Hollywood Ending

Harvey Weinstein and the Culture of Silence

De: Ken Auletta

Narrado por: Jonathan Coleman

A vivid biography of Harvey Weinstein—how he rose to become a dominant figure in the film world, how he used that position to feed his monstrous sexual appetites, and how it all came crashing down, from the author who has covered the Hollywood and media power game for The New Yorker for three decades

Twenty years ago, Ken Auletta wrote an iconic New Yorker profile of the Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, who was then at the height of his powers. The profile made waves for exposing how volatile, even violent, Weinstein was to his employees and collaborators. But there was a much darker story that was just out of reach: rumors had long swirled that Weinstein was a sexual predator. Auletta confronted Weinstein, who denied the claims. Since no one was willing to go on the record, Auletta and the magazine concluded they couldn’t close the case. Years later, he was able to share his reporting notes and knowledge with Ronan Farrow; he cheered as Farrow, and Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey, finally revealed the truth.

Still, the story continued to nag him. The trail of assaults and cover-ups had been exposed, but the larger questions remained: What was at the root of Weinstein’s monstrousness? How, and why, was it never checked? Why the silence? How does a man run the day-to-day operations of a company with hundreds of employees and revenues in the hundreds of millions of dollars, and at the same time live a shadow life of sexual predation without ever being caught? How much is this a story about Harvey Weinstein, and how much is this a story about Hollywood and power?

In pursuit of the answers, Auletta digs into Weinstein’s life, searching for the mysteries beneath a film career unparalleled for its extraordinary talent and creative success, which combined with a personal brutality and viciousness to leave a trail of ruined lives in its wake. Hollywood Ending is more than a prosecutor’s litany; it is an unflinching examination of Weinstein's life and career, embedding his crimes in the context of the movie business, in his failures and the successes that led to enormous power. Film stars, Miramax employees and board members, old friends and family, and even the person who knew him best—Harvey’s brother, Bob—all talked to Auletta at length. Weinstein himself also responded to Auletta’s questions from prison. The result is not simply the portrait of a predator but of the power that allowed Weinstein to operate with such impunity for so many years, the spiderweb in which his victims found themselves trapped.

Definitive

The definitive chronicle on the HW matter. Twenty years in the making, Auletta does his homework. His detailed research makes this book a very deep dive into the "how" and "why" HW became an openly famous predator.

Riveting

Real hard-to-put-down listen. Excellent reading. Seemingly unbiased reporting of how the Harvey Weinstein story unfolded. This book will not disappoint.

Shocking to the core

Auletta does an incredible job of attempting to unravel a complex, sordid universe that has been created around the vile HW. He eloquently attempts to present a two-sided story that shocks you to the core!

Not Boring

Well read and documented background on Harvey. A lot of interesting facts, that keeps the listener wanting more.

Outstanding listen

This was an outstanding book in every way and incredibly well researched, fast paced, and fascinating. If all you know are the headlines about Harvey Weinstein, I definitely recommend listening to this book. It takes you through his first trial and up to, but not including the trial scheduled in Los Angeles soon. You learn who enabled him and hid his crimes, who had the courage to step forth, and lots of other fascinating details about how Hollywood operates.