Word: ovitz
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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According to CAA sources, the reported "preliminary agreement" between the agency and MCA never happened; there was only the back-and-forth of negotiations. But that doesn't really matter. In his flirtation with MCA, Ovitz was like the husband who has a notorious fling with a tootsie, then returns to his wife and children with a blithe, "Honey, I'm home!" The tootsie is MCA. The wife is Ovitz's list of clients, each of whom must now be reassured that, yes, Michael still loves her best. The children are CAA's Young Turks, who during the scare...
...perfect person for a job that depends so much on dumb luck in guessing the public's whims. An idiot could succeed in such a position, a genius could fail, simply by picking or passing on a Star Wars or a Forrest Gump. It's also possible that Ovitz was unsuited for the position. As a talent agent, he is a seller in a seller's market; the studios want his clients and will pay hugely for them. As MCA czar, he would have been a buyer in that market. The fellow who helped jack up the price...
Plenty of Hollywood's powerati are pleased that Ovitz did not realize his big dream. In 1989 an Ovitz friend divulged, "Michael would like to end up as the Lew Wasserman of his day" -- a reference to MCA's empire builder, who also began his career as an agent. Ovitz has a vast empire as well, including deals with Baby Bells, advisory roles with banks that own movie studios and a contract to produce commercials for Coca-Cola. He's poised to be the Wasserman of the 21st century. But for now he won't be the Wasserman...
...Bronfman says he will put off looking for a new studio chief while he learns more about the company. And Ovitz, according to a CAA representative, is "working his little fanny off." Some industry insiders think Ovitz's real goal is to be the next chairman of Time Warner. And if that, why not the boss of Viacom? Or Supreme Commander of the Galaxy? And would anyone be surprised if the discussions between Ovitz and Bronfman were to start again? After all, they still have a relationship...
...confirmation will come from Ovitz, a man who wields power in a whisper. He believes in the Oz principle: the mysterious god is most fearsome. He doesn't often speak to the press; when he does it's usually off the record, and he doesn't give away much. Even before the MCA rumors, he was a frequent subject of what-does-he-really-want stories in newspapers and magazines. And today, after months of entrail reading, nobody but the wizard of Ovitz knows for sure...