Life was not a box of chocolates, on the other band, for former Sony studio chief Peter Guber. A free-spender who shelled out millions to rebuild the studio’s lot and buy corporate jets, Guber was fired in September. Shortly afterward Sony took a $2.7 billion write-off resulting from its ill-fated entrance into the movie business.
That other Japanese-owned studio, MCA-Universal, has also been experiencing growing pains. MCA’s two bosses, Lew Wasserman and Sidney Sheinberg, have been battling their Japanese owners for more in-dependence–and more money for expansion. Investment banker Herb Allen is reportedly helping the Japanese owners explore several options, among them selling part of the business.
But the scene stealer came this summer when Disney executive Michael Eisner passed over studio chief Jeffrey Katzenberg for the number two job in the Magic Kingdom. In a bid for the David Letterman take-this-job-and-shove-it award, Katzenberg said adios to Mickey Mouse and two months later announced he would join music mogul David Geffen and Oscar-hogging director Steven Spielberg to create a movie, music and TV empire. The dream team’s first gig: a deal to produce shows for ABC.
