Reading rank 160
The Operator: David Geffen Builds, Buys, and Sells the New Hollywood
, subject: David Geffen's career as an agent, music executive, producer, and studio founder, 2000
A portrait of David Geffen that pairs a relationship-building lesson with a harder account of insecurity and power-seeking.
92
Coverage Score
8
Scored evidence
About the book
King's biography tracks Geffen's roles as agent, record executive, Broadway producer and DreamWorks co-founder. It draws on interviews with entertainment figures and doubles as a history of three decades of the business.
Why read it
Best if you want to examine Hollywood ambition through the linked problems of relationship-building, insecurity, and power-seeking.
Key themes
- Relationship-building as an operating lesson
- Insecurity and the pursuit of power
Evidence and original sources
Sources: official Founders episodes — #111, #173, #228, #288, #325
This record is supported by 9 public evidence rows linked to original Founders episodes.
- David Geffen — This episode centers on Tom King's biography The Operator, used as the primary source for the entire discussion of David Geffen.
- Louis B. Mayer (MGM Studios) — David says he covered The Operator on Founders #111 and discovered Hollywood Rajah because it's mentioned twice in that book.
- Michael Bloomberg — David identifies The Operator as the Geffen biography he read for Founders 111 and applies its relationship-building lesson to Bloomberg.
- Ralph Lauren — David names The Operator, a David Geffen biography, and links it to episode 111.
- Larry Gagosian (Billionaire Art Dealer) — David notes he covered David Geffen's biography, The Operator, on an earlier Founders episode.