The Men Who Would Be King

An Almost Epic Tale of Moguls, Movies, and a Company Called DreamWorks

By: Nicole LaPorte

Narrated by: Stephen Hoye

Length: 18 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

For 60 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.

©2010 Nicole LaPorte (P)2010 Tantor

Critic reviews

“This book has all the right elements: deep-dish research, attitude to burn,...and a great subject.” (Peter Biskind, author of the New York Times bestseller Star)

The inside scoop on the Dreamworks hype machine

What did you love best about The Men Who Would Be King?

Culled from over 200 sources, many of them anonymous for fear of retribution, and with no official sanction from the three founding members, the writer had her work cut out for her in piecing together the story behind the story.

You'll hear about Oscar wins (American Beauty) on-set drama (Gladiator) and box office wins (Shrek) misses (The Island) and complete disasters (The Road to El Dorado). You'll also get to know some of the characters surrounding the three kings, along with the personal vendettas and the agendas that drove the company’s early days and sophomore efforts. And like any good drama, there's a clash of cultures, from the initial grouping of Amblin plus Disney employees and their clashing work styles to the organ transplant reject analogy used to describe when the DreamWorks live action business was acquired by Paramount (and then subsequently sold off).

I remember the early days of DreamWorks, and some of the hype surrounding it. Not just the three personalities behind the endeavor, but some of the failed attempts like the Playa Vista studio and the short-lived Sega partnership to create Gameworks arcade chains.

The author did a fabulous job taking us from the inception of the idea, through the early days, and highlighting some of major the struggles they encountered along the way, from films, to financing, to navigating some of the most complex and politically charged business climates in the US.

In addition to some great anecdotes, the author really tries to humanize these three mysterious, almost mythical three men. You’ll glean some insights into their hopes, dreams, squabbling, darker sides, and more. From the early days of the founding to the splintered ending, you'll get a great front row seat to some of the activities and craziness surrounding the formation of a one-time supposed entertainment giants that never quite lived up to its expectations of becoming different than all the other studios surrounding them.

And in the end, this book begs three questions:

Why did these three guys start this studio in the first place?

What would each of them have said if they could've been quoted for this book?

And given where their partnership (both personal and professional) finally ended, money aside, can it be said that any of them truly lived happily ever after?

Thorough and informative

I doubt that in one place you will be able to find as much information about DreamWorks and the people involved there as in this book. The research seems copious, and though one suspects whether all of it is true, the overall impression is you've learned a great deal about one of the most interesting companies in recent Hollywood history.

Great History, Sometimes Hilarious Narration

A great movie-history listen. Couldn't help but laugh on occasion when the incredibly well-read, excellently composed narrator would mis-pronouce well known names (Shee-ya LaBeouf. Tay-mon and Pumba). Anyway, good book!

Fascinating, even-handed

Well worth reading/listening to. I had expected it to be a negative slant on the founders. Overall, though, I found the book quite even-handed, talking about both good and bad aspects of the people and personalities. Narrator is top notch.

You do learn the story of Dreamworks, however....

Would you consider the audio edition of The Men Who Would Be King to be better than the print version?

Never read the print version and not sure why Audible does such leading questions, but here is my review: You do learn about Dreamworks from beginning to end and why it did not succeed as well as one might expect considering who made up the SKG beneath the name, but the presentation was a bit robotic. Maybe it would be hard to make this material less robotic, but if you've read a great book like one read by Rob Lowe, you know it is possible to be discussing just about anything and have a better time doing it than was presented here. Glad I listened and it is passable, but could have been better.

What other book might you compare The Men Who Would Be King to and why?

"Where We're Going We Don't Need Roads"... the story of the Back To The Future Trilogy. Some of the same players, some of the same stories, but done better.

What three words best describe Stephen Hoye’s voice?

I'm a writer so I never use 3 words for anything... but I will say his voice is not the best that I have sat through.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. I listen to most of my books while driving, showering, etc and was glad at times to get away from it. I rarely feel that way but at times just wanted to get it done.

Any additional comments?

You really do learn the beginning to almost present day of Dreamworks SKG and why it didn't hit on all cylinders. A good book if that story is one you want to know.

Really deep story into the formations of DreamWorks

I really liked how the book delved deep into the lore and history that made DreamWorks. This book was interesting and kept me reading/listening the whole time, although I wonder how accurate some of these events were. None the less, very informative

Inside Hollywood Corp

Great listen if a world famous company. You learn the good and the bad. Hollywood personalities and large egos. Stories about not so famous people who should be famous.

pretty good look at the movie industry

was pretty good not as good as Disney wars, but not that far off either

Good coverage of Hollywood twists and turns

I think it’s a great story, especially since it was able to cover a history that gets largely entangled with those of other companies: Disney, Paramount, Universal, etc. I always like hearing about Hollywood, even if it is difficult knowing certain truths about that bubble. The reading was good, although some pronunciations were a little odd and at times incorrect. Would listen to again.

Spielberg is a entitled man-child

Would you consider the audio edition of The Men Who Would Be King to be better than the print version?

I have not read it

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Men Who Would Be King?

Finding out what an entitled man-child Steven Spielberg is I know Hollywood is full of fake entitled people it shocked me to the extent Steven Spielberg is

What about Stephen Hoye’s performance did you like?

I enjoyed the Narrator

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

when the people who left and sold Microsft stock to work for Dream Works but Lost their Jobs and did not have the stock anymore as well

Any additional comments?

if you want to know how the sausage was made at the very end of old Hollywood this is your book THE GOOD THE BAD AND THE UGLY