From the acclaimed Vanity Fair and GQ journalist–an unprecedented, in-depth portrait of the man whose return to Apple precipitated one of the biggest turnarounds in business history. With a new epilogue on Apple’s future survival in today’s roller-coaster economy, here is the revealing biography that blew away the critics and stirred controversy within industry and media circles around the country.
The Second Coming of Steve Jobs
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For the legions who revere Apple Computer's high-profile cofounder as a godlike figure, the aptly titled Second Coming of Steve Jobs will prove an intriguing picture of a seminal time in their deity's roller-coaster life. It should emphatically vindicate their deeply held faith in the man and his ideas. But even for those with a lesser opinion, Alan Deutschman offers an interesting and enlightening look at the crucial period from Jobs's unceremonious Apple exit through his triumphant return. Deutschman, a contributing editor at Vanity Fair magazine and longtime Silicon Valley correspondent, interviewed nearly 100 colleagues and friends to draw this portrait of a bewilderingly complex and notoriously private man--albeit one whose talents, personality traits, and idiosyncrasies have long been on public display. "He succeeded in becoming the Jackie Kennedy Onassis of business and technology," Deutschman writes, "a figure who was ubiquitous as a symbol of his times but little known as a human being." To change that, he looks into Jobs's ill-fated first post-Apple endeavor at the Next computer company, his return to undeniable respectability with Pixar and the two Toy Story movies, and finally, his ultimate absolution with a very successful reclamation of the Apple crown. It's a revealing account of a singular individual during a remarkable time. --Howard Rothman
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Publishers Weekly
A revealing, balanced portrait of Apple Computers CEO and founder Steven Jobs, this fast-paced business biography is based on interviews with nearly 100 of his associates and friends. One glaring absence, however, is Jobs himself, who apparently declined to be interviewed by Deutschman, a Vanity Fair contributing editor and staff writer at GQ. Still, Deutschman provides a juicy, privileged look inside the Apple core. He reports that Jobs's recent resuscitation of Apple, to which the visionary entrepreneur returned in 1996 after being ousted by John Sculley a decade earlier, was accomplished through a "reign of terror" that shook up thousands of complacent employees. Like other commentators, Deutschman portrays Jobs as both engaging and troubling, a natural charmer who is also an abusive, egomaniacal boss fond of meting out public humiliations. But Deutschman goes further, replacing the image of the pop-culture icon with a complex, contradictory figureAan insecure elitist who yearns for the patronage of the masses, a narcissistic vegetarian billionaire who thrives on scarcity and adversity. Among the book's revelations are details of Jobs's bulimia-like eating disorders in the 1970s; his reconnection in the '80s with his long-lost biological sister, novelist Mona Simpson (Jobs was given up for adoption at birth); and his explosive negotiations with Disney honchos Michael Eisner and Jeffrey Katzenberg, who produced the hits A Bug's Life and Toy Story with Pixar, Jobs's animation film studio. Though this gossipy bio has a slick magazine feel, Deutschman gets closer to Jobs's inner self than any previous attempt. Agent, Suzanne Gluck, ICM. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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First Sentence
Andrea "Andy" Cunningham was so tired when she got home from work that she went to sleep without checking her answering machine. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index
Andrea "Andy" Cunningham was so tired when she got home from work that she went to sleep without checking her answering machine. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index
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Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Mahesh G
Format:Paperback
Alan Deutschman writes in quintessential GQ style...Apple, Pixar, Next and Jobs are given the cinematic attention - Brioni suits and designer clothing take precedence to the story telling theme! That's precisely where the story ends - Neither Apple's business environment nor the facts behind Jobs renaissance garner attention! Steve's vendetta against the Apple board that sacked him, his bitterness about moving away from the company he helped create and his pre-occupation with Odwalla fruit juices/Black polo shirt & blue jeans are the only facets of Steve's character that Deutschman manages to grasp. (...) Steve's obsession with German design aesthetics, his "tomfoolery" with his corporate hobbies- Next, Pixar and Apple are all touted by Deuschman as tenets of a precipitous corporate personality! Jobs is portayed as a whip slashing mogul who just rides his "ill-deserved" luck to the top- He is credited with ZERO intelligence and a disgusting atttitude! Apparently, Next and Pixar had no strategies and were "bleeding,hemorrhaging corporations"- a phrase Deutschman uses with irritating regularity! Job's groundbreaking strategies to rev up the motorcade of new products at Apple and Next are promptly thrown out of the window! His ability to turn small-door companies like Pixar into money making machines is rudely ignored. (...)This man hardly knows what he is talking about!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I am unabashedly one of the (until recently) Macintosh Faithful, having at one time printed my own business cards with "Mac Evangilist" as my title. I would approach customers in the Macitosh section of CompUSA or Computer City and see if they had questions (only while i was there already, mind you!). I have waxed lovingly on the virtues of Macintosh to all my friends and family, and longed for a NextStation, if only as a hobby machine.
Needless to say, I am a died-in-the-wool Steve Jobs fan. In all fairness, the amount of information out there about the MAN is thin and disreputiable. His charm, 'reality distortion field' and his public dressing-down of employees are the stuff of legend, but little concrete has been found about the MAN.
A few years ago I read another biography, called (i think) "Steve Jobs and the NeXT Best Thing". It was a one-sided, blistering account of every failure Jobs made with his founding of Next, and seemingly NO good choices were made.
Picking up this book, The Second Coming, I was expecting more of the same. What I found was a fair, inciteful, and only slightly more vague than it could have been. The writer does seem to set the reader up as to many of Steve's strong points, and then makes a point to tear down Steve and portray him as almost an unfeeling monster. The narrative is a gentle roller-coaster ride between these two extremes, giving the impression that Steve is either a child, or possibly suffering from multiple personality disorder.
One thing to note is that Steve Jobs does not approve of this book, and as I understand sued to stop publication. Needless to say, HIS point of view and interviews with him are not part of the makeup of the book.
Overall, I find this to be an excellent, information packed book on one of the FEW businessmen I would consider a 'hero' to me. However, without Steve's direct input, this book comes across VERY strongly as a coloring-book picture colored from the OUTSIDE up to the outline of the man, not filling in the man himself.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Mahesh G
Format:Paperback
Alan Deutschman writes in quintessential GQ style...Apple, Pixar, Next and Jobs are given the cinematic attention - Brioni suits and designer clothing take precedence to the story telling theme! That's precisely where the story ends - Neither Apple's business environment nor the facts behind Jobs renaissance garner attention! Steve's vendetta against the Apple board that sacked him, his bitterness about moving away from the company he helped create and his pre-occupation with Odwalla fruit juices/Black polo shirt & blue jeans are the only facets of Steve's character that Deutschman manages to grasp. Talk is cheap - Deutschman manages to splice up this pathetic offering with additives! Steve's obsession with German design aesthetics, his "tomfoolery" with his corporate hobbies- Next, Pixar and Apple are all touted by Deuschman as tenets of a precipitous corporate personality! Jobs is portayed as a whip slashing mogul who just rides his "ill-deserved" luck to the top- He is credited with ZERO intelligence and a disgusting atttitude! Apparently, Next and Pixar had no strategies and were "bleeding,hemorrhaging corporations"- a phrase Deutschman uses with irritating regularity! Job's groundbreaking strategies to rev up the motorcade of new products at Apple and Next are promptly thrown out of the window! His ability to turn small-door companies like Pixar into money making machines is rudely ignored. The book is definitely based on hearsay and might as well be treated as a rag....This man hardly knows what he is talking about!
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3.7 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not very good at all
The author's writing style is atrocious. He doesn't make Jobs into a fun character to read about, instead he's annoying and the book is annoying to muddle through. Read more
Published on May 6 2004 by R. S. Bird
2.0 out of 5 stars
Comes Up Far Too Short
I waited for this book to come out for a long time. An accurate and thorough description of the evolution of Steve Jobs the person, and Steve Jobs the professional is compelling... Read more
Published on Aug 11 2003 by Greg T. Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars
Inspiring, Insightful, A Legend
The Second Coming of Steve Jobs is a balanced representation of Steve's struggle to reclaim the popularity and wealth he once had. Read more
Published on May 21 2003 by J. Colin Johnson
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful, varied, and fair
Steve Jobs is a powerful man with a tight grip on his image. The fact that this book was even written is a testament to Deutschman's dedication. Read more
Published on Dec 7 2002
2.0 out of 5 stars
The Pompous CEO
I'm glad I don't own an Apple computer because after reading about Steven Jobs I would sell it. His treatment of employees just goes to show you that being "smart"... Read more
Published on Jan 3 2002
3.0 out of 5 stars
Will There Be A Third
"The Second Coming Of Steve Jobs", by Alan Deutschman is a fairly interesting read. It is limited as a biography as the subject did not participate in the book. Read more
Published on Oct 18 2001 by taking a rest
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good source for PIXAR history
My rating, 3 starts, why? The author belives Jobs is Good.
But besides that, I finally could understand how Jobs get involved with Pixar, that was the reason the book was worth... Read more
Published on Aug 20 2001 by Oswaldo V. C. Bueno
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Megalomania Mogul
I finally decided to buy this book after my second attempt locating it at a local bookstore, and I must say that I've made the right choice for the second time this month. Read more
Published on Aug 17 2001 by "mapofthebrain"
2.0 out of 5 stars
unhip, non-apple-using, business writer reviews visionary
It's offensive to read a straight business reporter "interpret" a creative hippy visionary with quirks. Read more
Published on May 27 2001
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good Book, but very Anti-Jobs
People just don't give Steve Jobs his due credit. While I did like this book a lot, the author was going for the more "excentric" Jobs as opossed to the real man. Read more
Published on May 6 2001 by Thomas ODrain
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