As I point out elsewhere, the enthusiasm over digital technology has made it fashionable to suggest that authors can write books on their own, in their spare time. Maybe so. But I wouldn’t have been able to write this one without the support of a publisher and agent, and it would have been very different without the editing and extra reporting that vastly improved the manuscript.
My agent, David Kuhn, believed in this idea when it was just notes on a napkin at City Bakery, and it would have stayed there were it not for his enthusiasm and dedication. I was fortunate that this book went to Doubleday, where senior editor Kris Puopolo believed in it from the beginning and never lost faith during a hectic home stretch. Doubleday’s editor in chief, Bill Thomas, also saw this project’s potential, and assistant editor Stephanie Bowen helped make sure it stayed in one piece.
Several friends and colleagues provided perspective along the way. Michael Hogan provided an invaluable sounding board. Melissa Maerz, Marty Beiser, and John Raeside helped me separate signal from noise and streamline the prose. At various points, I also benefitted from the suggestions of Vanessa Grigoriadis, Greg Lindsay, Ethan Brown, Gabe Kahn, and, especially, Ann Donahue.
Kara Cutruzzula provided invaluable research, a sharp eye, and a sympathetic ear. Jennifer Netherby and Adam Auriemma came in at the end to help out with extra reporting and fact-checking that let me meet my deadline—or at least come closer to it than I otherwise might have. All three are talented journalists in their own right. The legal eagle–eyed Terry Hart, who runs a smart blog about copyright at www.copyhype.com, read the manuscript to look for mistakes and helped me understand some thorny issues. Tim Caspar Boehm, Julian Sancton, Scott Sayare, and Helienne Lindvall helped with foreign reporting, and Kaitlin Paulson reported on an event I couldn’t cover.
I spoke to more than a hundred sources for this book, and it would be difficult to thank them all. But a few went beyond the call of duty to help out: Cary Sherman, Michael Fricklas, Rick Cotton, Ellen Seidler, Daniel Raimer, Fred von Lohman, Michael Nash, Danny Goldberg, Mitch Singer, Mark Teitell, Friz Attaway, Paul Aiken, Andrew Bridges, and Marybeth Peters. David Bakula at Nielsen SoundScan helped out with valuable statistics, and Jane Ginsburg at Columbia Law School provided a nuanced perspective on issues that are usually reduced to talking points. Andy Kim, a great friend, was kind enough to help me unravel the complexities of the modern movie business.
I started exploring many of the ideas in this book in stories for other publications. I learned much of what I know about business reporting from Bruce Headlam at the New York Times, who has a better sense for what makes a story than anyone I know. Evelyn McDonnell gave me the space and the freedom to explore some of these ideas at Moli.com. And I learned a great deal about the music business from my colleagues at Billboard, especially Bill Werde, Lou Hau, Cortney Harding, Chris Walsh, David Prince, and Ben Sheffner.
Over the course of my career, I’ve been lucky enough to learn a lot from some talented editors and writers, including Michael Caruso, Michael Hainey, Mark Kemp, Larry Carlat, Alan Light, Caroline Miller, Jason Fine, and Charles Mann. Longer ago than I’d like to admit, Abe Peck taught me everything I know about magazines, and much else besides. Anthony DeCurtis has always been a great mentor and a good friend.
As I worked on this book, I got a place to stay in Los Angeles from Allan Levine and Kathleen McQuade, and encouragement from Tricia Romano, Duff McDonald, Laura Levine, and Jordan Frank. As always, Sia Michel was a valuable source of support and advice. And Joe Spiegel helped me move, hung out when I was sick, and generally kept me from going nuts.
My parents raised me with a love of learning and a respect for books (and my dad found copy errors that everyone else missed). Nina Ida Levine, who arrived as I was writing, provided the most adorable distractions ever, and I’m grateful for every single one of them. Most of all, Kerstin convinced me I could do this, put up with me while I did, and continues to inspire me.