‘American Master’ David Geffen On How He Got His Start: Video

COMMENTS (8)

• It’s striking at what a legend he is and I’ve literally never heard his voice before. Love how honest and humble he comes off in this clip.

  Comment by A&R exec — Friday November 16, 2012 @ 1:40pm PST  Reply to this post

• This doc is phenomenal and should be required viewing for anyone looking to get ahead in the entertainment business.

  Comment by Anonymous — Friday November 16, 2012 @ 3:25pm PST  Reply to this post

• Hilariously brilliant…. and so true…

  Comment by Randy — Friday November 16, 2012 @ 4:09pm PST  Reply to this post

• I love him. The smartest guy in the world as far as I’m concerned. I was lucky enough to work for him way back when and he taught me some pretty valuable lessons. He is really as he seems in this video, a brilliant straight shooter who is humble and has a great sense of humor! He is my “showbiz” hero.

  Comment by realitygurl — Friday November 16, 2012 @ 6:18pm PST  Reply to this post

• David Geffen would have amounted to nothing without Laura Nyro. Let’s give credit where credit is due!

  Comment by Kevin — Monday November 19, 2012 @ 5:19pm PST  Reply to this post

  • He could`ve made the Unknown Comic Jim Carrey if he wanted Kevin. L.Nyro was a great artist but c`mon????

    Comment by Carwash — Sunday November 25, 2012 @ 11:07pm PST  Reply to this post

• What a terrific piece on American Masters. Thank you David Geffen for allowing to be filmed. My mentor Owen Laster at WMA used to speak about you in the most glowing terms. I remember as his assistant listening to stories about your escapades at WMA as a young agent.

  Comment by Robert Gottlieb — Tuesday November 20, 2012 @ 7:38pm PST  Reply to this post

• Just looked at the whole thing. To me it seems as though there was always a moral and ethical aesthetic at play in the work that he was associated with and that that impacted him personally in how he conducted business relations; and he wasn’t about the fast buck or screwing people over. Plus, like Steve Ross, he had no problem sharing credit. Of the supposed failed Geffen Records years in the eighties, both himself and the major artists on the label, like the culture, were in a period of transition – Elton John was grappling toward sobriety and taking control over his pop culture profile of excess his work during this period very under-rated; Donna Summer and Giorgio Moroder did “The Wanderer” which is almost like a disco hangover concept album which was very interesting and better than people gave it credit for being at the time (and seems nowhere to be found on-line;) all the great cantankerous and corrosive Don Henley; I’m of the opinion that Joni Mitchell’s work during this time was fascinating and major; and more. His music nineties (Nirvana; Guns n’ Roses) were like the flip side of his seventies. But most of all he had excellent taste in pop culture; can’t be bought no matter how much money you have. You wonder what he thinks of today’s rubber band wind-up “hit-makers,” a jumble of past musical references, their own narcissism, sense of entitlement, and lack of curiosity the only “message,” artistry, subject matter encompassing and encapsulated – not always…but unfortunately more often than not.

  Comment by Mark Kelley — Friday November 23, 2012 @ 4:20pm PST  Reply to this post