Word: hearst
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This is at least the fourth biography of Hearst and is far and away the best. Given access to Hearst's correspondence with his editors and his family, Nasaw has used the raw material brilliantly to paint a richly textured picture of the man who for decades did so much to shape political debate...
...Hearst's personal wealth was astounding. But what is more astonishing is the extent to which his financial self-indulgence came close to wrecking the huge enterprise Hearst had constructed. In the face of recurring fiscal disaster, he kept on spending, borrowing and spending more. When his creditors caught up with him, there were so many warehouses full of art to sell that they had to be parceled out slowly so as not to wreck the international market. Finally, great lots of the stuff were sold over the counter at department stores to cover the ruinous debt he had amassed...
...Hearst began his lifetime of accumulation about the time Adolph Ochs bought the moribund New York Times. Ochs and his heirs produced something of enduring value; Hearst and his family and his cronies produced a host of second-rate newspapers and did much to poison the politics of their...
...Hearst was a lousy father to his five sons, as his father had been to him. He took care of his wife financially even though he lived out his life with actress Marion Davies. It wasn't until he was dead that managers were able to rebuild the wrecked corporation he tried to leave under the control of Davies...
...Hearst, Winston Churchill wrote, "I got to like him--a grave simple child...playing with the most expensive toys." Others found little to like or admire about the man. But Nasaw tells his story with such nuance and understanding that the reader never fully loses sympathy, even when the Chief was paying Hitler and Mussolini to write for his papers, and Hearst and his columnists were smearing innocent people...