Joseph P. Kennedy Presents

His Hollywood Years

By: Cari Beauchamp

Narrated by: Pam Ward

Beauchamp writes about the pictures Kennedy produced, the stars he made - and destroyed - and the men who did his bidding. She also writes about the Hollywood titans in his midst: William Randolph Hearst, Cecille B. DeMille, and David Sarnoff, whose collaboration with Kennedy resulted in the formation of RKO Studios.

A fascinating tale of personal greed and business genius that examines not only the way Kennedy made his fortune but what he left in his path and how he forever changed the business of movie making.

©2009 Cari Beauchamp (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"He operated just like Joe Stalin. Their system was to write a letter to the files saying one thing and order the exact reverse on the phone." (Gloria Swanson)

Ethically challenged, financially brilliant

The Kennedy that emerges in this book is a brilliant businessman and a charismatic figure who had the foresight to invent new ways of structuring companies to maximize profits for himself, although in a classic case of shutting the barn door after the horses have escaped, many of these methods were later regulated out of existence, due perhaps in part to the wreckage that he left behind. Beauchamp points out that to Kennedy's way of thinking, this kind of wreckage was not his problem: if Gloria Swanson or others who trusted him did not look out for themselves, that was their fault for being too naive. The women left in the wake of his serial and incessant womanizing (as described here) were similarly at fault, in his mind, if they didn't manage to escape the charm offensive (and occasionally hands-on groping) that he continued to engage in throughout his life.

Lest this sound too negative, Beauchamp stresses Kennedy's love for his children despite absences from home that seem from this book to stretch for months at a time. Kennedy had charm, energy, intelligence, and charisma, and he could read a balance sheet like nobody's business. Ethics in business seems to have eluded him as a concept, but he had a powerful grasp of the idea of public relations. Although he used these in damaging ways (as during his isolationism in WWII), he's still a fascinating figure to read about.

Whip-smart, slippery, ice in his veins

How do I delight in this audiobook? Let me count the ways. It works (and crackles with life) on so many levels. As US history, biography, entrepreneurship, storytelling, and a seamless blend of book with narration, it hits top marks across the board. Nowhere have I seen such a smooth glide from story (and pithy quotes, especially from the snarky whirlwind Joe Jennedy) to deal details and back. All the color of the times and culture is vibrantly in service of the quick pacing. Brick by brick, in hits and misses, we see this swashbuckling Bostonian with manic ambition and ice in his veins, swoop into Hollywood and build a business. It is a portrait of the times and Hollywood, as much as of Joe Kennedy. Having swept everyone (strategically useful) off their feet, Kennedy then turns around and in a meticulous sequence, throws almost everybody under the bus. Trusting him without a legal sword of Damocles right over his head often meant current gains with later abandonment and to the counter-party's surprise: he has lined up all the most liquid long term gains the whole time, and spirited them off in neat legal packages. He would dance circles around Trump, and do it in a way more aesthetically beguiling. It makes me think of a sociopath Fred Astaire -- so smooth and graceful! No wonder his kids glowed with that charisma -- I think the old man was the true master and his kids could build on the copybook he created. The writing is a fit made in heaven for the gifts and style of narrator Pam Ward. Her voice has depths and edges that trace the story and characters very well.

Great history

Must reading for any one who wants to know the true story of the Kennedys and how they got their millions.

A New Look

A new look into one of America's most interesting families. Worth the listen. Highly recommend.