45, 304

  Untouchables, The, 89–90, 154

  Up the Sandbox, 273

  Uptown Saturday Night, 273

  Urban Cowboy, 95, 169

  UTA, 175

&nb
sp; Valentine, Dean, 329

  Van Damme, Jean-Claude, 225

  Vanity Fair, 337

  Variety, 8, 37, 98, 107, 108, 117, 134–35, 188

  Verdict, The, 140, 142

  Verizon, 272, 335

  Viacom, 23

  Virgin Records, 295, 324

  Volpi, Mike, 342

  Wagner, Paula, 5, 145, 269, 276, 354

  Wagner, Robert, 190

  Wall Street Journal, 169, 194, 202–3, 259–61, 306

  Warner, Jack, 42

  Warner Books, 171

  Warner Bros., 5, 69, 85, 98–99, 108, 124, 127, 132–33, 154–56, 170–71, 186, 187, 189, 219–20, 225–27, 235, 273, 297, 310, 321

  War of the Worlds, 193

  Wasserman, Lew, 42–43, 45, 57–58, 70, 118, 133, 137, 151, 169–70, 178–79, 207, 235–36, 250–52, 256–66, 295, 300, 302–6, 312, 314, 339

  Waterworld, 302–3

  Wayne, John, 37

  Way We Were, The, 94–95

  Weatherup, Craig, 203

  Weaver, Dennis, 57

  Weinberg, John, 297

  Weinstein, Harvey, 10

  Weinraub, Bernie, 275, 337

  Weintraub, Jerry, 116

  Weisbord, Sam, 51–52, 55, 62–65, 67, 69, 70, 354

  Weiss, Lou, 63–64

  Welch, Jack, 232

  Wells, Frank, 85–86, 172–73, 243, 302, 319–20, 321–23, 328

  Wells, John, 220

  Wells, Luanne, 302

  Weltman, Phil, 60, 64, 187

  Wendell, Bill, 26

  Werner, Tom, 108, 221

  West, Howard, 56–57, 100

  Weston, Jack, 66, 69, 71

  What’s Up, Doc?, 273

  When Time Ran Out . . ., 137

  Where the Buffalo Roam, 115

  White Flag (Johns), 3, 221

  Whitesell, Patrick, 293, 340

  Wieden, Dan, 293

  William Morris Agency (WMA), 47, 49, 60, 63, 66, 78, 79, 82–84, 94, 97, 98, 107, 116, 129, 163, 167, 168, 187, 189, 190, 273, 311, 315, 340, 354

  CAA founding and, 64–71

  Justice Department investigation of, 70

  Ovitz as agent at, 13, 52–58, 59–67

  Ovitz’s departure from, 64–67, 167

  Ovitz’s mailroom job at, 47–52

  William Morris Endeavor (WME), 293, 340

  Williams, Marsha, 336

  Williams, Robin, 107, 113, 120, 270, 335–36

  Williams, Sam, 172

  Williams, Treat, 18

  Wilson, Demond, 61

  Winchester 73, 43, 179

  Winger, Debra, 169, 204–5, 212

  Wired, 338

  Wise, Robert, 147

  Wiz, The, 227

  Wolfensohn, James, 206

  Woodward, Joanne, 79, 137–38, 140, 147, 183

  Wolper, David, 68

  Workpop, 348

  Worldwide Pants, 25, 30

  Wright, Bob, 14–15, 20, 24–29, 220

  Writers Guild, 212, 274

  Wynn, Steve, 251

  X-Men, 131

  Yablans, Frank, 97

 

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