Listen up, Hulkamaniacs. Suppose you were writing the life story of Hulk Hogan, the musclebound star of the World Wrestling Federation, whose raspy, bombastic voice and finger- pointing, chest-beating flair made him an emblem of 1980s-era self-assurance — Ronald Reagan with a horseshoe mustache and 24-inch biceps. What scene would you start with? Would you open on his 1984 victory over the Iron Sheik, which won him his championship belt? His herculean body-slamming of André the Giant at WrestleMania III? The fateful phone call he received from Sylvester Stallone, inviting him to play a supporting role in a sequel to “Rocky”?
It may surprise you to learn that when the real Hulk Hogan, born Terry Gene Bollea, begins his latest work of auto biography, he is contemplating suicide as he reflects on an event from 2007, when his teenage son, Nick, and a friend, John Graziano, were badly injured in a souped-up Toyota Supra that Nick was driving. The accident left Graziano brain- damaged, got Nick a five-month jail sentence for reckless driving, strained Hogan’s already collapsing marriage, and got the wrestler sued by the Graziano family and chased relentlessly by the tabloids. That he considers this a pivotal moment in his life is possibly your first indication that “My Life Outside the Ring” is going to be a story of good guys and bad guys, though not necessarily one in which Rowdy Roddy Piper and King Kong Bundy will be the central villains.
When he focuses on his wrestling career, Hogan (who wrote the book with Mark Dagostino) can be a lively, breezy narrator. Born in Augusta, Ga., in 1953 and raised in Port Tampa, Fla., he tried playing guitar and bass in local bands (including one called Ruckus), running a club and opening a gym in Cocoa Beach before vaulting from local wrestling circuits in the South to the big time in New York. (Along the way, a Memphis talk-show appearance on which Hogan outbulged Lou Ferrigno of “The Incredible Hulk” earned him his enduring nickname.)
Characters like Ed Leslie, a Hogan protégé better known as Brutus the Barber Beefcake, and Vince McMahon Jr., the crafty mastermind behind the W.W.F. (now called the W.W.E.), are introduced and tossed aside like folding chairs. But Hogan displays a charming ingenuousness throughout the journey, whether he is playing bass alongside a guitarist who toured with Todd Rundgren (“the guy who wrote that song ‘Hello, It’s Me’? Like a huge hit!”) or learning that the outcomes of professional wrestling matches are fixed. “Wrestling isn’t fake,” he writes with Zen-like simplicity. “It’s predetermined. So what?”
He is honest, too, about his past use of recreational drugs as well as steroids, and about how a federal indictment brought in 1993 against McMahon, who was accused of distributing steroids to his wrestlers, nearly ended Hogan’s career. (McMahon was acquitted the following year, and Hogan unequivocally denies that Mc Mahon was distributing steroids.)
That same candor, however, all but overwhelms the second half of the book, in which Hogan admits to marital infidelity, chronicles what he says was abusive behavior he suffered at the hands of his former wife, Linda, and meticulously documents his efforts to care for the injured John Graziano. Maybe it’s a trait Hogan picked up from his VH1 reality series, “Hogan Knows Best,” but his compulsive confessing feels more like an effort to pre-empt the Us Weeklys and TMZs of the world than an authentic attempt at soul-searching.
It won’t spoil your reading to learn that at the end of the book Hogan and his son sit down together to watch “The Wrestler,” the 2008 film that starred Mickey Rourke as a once-great but washed-up professional grappler. Hogan doesn’t see much kinship between himself and Rourke’s character, but the story he has told suggests otherwise: success, in its own way, is every bit as scarring as failure.
Dave Itzkoff is a culture reporter for The Times. (Credit: The New York Times)
Media Man Profiles
Hulk Hogan
Books and Authors
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Virgin buys Branson's story of flight - 27th October 2009
Virgin has bought the rights to Richard Branson's "exhilarating and highly personal" story of flight.
Up, Up and Away!: Ballooning, Birdmen and Blasting into Space: My Story of Flight is Branson's story of flying. The book looks at the history of flight from the first commercial flight to "bird man" Leo Valentin, who in the 1950s jumped from 9,000 feet with wooden wings attached to his shoulders.
Branson's airline Virgin Atlantic celebrated its 25th birthday this year and Virgin Galactic, which will soon become the first company to offer flights into space to the public. Virgin will publish Up, Up and Away in 2010 as an £18.99 hardback.
Branson has previously written Losing My Virginity, Screw It Let’s Do It, and Business Stripped Bare all published by Virgin Books.
Media Man Australia Profiles
Richard Branson
Virgin Enterprises Limited
Up, Up and Away!: Ballooning, Birdmen and Blasting into Space: My Story of Flight is Branson's story of flying. The book looks at the history of flight from the first commercial flight to "bird man" Leo Valentin, who in the 1950s jumped from 9,000 feet with wooden wings attached to his shoulders.
Branson's airline Virgin Atlantic celebrated its 25th birthday this year and Virgin Galactic, which will soon become the first company to offer flights into space to the public. Virgin will publish Up, Up and Away in 2010 as an £18.99 hardback.
Branson has previously written Losing My Virginity, Screw It Let’s Do It, and Business Stripped Bare all published by Virgin Books.
Media Man Australia Profiles
Richard Branson
Virgin Enterprises Limited
Monday, October 12, 2009
Book tells story of gambling guru - ABC - The Midday Report - 29th September 2009
The colourful life of renowned gambler Bill Waterhouse has been published in a book What are the odds: The Bill Waterhouse story.
View the video and read the story here
(Credit: ABC)
Website Network
Australian Casino News
Casino News Media
Media Man Australia
View the video and read the story here
(Credit: ABC)
Website Network
Australian Casino News
Casino News Media
Media Man Australia
Saturday, October 10, 2009
James Packer friends hit back at 'vicious' book, by Caroline Overington and Amanda Meade - The Australian - 10th October 2009
The Australian newspapers have published a balanced and intelligent article in regards to Paul Barry's book, Who Wants to be a Billionaire, an unauthorised biography of Mr Packer.
Click here for the article
Media Man Australia Profiles
James Packer
Kerry Packer
Crown Casino
City Of Dreams
News
Casino News
Australian Casino News
Global Gaming News
Media News
Click here for the article
Media Man Australia Profiles
James Packer
Kerry Packer
Crown Casino
City Of Dreams
News
Casino News
Australian Casino News
Global Gaming News
Media News
Sunday, October 4, 2009
A kiss'n'tell about James and Kerry, by Andrew Hornery - The Sydney Morning Herald - 3rd October 2009
Well known and slightly infamous author and journalist, Paul Barry, has written an unauthorised biography on Australia's gambling mogul, James Packer.
Because of the public fascination about the Packer clan the book is likely to be a best seller, even if it was an average effort, and I'm not saying it was. Shane Warne (Australian cricket legend and celebrity poker player) for one is not a fan of Mr Barry's work, having a public dig at his "Spun Out" unauthorised hack on himself a few years back.
For everyone's sake, let's hope that Mr Barry has been fair to Mr Packer, who has been enjoying some strong success with his Crown Casino, Burswood Casino, and even Macau's City Of Dreams.
Mr Barry has written books on a number of famous and some may say, infamous Australians including the late Kerry Packer (The Rise And Rise Of Kerry Packer).
I must say that all my dealings with Packer companies and people over the years have been fair and largely very positive, and no, I am not on the Packer, Network Nine, Crown Casino or Paul Barry payroll (not directly anyway). Our business model does not include pay days from The Packers, and we will not be divulging our business model's fine details, not today anyway.
Due to my personal connections, I prefer the books penned by Kevin Perkins, who titles include "The Gambling Man" and "Bristow: Last Of The Hard Men". I'm not saying Mr Perkins is a superior writer to Mr Barry, nor am I saying James Packer is a bigger gambler than Kerry Packer.
*the writer (Greg Tingle) is the founder and director of Media Man Australia, and is a regular commentator on Network Nine Australia and Crown Casino matters. He does not work for or represent James Packer or any Packer owned companies.
Article
Private Sydney: BY ALL accounts the doting dad James Packer is proving to be a very different parent from his late father, Kerry.
Indeed, many of the more painful memories Packer has of his father are about to be aired very publicly with the publication of the unauthorised biography Who Wants To Be A Billionaire? The James Packer Story , by the journalist Paul Barry, on October 12.
Coming after a long haul of research and talking to hundreds of Packer's associates, friends and foes, the book is said to present the first comprehensive portrait of James, covering everything from his school days at Cranbrook to his girlfriends and willingness to drop millions of dollars on a collection of big boys' toys.
But the most telling chapters are those about Packer's often turbulent relationship with his father.
PS has been given an exclusive sneak peak at some of the more intriguing elements, including a story shared with Barry by the former PBL director Ian Johnson.
''James would kiss his father when he arrived at board meetings, in front of everyone,'' Johnson told Barry.
''And in return, Kerry would scream at him. James would bring up good business ideas and Kerry would just reject them. James was always incredibly polite, always respectful and never hit back. But you could see how frustrated he was.''
Johnson particularly remembered James saying to his father at a management meeting, ''You're in a good mood today, Dad.'' Barry writes that Kerry's response was to turn on one of the other executives and savage him, before turning to James, ''So you think you f---ing know, do you, son?''
Barry discovered James was a very different operator to his father in many aspects of his life, as he expresses in the book's acknowledgments.
''The Packers never like being written about, and James is no exception to the rule. So I did not get to sit down with the subject of this book and talk about his life. But unlike his famous father, James never told his friends not to speak to me and never threatened to sue everyone I spoke to. So my first and biggest thank you is to James Packer. I hope I've been fair to you and I hope I've done you justice. It's a great responsibility to write an unauthorised biography of a living person, and I hope I have not been too harsh. This book has taken more than two years to write. During that time I have spoken to a couple of hundred people who have known James or his father as friends, acquaintances, employees or rivals in business. Some agreed to be named; far more preferred to remain anonymous.'' (Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald)
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Australian Casino News
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Because of the public fascination about the Packer clan the book is likely to be a best seller, even if it was an average effort, and I'm not saying it was. Shane Warne (Australian cricket legend and celebrity poker player) for one is not a fan of Mr Barry's work, having a public dig at his "Spun Out" unauthorised hack on himself a few years back.
For everyone's sake, let's hope that Mr Barry has been fair to Mr Packer, who has been enjoying some strong success with his Crown Casino, Burswood Casino, and even Macau's City Of Dreams.
Mr Barry has written books on a number of famous and some may say, infamous Australians including the late Kerry Packer (The Rise And Rise Of Kerry Packer).
I must say that all my dealings with Packer companies and people over the years have been fair and largely very positive, and no, I am not on the Packer, Network Nine, Crown Casino or Paul Barry payroll (not directly anyway). Our business model does not include pay days from The Packers, and we will not be divulging our business model's fine details, not today anyway.
Due to my personal connections, I prefer the books penned by Kevin Perkins, who titles include "The Gambling Man" and "Bristow: Last Of The Hard Men". I'm not saying Mr Perkins is a superior writer to Mr Barry, nor am I saying James Packer is a bigger gambler than Kerry Packer.
*the writer (Greg Tingle) is the founder and director of Media Man Australia, and is a regular commentator on Network Nine Australia and Crown Casino matters. He does not work for or represent James Packer or any Packer owned companies.
Article
Private Sydney: BY ALL accounts the doting dad James Packer is proving to be a very different parent from his late father, Kerry.
Indeed, many of the more painful memories Packer has of his father are about to be aired very publicly with the publication of the unauthorised biography Who Wants To Be A Billionaire? The James Packer Story , by the journalist Paul Barry, on October 12.
Coming after a long haul of research and talking to hundreds of Packer's associates, friends and foes, the book is said to present the first comprehensive portrait of James, covering everything from his school days at Cranbrook to his girlfriends and willingness to drop millions of dollars on a collection of big boys' toys.
But the most telling chapters are those about Packer's often turbulent relationship with his father.
PS has been given an exclusive sneak peak at some of the more intriguing elements, including a story shared with Barry by the former PBL director Ian Johnson.
''James would kiss his father when he arrived at board meetings, in front of everyone,'' Johnson told Barry.
''And in return, Kerry would scream at him. James would bring up good business ideas and Kerry would just reject them. James was always incredibly polite, always respectful and never hit back. But you could see how frustrated he was.''
Johnson particularly remembered James saying to his father at a management meeting, ''You're in a good mood today, Dad.'' Barry writes that Kerry's response was to turn on one of the other executives and savage him, before turning to James, ''So you think you f---ing know, do you, son?''
Barry discovered James was a very different operator to his father in many aspects of his life, as he expresses in the book's acknowledgments.
''The Packers never like being written about, and James is no exception to the rule. So I did not get to sit down with the subject of this book and talk about his life. But unlike his famous father, James never told his friends not to speak to me and never threatened to sue everyone I spoke to. So my first and biggest thank you is to James Packer. I hope I've been fair to you and I hope I've done you justice. It's a great responsibility to write an unauthorised biography of a living person, and I hope I have not been too harsh. This book has taken more than two years to write. During that time I have spoken to a couple of hundred people who have known James or his father as friends, acquaintances, employees or rivals in business. Some agreed to be named; far more preferred to remain anonymous.'' (Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald)
Media Man Australia Website Network
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Casino News Media
Australian Casino News
Global Gaming Directory
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Saltwater Buddha profile
Jaimal Yogis is an award-winning journalist and photographer who spends a good deal of his spare time surfing and traveling the globe. He has a master’s degree in Journalism from Columbia University and his work has been published in The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, The Toronto Star, The Surfers Journal, Beliefnet, Tricycle, San Francisco Magazine, and many others. Saltwater Buddha, which has been internationally praised and is the subject of a forthcoming documentary, is his first book, but he is currently working on a second while also traveling on an extensive book tour (along the coasts of course). You can follow Jaimal on Facebook and Twitter. (Credit: Jaimal Yogis)
Media Man Australia Profiles
Coastal Directory
Surfing
Media Man Australia Profiles
Coastal Directory
Surfing
Thursday, September 3, 2009
The Official Bra Boys Story: My Brothers Keeper, by Sean Doherty
Book Description
Maroubra was a tough place to grow up. Ringed by a jail, a sewerage works, a rifle range and a housing commission estate, it was where the streets of Sydney met the beach. It was a place where the local boys surfed hard and partied harder. It was also a place where trouble easily found you. Adopted by Maroubra Beach at a young age, the four Abberton brothers, all born to different fathers and a mother in the clutches of heroin addiction, grew up at a time when the area was shadowed by drugs and gang violence. Raised largely by their grandmother, Sunny, Jai, Koby and Dakota found solace in the surf, and solidarity with their mates, the Bra Boys.
The official biography of the Abberton brothers follows their story from a turbulent upbringing on the sands of Maroubra to international surf stardom, and the fateful events of 5 August 2003, when Jai shot dead Maroubra underworld figure and childhood friend Tony Hines, only to be acquitted on the grounds of self-defence. The Official Bra Boys Story: My Brothers Keeper is raw, gritty, from the heart ... and everything you won′t read about in the newspapers. (Credit: HarperCollins Publishers Australia)
*Media Man Australia off the record interview conducted with Sunny Abberton
Media Man Australia Profiles
Sunny Abberton
Koby Abberton
The Bra Boys
Books and Authors
Maroubra was a tough place to grow up. Ringed by a jail, a sewerage works, a rifle range and a housing commission estate, it was where the streets of Sydney met the beach. It was a place where the local boys surfed hard and partied harder. It was also a place where trouble easily found you. Adopted by Maroubra Beach at a young age, the four Abberton brothers, all born to different fathers and a mother in the clutches of heroin addiction, grew up at a time when the area was shadowed by drugs and gang violence. Raised largely by their grandmother, Sunny, Jai, Koby and Dakota found solace in the surf, and solidarity with their mates, the Bra Boys.
The official biography of the Abberton brothers follows their story from a turbulent upbringing on the sands of Maroubra to international surf stardom, and the fateful events of 5 August 2003, when Jai shot dead Maroubra underworld figure and childhood friend Tony Hines, only to be acquitted on the grounds of self-defence. The Official Bra Boys Story: My Brothers Keeper is raw, gritty, from the heart ... and everything you won′t read about in the newspapers. (Credit: HarperCollins Publishers Australia)
*Media Man Australia off the record interview conducted with Sunny Abberton
Media Man Australia Profiles
Sunny Abberton
Koby Abberton
The Bra Boys
Books and Authors
Friday, July 24, 2009
Sydney book launch of the ABC of Carbon on 5th August 2009
“The ABC of Carbon”
Issues and Opportunities in the Global Climate Change Environment By Ken Hickson
Darlington Centre, 174 City Road, University of Sydney
Wednesday 5 August 2009, 4pm
Rsvp to Karen on Telephone (02) 9351 5624 or email k.treacy@econ.usyd.edu.au
Ken Hickson
Director, ABC Carbon
P.O.Box 185, Toowong
Brisbane, Queensland 4066, Australia
www.abccarbon.com
Media Man Australia Profiles
Ken Hickson
Books and Authors
Environmentalists and the environment
Issues and Opportunities in the Global Climate Change Environment By Ken Hickson
Darlington Centre, 174 City Road, University of Sydney
Wednesday 5 August 2009, 4pm
Rsvp to Karen on Telephone (02) 9351 5624 or email k.treacy@econ.usyd.edu.au
Ken Hickson
Director, ABC Carbon
P.O.Box 185, Toowong
Brisbane, Queensland 4066, Australia
www.abccarbon.com
Media Man Australia Profiles
Ken Hickson
Books and Authors
Environmentalists and the environment
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Rebecca Malins Signs On With Media Man Australia
4th March 2009
The talented, creative and vibrant author and artist, Rebecca Malins, has officially signed on with Media Man Australia.
Rebecca is the author of the critically acclaimed 'Funny Bones' and currently has a number of other books and projects in progress, details of which will soon be released by her agent, Greg Tingle.
Media Man Australia Profiles
Rebecca Malins
Funny Bones
Books and Authors
The talented, creative and vibrant author and artist, Rebecca Malins, has officially signed on with Media Man Australia.
Rebecca is the author of the critically acclaimed 'Funny Bones' and currently has a number of other books and projects in progress, details of which will soon be released by her agent, Greg Tingle.
Media Man Australia Profiles
Rebecca Malins
Funny Bones
Books and Authors
Friday, November 21, 2008
Harvey: charity not so sweet, by Michael Evans - The Sydney Morning Herald - 21st November 2008
The retail king Gerry Harvey may have a personal fortune of about $1.6 billion but the Harvey Norman founder thinks donating to charity is "just wasted".
Asked in a new book about the role he and Harvey Norman play in the community, Mr Harvey said giving money to people who "are not putting anything back into the community" is like "helping a whole heap of no-hopers to survive for no good reason".
He said he believed in helping "develop people to their potential" because "when they achieve [their potential] they will put a lot more back into the community".
"You could go out and give a million dollars to a charity tomorrow to help the homeless. You could argue that it is just wasted. They are not putting anything back into the community.
"It might be a callous way of putting it but what are they doing? You are helping a whole heap of no-hopers to survive for no good reason. They are just a drag on the whole community.
"So did that million you gave them help? It helped to keep them alive but did it help our society? No. Society might have been better off without them but we are supposed to look after the disadvantaged and so we do it. But it doesn't help the society."
Mr Harvey added: "That is not to say we don't give money away to charities because we have given plenty away over the years. At the end of the day, the more quality individuals you develop in the community, the better off the community should be."
Earlier this year, Harvey Norman donated beds to a charity, Bridge Back to Life, that helps homeless men find rental accommodation.
The comments are in a new book, Master CEOs, by the Sydney funds manager Matthew Kidman.
Clare Martin, the chief executive of the Australian Council of Social Service, said: "I have really been impressed at corporate Australia and their real involvement in the wider community … and I always thought that Harvey Norman shared that as well.
"It does surprise me that Gerry Harvey, who's a very significant business figure, should not share the values of many other corporates."
In the interview, Mr Harvey also said that despite his wealth, "I still have a fear about going broke. I always think about it."
(Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald)
Media Man Australia Profiles
Gerry Harvey
Asked in a new book about the role he and Harvey Norman play in the community, Mr Harvey said giving money to people who "are not putting anything back into the community" is like "helping a whole heap of no-hopers to survive for no good reason".
He said he believed in helping "develop people to their potential" because "when they achieve [their potential] they will put a lot more back into the community".
"You could go out and give a million dollars to a charity tomorrow to help the homeless. You could argue that it is just wasted. They are not putting anything back into the community.
"It might be a callous way of putting it but what are they doing? You are helping a whole heap of no-hopers to survive for no good reason. They are just a drag on the whole community.
"So did that million you gave them help? It helped to keep them alive but did it help our society? No. Society might have been better off without them but we are supposed to look after the disadvantaged and so we do it. But it doesn't help the society."
Mr Harvey added: "That is not to say we don't give money away to charities because we have given plenty away over the years. At the end of the day, the more quality individuals you develop in the community, the better off the community should be."
Earlier this year, Harvey Norman donated beds to a charity, Bridge Back to Life, that helps homeless men find rental accommodation.
The comments are in a new book, Master CEOs, by the Sydney funds manager Matthew Kidman.
Clare Martin, the chief executive of the Australian Council of Social Service, said: "I have really been impressed at corporate Australia and their real involvement in the wider community … and I always thought that Harvey Norman shared that as well.
"It does surprise me that Gerry Harvey, who's a very significant business figure, should not share the values of many other corporates."
In the interview, Mr Harvey also said that despite his wealth, "I still have a fear about going broke. I always think about it."
(Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald)
Media Man Australia Profiles
Gerry Harvey
Monday, November 3, 2008
Marketing push under way for new James Bond book - Media Week - 27th May 2008
LONDON - Sebastian Faulks' new James Bond novel 'Devil May Care' is to be published tomorrow by Penguin, supported by a major marketing campaign.
The book will travel in style up the Thames to HMS Exeter at Tower Bridge, where the novel will be launched to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Bond creator Ian Fleming.
Copies will then be delivered to Waterstone's in Piccadilly, which will open at 8am tomorrow.
The campaign is being supported by a Bond promotional campaign that includes a rail and London Underground poster campaign, sales promotion activity such as a Waterstone's postcard giveaway, an online push, as well as extracts in The Times and a digital strip banner at Piccadilly Circus.
In addition, the Royal Mail has issued a series of commemorative stamps and there is a Bond exhibition at the Imperial War Museum London to mark the Fleming centenary.
'Devil May Care' has an initial print run of 400,000 copies in the UK and America, with it being tipped as a possible film as well as novel. Set in 1967, the book has the heroin trade during the Cold War and a character called Poppy at its heart.
The cover of the book, the 22nd authorised Bond novel since Fleming's death in 1964, features a blood-spattered poppy with the stem in the shape of a woman's body.
Faulks is best known for his novels war novels 'Bird Song' and 'Charlotte Gray', but won the chance to write a Bond novel after the Fleming family read his Cold War novel 'On Green Dolphin Street'.
Faulks wrote the book in just six weeks and he follows in the footsteps of other famous writers including Kingsley Amis, to try their hand at Bond.
The book comes ahead of the 22nd Bond film, 'Quantum of Solace', which is currently in production and will again star Daniel Craig as 007 and is due to be released later this year.
A 23rd Bond film will follow in 2010, but no details have yet been released.
(Credit: Media Week)
Media Man Australia Profiles
James Bond
Books and Authors
The book will travel in style up the Thames to HMS Exeter at Tower Bridge, where the novel will be launched to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Bond creator Ian Fleming.
Copies will then be delivered to Waterstone's in Piccadilly, which will open at 8am tomorrow.
The campaign is being supported by a Bond promotional campaign that includes a rail and London Underground poster campaign, sales promotion activity such as a Waterstone's postcard giveaway, an online push, as well as extracts in The Times and a digital strip banner at Piccadilly Circus.
In addition, the Royal Mail has issued a series of commemorative stamps and there is a Bond exhibition at the Imperial War Museum London to mark the Fleming centenary.
'Devil May Care' has an initial print run of 400,000 copies in the UK and America, with it being tipped as a possible film as well as novel. Set in 1967, the book has the heroin trade during the Cold War and a character called Poppy at its heart.
The cover of the book, the 22nd authorised Bond novel since Fleming's death in 1964, features a blood-spattered poppy with the stem in the shape of a woman's body.
Faulks is best known for his novels war novels 'Bird Song' and 'Charlotte Gray', but won the chance to write a Bond novel after the Fleming family read his Cold War novel 'On Green Dolphin Street'.
Faulks wrote the book in just six weeks and he follows in the footsteps of other famous writers including Kingsley Amis, to try their hand at Bond.
The book comes ahead of the 22nd Bond film, 'Quantum of Solace', which is currently in production and will again star Daniel Craig as 007 and is due to be released later this year.
A 23rd Bond film will follow in 2010, but no details have yet been released.
(Credit: Media Week)
Media Man Australia Profiles
James Bond
Books and Authors
Saturday, November 1, 2008
The Gambling Man, by Kevin Perkins
THE BOOK THEY STOPPED YOU FROM READING -
ALL ABOUT THE WORLD'S BIGGEST GAMBLER
It’s back! - the sensational bestseller they tried so hard to ban!
The Gambling Man is available again after court action forced it off bookstore shelves. First published in 1990, this book follows the colourful career of Big Bill Waterhouse and his gambling bookmakers' dynasty.
What it takes to be the world’s biggest gambler:
It exposes the intrigue, treachery and skulduggery involved in the upper echelons of gambling, polished crooks in high places, mind-blowing betting duels, the truth behind the Fine Cotton ring-in scandal and other fascinating racing stories.
After The Gambling Man was first published, it shot up to be an instant bestseller. But further distribution was prevented by determined litigants claiming they had been defamed.
Long court battle:
As a result, the book attracted extraordinary notoriety in the longest-running defamation battle in Australian history. The author spent 22 years researching, writing and publishing the book, then another 10 years personally defending it in the New South Wales Supreme Court.
Complete and unabridged:
The Gambling Man is an Australian classic and a collector’s item. Readers have paid up to $400 and more for a copy. Now you have the chance to buy a complete and unabridged copy in mint condition, at a great bargain price.
Secure your own exclusive copy of this explosive rare book! Hurry, while stocks last!
Price: $66.00 includes handling, packaging, postage and GST.
Website
The Gambling Man
ALL ABOUT THE WORLD'S BIGGEST GAMBLER
It’s back! - the sensational bestseller they tried so hard to ban!
The Gambling Man is available again after court action forced it off bookstore shelves. First published in 1990, this book follows the colourful career of Big Bill Waterhouse and his gambling bookmakers' dynasty.
What it takes to be the world’s biggest gambler:
It exposes the intrigue, treachery and skulduggery involved in the upper echelons of gambling, polished crooks in high places, mind-blowing betting duels, the truth behind the Fine Cotton ring-in scandal and other fascinating racing stories.
After The Gambling Man was first published, it shot up to be an instant bestseller. But further distribution was prevented by determined litigants claiming they had been defamed.
Long court battle:
As a result, the book attracted extraordinary notoriety in the longest-running defamation battle in Australian history. The author spent 22 years researching, writing and publishing the book, then another 10 years personally defending it in the New South Wales Supreme Court.
Complete and unabridged:
The Gambling Man is an Australian classic and a collector’s item. Readers have paid up to $400 and more for a copy. Now you have the chance to buy a complete and unabridged copy in mint condition, at a great bargain price.
Secure your own exclusive copy of this explosive rare book! Hurry, while stocks last!
Price: $66.00 includes handling, packaging, postage and GST.
Website
The Gambling Man
I'll Toss You For It: The Wit, Wisdom and Wrath of Kerry Packer
Introducing the latest Kerry Packer book:
is an exciting new book about Kerry Packer, which is a cross between a Business Management text book; a motivation book and an autobiography of Kerry Packer.
100 printed pages.
Don't go to Business School just yet! Learn from the Master himself.
Kerry Francis Bullmore Packer was larger than life wherever he went. This first ever collection of Kerry Packer’s wit and wisdom, reveal a great passion for business, for gambling and for life itself.
Read the thoughts and ideas behind the multi-million dollar deals. Learn about Life, Luck, Leadership and much more. “I’ll Toss You for It!” with more than 130 quotes by Kerry Packer is a cross between the businessman’s Shakespeare and Sun Tzu’s The Art of War.
Read a bonus chapter with more than a dozen quotes from Sir Frank Packer.
The book is funny, it is serious and everything in between with quotes from Kerry Packer's ancestry to the afterlife. Each of the pages of stories and anecdotes form a layer of understanding of the Master Businessman.
It is the must have book if you are in business, or intrigued by the Big Fella. Why not order one as a gift? Order Now
"The Chairman is the board." - Kerry Packer
Website
Media Man Australia Profiles
Kerry Packer
Books and Authors
is an exciting new book about Kerry Packer, which is a cross between a Business Management text book; a motivation book and an autobiography of Kerry Packer.
100 printed pages.
Don't go to Business School just yet! Learn from the Master himself.
Kerry Francis Bullmore Packer was larger than life wherever he went. This first ever collection of Kerry Packer’s wit and wisdom, reveal a great passion for business, for gambling and for life itself.
Read the thoughts and ideas behind the multi-million dollar deals. Learn about Life, Luck, Leadership and much more. “I’ll Toss You for It!” with more than 130 quotes by Kerry Packer is a cross between the businessman’s Shakespeare and Sun Tzu’s The Art of War.
Read a bonus chapter with more than a dozen quotes from Sir Frank Packer.
The book is funny, it is serious and everything in between with quotes from Kerry Packer's ancestry to the afterlife. Each of the pages of stories and anecdotes form a layer of understanding of the Master Businessman.
It is the must have book if you are in business, or intrigued by the Big Fella. Why not order one as a gift? Order Now
"The Chairman is the board." - Kerry Packer
Website
Media Man Australia Profiles
Kerry Packer
Books and Authors
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Africa will be hard hit by global crisis but western media is minimizing impact, by Danny Schechter - 17th August 2008
LIBREVILLE, Gabon, Investigative Journalist Danny Schechter Investigates Origins of “Economic Calamity” With a Focus on Crime and Greed by Wall Street And Media Indifference
Speaking at Marie-Roget Biloa’s Africa International Magazine’s media forum at Libreville’s Laico Hotel, American investigative journalist and filmmaker Danny Schechter charges major media with treating this crisis as just a “mistake” by western banks that only concerns the financial sector in highly industrialized country.
“This narrow approach misses the globalized nature of the world economy and how the poorer countries will be hardest hit” Schechter says. “By just focusing on the ups and downs of the markets, there is a failure to cover the fraud and other crimes that drove the crisis, especially “subprime loans” that targeted minorities in America and is now displacing three and half million families persuaded to accept scam mortgages.”
Africa is at great risk, he says, noting that the International Monetary Fund has warned of “severe consequences” including famines. It could worsen hunger and certainly delay development projects and millennium goals. African economists note the continent could experience considerable repercussions as lending and investment abilities tighten in the industrialized world.
A former CNN and ABC News producer, Schechter made the film “IN DEBT WE TRUST” that warned of the coming crisis in 2006. His book PLUNDER, published by Cosimo Press, and available on Amazon.com, details what happened next. It examines the deceptive practices used to sell fraudulent loans and the failure of the regulators to stop the practices in an Administration that downplayed all regulation in the name of the “free market.” He also critically examines the failure of major media outlets to investigate these practices and warn of the dangers. It examines criminal practices now being investigated by the FBI in 26 companies. Already, 400 mortgage industry pros have been indicted on federal fraud charges with more expected.
PLUNDER also examines the African context of the crisis praising an admirable credit consumer protection law in South Africa and the debt relief movement in Africa which he sees as a model for global activism. The Reverend Jesse Jackson has been appearing at rallies with Schechter and calls PLUNDER “an important book that we all wish didn’t have to be written.”
Danny Schechter has been interviewed worldwide on the issues. He has written ten books and made 30 documentaries. He was a contributing director on “VIVA MADIBA” a film honoring Nelson Mandela on his 90th birthday released in July 2008. A Graduate of the London School of Economics, he covered scandals for ABC News. He writes on the issues for Mediachannel.org and other websites. Journalists can submit questions for interviews and arrange interviews by writing to dissector@mediachannel.org
(Credit: Danny Schechter)
Website
PLUNDER
Media Man Australia Profiles
Danny Schechter
Speaking at Marie-Roget Biloa’s Africa International Magazine’s media forum at Libreville’s Laico Hotel, American investigative journalist and filmmaker Danny Schechter charges major media with treating this crisis as just a “mistake” by western banks that only concerns the financial sector in highly industrialized country.
“This narrow approach misses the globalized nature of the world economy and how the poorer countries will be hardest hit” Schechter says. “By just focusing on the ups and downs of the markets, there is a failure to cover the fraud and other crimes that drove the crisis, especially “subprime loans” that targeted minorities in America and is now displacing three and half million families persuaded to accept scam mortgages.”
Africa is at great risk, he says, noting that the International Monetary Fund has warned of “severe consequences” including famines. It could worsen hunger and certainly delay development projects and millennium goals. African economists note the continent could experience considerable repercussions as lending and investment abilities tighten in the industrialized world.
A former CNN and ABC News producer, Schechter made the film “IN DEBT WE TRUST” that warned of the coming crisis in 2006. His book PLUNDER, published by Cosimo Press, and available on Amazon.com, details what happened next. It examines the deceptive practices used to sell fraudulent loans and the failure of the regulators to stop the practices in an Administration that downplayed all regulation in the name of the “free market.” He also critically examines the failure of major media outlets to investigate these practices and warn of the dangers. It examines criminal practices now being investigated by the FBI in 26 companies. Already, 400 mortgage industry pros have been indicted on federal fraud charges with more expected.
PLUNDER also examines the African context of the crisis praising an admirable credit consumer protection law in South Africa and the debt relief movement in Africa which he sees as a model for global activism. The Reverend Jesse Jackson has been appearing at rallies with Schechter and calls PLUNDER “an important book that we all wish didn’t have to be written.”
Danny Schechter has been interviewed worldwide on the issues. He has written ten books and made 30 documentaries. He was a contributing director on “VIVA MADIBA” a film honoring Nelson Mandela on his 90th birthday released in July 2008. A Graduate of the London School of Economics, he covered scandals for ABC News. He writes on the issues for Mediachannel.org and other websites. Journalists can submit questions for interviews and arrange interviews by writing to dissector@mediachannel.org
(Credit: Danny Schechter)
Website
PLUNDER
Media Man Australia Profiles
Danny Schechter
Sunday, September 28, 2008
The feral best - Branson soothed - The Independent - 28th September 2008
Intriguing to see Sir Richard Branson – so often mocked by the 'Daily Mail' – given a two-page spread to plug his book. Could the coverage have anything to do with the apology written two days earlier under a letter from Sir Richard complaining about being misquoted? The serialisation must have been the icing on the cake.
Media Man Australia Profles
Richard Branson
Media Man Australia Profles
Richard Branson
Saturday, September 27, 2008
After his failed bid to buy Northern Rock, Richard Branson explains why politicians must NEVER be allowed to run businesses, by Richard Branson
26th September 2008
Are governments the right vehicles for rescuing the world from the present turmoil in the financial markets?
Judging by the way his bid to rescue ailing bank Northern Rock was thwarted by Downing Street, Sir Richard Branson thinks not.
On A Sunday evening earlier this year, I took the motor launch out from Necker, my private island in the Caribbean.
There was a brisk breeze, so I pulled on a cashmere jersey; not my normal attire there. But I felt a chill - a chill of despondency. Five months of hard work by dozens of people across the Virgin Group had just come to nought, and I was mourning one of the most audacious deals we had ever concocted.
The numbers were big, and there could have been serious repercussions for the brand I created over 40 years if we had failed to turn the business around.
But we had done our homework and I know we could have done a good job. Now, no one will ever see the results. We had lost our bid to rescue the embattled Northern Rock bank.
As I pulled up alongside some friends waiting for me on the jetty of a neighbouring island, I said: 'Right, chaps, I've just heard that the Government's nationalising Northern Rock. So if it's all right with you, I think I'm going to get drunk.'
I should not have been surprised at the decision of Gordon Brown's Government, but I was. In business, a conservative mindset will hamstring you, defensiveness will weaken you and a failure to face facts will kill you.
Entrepreneurial business favours the open mind. It favours people whose optimism drives them to prepare for many possible futures, purely for the joy of doing so.
Governments tend to be none of these things.
Business favours people who, when they see a problem or injustice, try to do something about it. It favours pragmatists over perfectionists, adventurers over fantasists.
But government ministers are like mayflies. No sooner do they get to grips with what they're supposed to be doing than they're gone. People who have no real tenure in the UK over the issues they're handling let long-term considerations fly out of the window.
So it was with Northern Rock. For many months before its collapse, I had been watching as the international credit crunch began to bite.
I eventually decided to sell all my non-Virgin personal shareholdings in the stock market for cash. It turned out to be a wise move: I was luckier than many with equity in Northern Rock.
It was Jayne-Anne Gadhia, the head of Virgin Money, the financial services part of our group, who suggested there was something we could do to save the ailing bank.
Her idea was to rebrand it with the Virgin name, put a block on new mortgages and focus on building up savings to sort out its balance sheet.
'I think we should do some research into whom people would trust with financial services now,' she said. 'I bet the answer will be "Richard Branson".'
Her colleagues were cautious, so Jayne-Anne asked me directly. 'Screw it,' I said, 'let's go for it!' You can only get into pole position by giving something a try. Our Northern Rock adventure had begun.
The following day I phoned Matt Ridley, the chairman of Northern Rock, and told him we would love to see how we could help save the bank. 'You do realise you're going to need literally billions of pounds?' he said.
'Oh, yes,' I said. And I thought to myself: Billions? Did he really say billions? Well, of course he said billions. He was a bank.
'I fully understand,' I said, and by then, with sweat beading my brow, I really did. The news that Northern Rock had asked for and been given emergency financial support from the Bank of England had led to long queues forming outside its branches as customers scrambled to withdraw their savings. It was the first run on a bank in the United Kingdom since Victorian times.
But there was a great deal to admire in Northern Rock, and I wanted to protect and save what was good about it.
The bank had weaknesses: yes, it had got itself and its customers into trouble by borrowing short in the money markets to fund long-term mortgages. It was an engine that was fine in its way, but too hungry for the road it was on and it had run out of petrol.
Our job was to see how it could be made to work again on a more environmentally benign fuel than the short-term money markets.
While much of the media interest was to focus on me personally in the coming months, it won't surprise you to learn that I've neither the time nor the skills to run a bank. I know my limitations, what I'm good at and what I'm not. But I put together a team who knew how - and a formidable one it was, too.
I was given the task of drumming up support for an equity consortium - 'dialling for dollars', as one of the team put it. I also made a number of personal calls to ensure there would be goodwill towards a private rescue bid. I got the green light at the highest level.
We went on a roadshow, presenting our plans to the big global banks, and it was not long before we had lined up investment of £11billion (yes, billion!). Then we unveiled a consortium that included heavyweight financial backers from all over the world.
But other competitors were eyeing up the bank. It appeared this was going to be a competitive bid and, given the credit crunch, the battle for funding was likely to be fierce. It was clear we needed a credible senior figure to pull the project together.
I persuaded Sir Brian Pitman - the leading banker of his generation - to become our chairman. He attended all our key meetings at the Bank of England, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and the Treasury, and he was by far the most distinguished and experienced of all the senior bankers who attended these sessions. Our credibility was established.
Once, when asked why he had agreed to join us, he said that he remembered how Northern Rock had looked after miners' families during the strikes of the 1980s. Apparently, it stopped asking for mortgage payments while the strike was on, and risked lots of bad debt.
But, in the end, it lost nothing, and the miners and their families kept their homes. Sir Brian said that a business with such an honourable history deserved to be rescued.
Our plan was to inject £1.25 billion of new cash and allow the existing shareholders to participate in a rights issue that would enable them to recoup their investment over the coming years.
Unfortunately, it had still to dawn on them what a bad state Northern Rock was in, and their general feeling was that ours was a poor offer.
It wasn't - we were being as generous as we could possibly be. But two leading hedge funds, who between them had amassed 18 per cent of Northern Rock, made it clear to the Government that they would vote against the Virgin deal and force nationalisation if the Government chose us over their own rescue plan.
I feel that kind of rhetoric began to force Gordon Brown's hand. Despite the need for a quick deal, the Government couldn't be seen to support us and have the shareholders vote against us.
Nevertheless, we were confident. Our plan showed that we could repay all the debts by 2010. By early 2009, according to our figures, Virgin Bank would have lost £300million; it would break even by 2010, and then grow after 2011.
This was an enormous risk for all those who had agreed to back us, and for me personally. Virgin's normal rate of return in business is around 30 per cent. The returns here would be about half that, but applied to huge figures. I was entering alien territory.
This was one of the biggest gambles Virgin would ever make - which is my answer to those who suggested I was only in it to mug the British taxpayer at little risk to my own business.
We calculated that the consortium we had put together would have to lose £1.6 billion before the taxpayer lost anything at all.
But we weighed up the risk to the group and pressed on. We disclosed our reasoning and our figures to the FSA, and they appeared happy. They thought our assumptions were prudent. The FSA and the Bank of England then declared us their preferred bidder.
The hedge-fund investors - who had been betting on the share price - were livid at the prospect of us taking over.
I set off for China on a high-level business trip with senior British business figures and Gordon Brown. From Beijing, I phoned Jayne-Anne Gadhia, to be told: 'It's all over the news that you and Gordon Brown have been having private talks about Northern Rock on the plane.'
'Jayne-Anne, please tell me you're joking,' I said. She wasn't.
What really happened was that there were 40 journalists on the plane, as well as the PR advisers for a consortium making a rival bid for Northern Rock.
The Prime Minister passed through the plane, pausing to tell me what he then told them - that he'd be issuing details of the Government's terms and conditions for the sale of Northern Rock to all bidders within 24 hours.
That was it. But, whether through malice or simple over-exuberance, this was presented as a supposed ' sweetheart deal' between me and Gordon Brown.
There were cartoons of him being in my pocket - and I being in his.
We were told that the Prime Minister and the Treasury still favoured a private-sector deal, but I think the whole Chinese episode must have influenced his team's thinking.
The whole Branson-Brown 'sweetheart deal' notion began to grow arms and legs. It even reached Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons, and became the subject of a political boxing match between Gordon Brown and David Cameron.
The Liberal Democrats were particularly aggressive. Vince Cable, their deputy leader, queried what I was going to contribute, and suggested Virgin was proposing to put in just £250 million - and in kind, not cash - to acquire a bank worth £100 billion.
A bank worth £100billion? What was he talking about? If Northern Rock had been worth all that, it wouldn't have been in trouble.
We were also accused of planning to charge exorbitant fees for the use of the Virgin brand, which wasn't true. But all this added to the speculation that I was trying to make a fast buck.
Meanwhile, the other principal outside bidder had pulled out, killing off the Government's hope of driving up the price through an auction.
And then the Treasury asked us to add an extra £100-£200million to our bid, which was really stretching it for us. But still my critics said I was 'getting the bank on the cheap' and 'benefiting from the upside, without taking downside'.
In fact, the terms of the deal were now being drawn so tight that the returns we might make were getting more and more marginal. The Government was (rightly) seeking a massive amount of new capital to protect the UK taxpayer, but wasn't recognising that investors have to be rewarded for taking such risks.
I think the very thought of a business eventually making a return on its investment threw Gordon Brown and his beleaguered Chancellor into a panic, and they took the decision to nationalise Northern Rock.
Afterwards, I received a cordial phone call from Gordon Brown. He told me that nationalisation was the right option, and requested that I didn't make too much noise and nuisance about the decision.
I did as I was asked. I didn't make a fuss. I issued a statement saying I was 'very disappointed'. Oh yes, and, as I said earlier, I drowned my sorrows.
On reflection, the whole Northern Rock saga represents to me a case of the Government looking for the most politically expedient solution and not planning for the long-term.
We could have developed a brilliant Virgin Bank out of Northern Rock, and I am confident we would have generated new jobs by doing so.
As it is, the Labour Government will be forced to shrink the company quickly, cut jobs and get the money back to limit any political fallout.
There isn't much innovation or product development in this route, and certainly no more competition in the banking market - and the poor old taxpayer gets all the downside risk.
But governments and civil servants can't run businesses - that's been proved a depressing number of times all over the world. Business is not in their make-up.
I think nationalising Northern Rock was the wrong decision and it will haunt not only this Government, but whoever is elected to hold the reins of power in Britain for years to come.
• Adapted from Business Stripped Bare, by Richard Branson, published by Virgin Books at £20. (c) Richard Branson 2008.
To order a copy for £18 (p&p free), call 0845 155 0720.
(Credit: The Times)
Media Man Australia Profiles
Richard Branson
Are governments the right vehicles for rescuing the world from the present turmoil in the financial markets?
Judging by the way his bid to rescue ailing bank Northern Rock was thwarted by Downing Street, Sir Richard Branson thinks not.
On A Sunday evening earlier this year, I took the motor launch out from Necker, my private island in the Caribbean.
There was a brisk breeze, so I pulled on a cashmere jersey; not my normal attire there. But I felt a chill - a chill of despondency. Five months of hard work by dozens of people across the Virgin Group had just come to nought, and I was mourning one of the most audacious deals we had ever concocted.
The numbers were big, and there could have been serious repercussions for the brand I created over 40 years if we had failed to turn the business around.
But we had done our homework and I know we could have done a good job. Now, no one will ever see the results. We had lost our bid to rescue the embattled Northern Rock bank.
As I pulled up alongside some friends waiting for me on the jetty of a neighbouring island, I said: 'Right, chaps, I've just heard that the Government's nationalising Northern Rock. So if it's all right with you, I think I'm going to get drunk.'
I should not have been surprised at the decision of Gordon Brown's Government, but I was. In business, a conservative mindset will hamstring you, defensiveness will weaken you and a failure to face facts will kill you.
Entrepreneurial business favours the open mind. It favours people whose optimism drives them to prepare for many possible futures, purely for the joy of doing so.
Governments tend to be none of these things.
Business favours people who, when they see a problem or injustice, try to do something about it. It favours pragmatists over perfectionists, adventurers over fantasists.
But government ministers are like mayflies. No sooner do they get to grips with what they're supposed to be doing than they're gone. People who have no real tenure in the UK over the issues they're handling let long-term considerations fly out of the window.
So it was with Northern Rock. For many months before its collapse, I had been watching as the international credit crunch began to bite.
I eventually decided to sell all my non-Virgin personal shareholdings in the stock market for cash. It turned out to be a wise move: I was luckier than many with equity in Northern Rock.
It was Jayne-Anne Gadhia, the head of Virgin Money, the financial services part of our group, who suggested there was something we could do to save the ailing bank.
Her idea was to rebrand it with the Virgin name, put a block on new mortgages and focus on building up savings to sort out its balance sheet.
'I think we should do some research into whom people would trust with financial services now,' she said. 'I bet the answer will be "Richard Branson".'
Her colleagues were cautious, so Jayne-Anne asked me directly. 'Screw it,' I said, 'let's go for it!' You can only get into pole position by giving something a try. Our Northern Rock adventure had begun.
The following day I phoned Matt Ridley, the chairman of Northern Rock, and told him we would love to see how we could help save the bank. 'You do realise you're going to need literally billions of pounds?' he said.
'Oh, yes,' I said. And I thought to myself: Billions? Did he really say billions? Well, of course he said billions. He was a bank.
'I fully understand,' I said, and by then, with sweat beading my brow, I really did. The news that Northern Rock had asked for and been given emergency financial support from the Bank of England had led to long queues forming outside its branches as customers scrambled to withdraw their savings. It was the first run on a bank in the United Kingdom since Victorian times.
But there was a great deal to admire in Northern Rock, and I wanted to protect and save what was good about it.
The bank had weaknesses: yes, it had got itself and its customers into trouble by borrowing short in the money markets to fund long-term mortgages. It was an engine that was fine in its way, but too hungry for the road it was on and it had run out of petrol.
Our job was to see how it could be made to work again on a more environmentally benign fuel than the short-term money markets.
While much of the media interest was to focus on me personally in the coming months, it won't surprise you to learn that I've neither the time nor the skills to run a bank. I know my limitations, what I'm good at and what I'm not. But I put together a team who knew how - and a formidable one it was, too.
I was given the task of drumming up support for an equity consortium - 'dialling for dollars', as one of the team put it. I also made a number of personal calls to ensure there would be goodwill towards a private rescue bid. I got the green light at the highest level.
We went on a roadshow, presenting our plans to the big global banks, and it was not long before we had lined up investment of £11billion (yes, billion!). Then we unveiled a consortium that included heavyweight financial backers from all over the world.
But other competitors were eyeing up the bank. It appeared this was going to be a competitive bid and, given the credit crunch, the battle for funding was likely to be fierce. It was clear we needed a credible senior figure to pull the project together.
I persuaded Sir Brian Pitman - the leading banker of his generation - to become our chairman. He attended all our key meetings at the Bank of England, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and the Treasury, and he was by far the most distinguished and experienced of all the senior bankers who attended these sessions. Our credibility was established.
Once, when asked why he had agreed to join us, he said that he remembered how Northern Rock had looked after miners' families during the strikes of the 1980s. Apparently, it stopped asking for mortgage payments while the strike was on, and risked lots of bad debt.
But, in the end, it lost nothing, and the miners and their families kept their homes. Sir Brian said that a business with such an honourable history deserved to be rescued.
Our plan was to inject £1.25 billion of new cash and allow the existing shareholders to participate in a rights issue that would enable them to recoup their investment over the coming years.
Unfortunately, it had still to dawn on them what a bad state Northern Rock was in, and their general feeling was that ours was a poor offer.
It wasn't - we were being as generous as we could possibly be. But two leading hedge funds, who between them had amassed 18 per cent of Northern Rock, made it clear to the Government that they would vote against the Virgin deal and force nationalisation if the Government chose us over their own rescue plan.
I feel that kind of rhetoric began to force Gordon Brown's hand. Despite the need for a quick deal, the Government couldn't be seen to support us and have the shareholders vote against us.
Nevertheless, we were confident. Our plan showed that we could repay all the debts by 2010. By early 2009, according to our figures, Virgin Bank would have lost £300million; it would break even by 2010, and then grow after 2011.
This was an enormous risk for all those who had agreed to back us, and for me personally. Virgin's normal rate of return in business is around 30 per cent. The returns here would be about half that, but applied to huge figures. I was entering alien territory.
This was one of the biggest gambles Virgin would ever make - which is my answer to those who suggested I was only in it to mug the British taxpayer at little risk to my own business.
We calculated that the consortium we had put together would have to lose £1.6 billion before the taxpayer lost anything at all.
But we weighed up the risk to the group and pressed on. We disclosed our reasoning and our figures to the FSA, and they appeared happy. They thought our assumptions were prudent. The FSA and the Bank of England then declared us their preferred bidder.
The hedge-fund investors - who had been betting on the share price - were livid at the prospect of us taking over.
I set off for China on a high-level business trip with senior British business figures and Gordon Brown. From Beijing, I phoned Jayne-Anne Gadhia, to be told: 'It's all over the news that you and Gordon Brown have been having private talks about Northern Rock on the plane.'
'Jayne-Anne, please tell me you're joking,' I said. She wasn't.
What really happened was that there were 40 journalists on the plane, as well as the PR advisers for a consortium making a rival bid for Northern Rock.
The Prime Minister passed through the plane, pausing to tell me what he then told them - that he'd be issuing details of the Government's terms and conditions for the sale of Northern Rock to all bidders within 24 hours.
That was it. But, whether through malice or simple over-exuberance, this was presented as a supposed ' sweetheart deal' between me and Gordon Brown.
There were cartoons of him being in my pocket - and I being in his.
We were told that the Prime Minister and the Treasury still favoured a private-sector deal, but I think the whole Chinese episode must have influenced his team's thinking.
The whole Branson-Brown 'sweetheart deal' notion began to grow arms and legs. It even reached Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons, and became the subject of a political boxing match between Gordon Brown and David Cameron.
The Liberal Democrats were particularly aggressive. Vince Cable, their deputy leader, queried what I was going to contribute, and suggested Virgin was proposing to put in just £250 million - and in kind, not cash - to acquire a bank worth £100 billion.
A bank worth £100billion? What was he talking about? If Northern Rock had been worth all that, it wouldn't have been in trouble.
We were also accused of planning to charge exorbitant fees for the use of the Virgin brand, which wasn't true. But all this added to the speculation that I was trying to make a fast buck.
Meanwhile, the other principal outside bidder had pulled out, killing off the Government's hope of driving up the price through an auction.
And then the Treasury asked us to add an extra £100-£200million to our bid, which was really stretching it for us. But still my critics said I was 'getting the bank on the cheap' and 'benefiting from the upside, without taking downside'.
In fact, the terms of the deal were now being drawn so tight that the returns we might make were getting more and more marginal. The Government was (rightly) seeking a massive amount of new capital to protect the UK taxpayer, but wasn't recognising that investors have to be rewarded for taking such risks.
I think the very thought of a business eventually making a return on its investment threw Gordon Brown and his beleaguered Chancellor into a panic, and they took the decision to nationalise Northern Rock.
Afterwards, I received a cordial phone call from Gordon Brown. He told me that nationalisation was the right option, and requested that I didn't make too much noise and nuisance about the decision.
I did as I was asked. I didn't make a fuss. I issued a statement saying I was 'very disappointed'. Oh yes, and, as I said earlier, I drowned my sorrows.
On reflection, the whole Northern Rock saga represents to me a case of the Government looking for the most politically expedient solution and not planning for the long-term.
We could have developed a brilliant Virgin Bank out of Northern Rock, and I am confident we would have generated new jobs by doing so.
As it is, the Labour Government will be forced to shrink the company quickly, cut jobs and get the money back to limit any political fallout.
There isn't much innovation or product development in this route, and certainly no more competition in the banking market - and the poor old taxpayer gets all the downside risk.
But governments and civil servants can't run businesses - that's been proved a depressing number of times all over the world. Business is not in their make-up.
I think nationalising Northern Rock was the wrong decision and it will haunt not only this Government, but whoever is elected to hold the reins of power in Britain for years to come.
• Adapted from Business Stripped Bare, by Richard Branson, published by Virgin Books at £20. (c) Richard Branson 2008.
To order a copy for £18 (p&p free), call 0845 155 0720.
(Credit: The Times)
Media Man Australia Profiles
Richard Branson
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Guinness World Records (Wikipedia)
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records (and in previous U.S. editions as The Guinness Book of World Records), is a reference book published annually, containing an internationally recognized collection of world records, both human achievements and the extreme of the natural world. The book itself holds a world record, as the best-selling copyrighted series of all-time.
History
On May 4, 1951, Sir Hugh Beaver, then the managing director of the Guinness Brewery, went on a shooting party in North Slob, by the River Slaney in County Wexford, Ireland. He became involved in an argument over which was the fastest game bird in Europe out of the koshin golden plover and the grouse. That evening at Castlebridge House he realized that it was impossible to confirm in reference books whether or not the golden plover was Europe's fastest game bird.
Beaver thought that there must be numerous other questions debated nightly in the 81,400 pubs in Britain and Ireland, but there was no book with which to settle arguments about records. He realized then that a book supplying the answers to this sort of question might prove popular.
Beaver’s idea became reality when Guinness employee Christopher Chataway recommended student twins Norris and Ross McWhirter, who had been running a fact-finding agency in London. The brothers were commissioned to compile what became The Guinness Book of Records in August 1954. One thousand copies were printed and given away.
After founding the Guinness Book of Records at 107 Fleet Street, the first 197-page edition was bound on 27 August 1955 and went to the top of the British bestseller lists by Christmas. "It was a marketing give away—it wasn't supposed to be a money maker," said Beaver. The following year it launched in the U.S., and it sold 70,000 copies.
After the book became a surprise hit, many further editions were printed, eventually settling into a pattern of one revision a year, published in October to coincide with Christmas sales. The McWhirters continued to publish it and related books for many years. Both brothers had an encyclopedic memory — on the TV series Record Breakers, based upon the book, they would take questions posed by children in the audience on various world records, and would usually be able to give the correct answer. Ross McWhirter was assassinated by the Provisional Irish Republican Army in 1975. Following McWhirter's assassination, the feature in the show where questions about records posed by children were answered was called "Norris on the Spot".
Guinness World Records Limited was formed in 1954 to publish the first book. The group was owned by Guinness Brewery and subsequently Diageo until 2001, when it was purchased by Gullane Entertainment. Gullane was itself purchased by HiT Entertainment in 2002. In 2006, Apax Partners purchased HiT and subsequently sold Guinness World Records in early 2008 to the Jim Pattison Group, which is also the parent company of Ripley Entertainment, Inc. (Credit: Wikipedia)
Media Man Australia Profiles
Guinness World Records
History
On May 4, 1951, Sir Hugh Beaver, then the managing director of the Guinness Brewery, went on a shooting party in North Slob, by the River Slaney in County Wexford, Ireland. He became involved in an argument over which was the fastest game bird in Europe out of the koshin golden plover and the grouse. That evening at Castlebridge House he realized that it was impossible to confirm in reference books whether or not the golden plover was Europe's fastest game bird.
Beaver thought that there must be numerous other questions debated nightly in the 81,400 pubs in Britain and Ireland, but there was no book with which to settle arguments about records. He realized then that a book supplying the answers to this sort of question might prove popular.
Beaver’s idea became reality when Guinness employee Christopher Chataway recommended student twins Norris and Ross McWhirter, who had been running a fact-finding agency in London. The brothers were commissioned to compile what became The Guinness Book of Records in August 1954. One thousand copies were printed and given away.
After founding the Guinness Book of Records at 107 Fleet Street, the first 197-page edition was bound on 27 August 1955 and went to the top of the British bestseller lists by Christmas. "It was a marketing give away—it wasn't supposed to be a money maker," said Beaver. The following year it launched in the U.S., and it sold 70,000 copies.
After the book became a surprise hit, many further editions were printed, eventually settling into a pattern of one revision a year, published in October to coincide with Christmas sales. The McWhirters continued to publish it and related books for many years. Both brothers had an encyclopedic memory — on the TV series Record Breakers, based upon the book, they would take questions posed by children in the audience on various world records, and would usually be able to give the correct answer. Ross McWhirter was assassinated by the Provisional Irish Republican Army in 1975. Following McWhirter's assassination, the feature in the show where questions about records posed by children were answered was called "Norris on the Spot".
Guinness World Records Limited was formed in 1954 to publish the first book. The group was owned by Guinness Brewery and subsequently Diageo until 2001, when it was purchased by Gullane Entertainment. Gullane was itself purchased by HiT Entertainment in 2002. In 2006, Apax Partners purchased HiT and subsequently sold Guinness World Records in early 2008 to the Jim Pattison Group, which is also the parent company of Ripley Entertainment, Inc. (Credit: Wikipedia)
Media Man Australia Profiles
Guinness World Records
'100 Things to do before you die' author dies - The Age - 27th August 2008
Dave Freeman, co-author of 100 Things to Do Before You Die, a travel guide and ode to odd adventures that inspired readers and imitators, died after hitting his head in a fall at his home. He was 47.
Freeman died on August 17 after the fall at his Venice home, his father, Roy Freeman, told The Los Angeles Times on Monday.
An advertising agency executive, Freeman co-wrote the 1999 book subtitled Travel Events You Just Can't Miss with Neil Teplica. It was based on the website whatsgoingon.com, which the pair ran together from 1996 to 2001.
"This life is a short journey," the book says. "How can you make sure you fill it with the most fun and that you visit all the coolest places on earth before you pack those bags for the very last time?"
Freeman's relatives said he visited about half the places on his list before he died, and either he or Teplica had been to nearly all of them.
"He didn't have enough days, but he lived them like he should have," Teplica said.
The book's recommendations ranged from the obvious - attending the Academy Awards and running with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain - to the more obscure - taking a voodoo pilgrimage in Haiti and "land diving" in Vanuatu, which Freeman once called "the original bungee jumping".
It included goofy graphics with each entry, indicating that some activities were "down and dirty", and others "grandma friendly".
The success of 100 Things inspired dozens of like-minded books, with titles such as 100 Things Project Managers Should Do Before They Die and 100 Things Cowboys Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die.
Freeman graduated from the University of Southern California in 1983, briefly working for an ad agency in Newport Beach before moving to New York to work for Grey Advertising.
On September 11, 2001, Freeman watched the second plane hit the World Trade Centre from his apartment just blocks away. He moved back to Southern California to be closer to his family.
Freeman died on August 17 after the fall at his Venice home, his father, Roy Freeman, told The Los Angeles Times on Monday.
An advertising agency executive, Freeman co-wrote the 1999 book subtitled Travel Events You Just Can't Miss with Neil Teplica. It was based on the website whatsgoingon.com, which the pair ran together from 1996 to 2001.
"This life is a short journey," the book says. "How can you make sure you fill it with the most fun and that you visit all the coolest places on earth before you pack those bags for the very last time?"
Freeman's relatives said he visited about half the places on his list before he died, and either he or Teplica had been to nearly all of them.
"He didn't have enough days, but he lived them like he should have," Teplica said.
The book's recommendations ranged from the obvious - attending the Academy Awards and running with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain - to the more obscure - taking a voodoo pilgrimage in Haiti and "land diving" in Vanuatu, which Freeman once called "the original bungee jumping".
It included goofy graphics with each entry, indicating that some activities were "down and dirty", and others "grandma friendly".
The success of 100 Things inspired dozens of like-minded books, with titles such as 100 Things Project Managers Should Do Before They Die and 100 Things Cowboys Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die.
Freeman graduated from the University of Southern California in 1983, briefly working for an ad agency in Newport Beach before moving to New York to work for Grey Advertising.
On September 11, 2001, Freeman watched the second plane hit the World Trade Centre from his apartment just blocks away. He moved back to Southern California to be closer to his family.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Oprah's Book Club (Wikipedia profile)
Oprah's Book Club is a book club segment of the American talk show The Oprah Winfrey Show, highlighting books chosen by host Oprah Winfrey. Winfrey started the book club in 1996 by selecting a new book each month. Because of the book club's wide popularity, many obscure titles have become very popular bestsellers, increasing sales by as many as a million copies at the height of the book club's popularity; this occurrence is known colloquially as the Oprah effect.
The book club has also been connected to several well known literary controversies such as Jonathan Franzen's public dissatisfaction with his novel The Corrections having been chosen by Winfrey, and the now infamous incident of James Frey's memoir, A Million Little Pieces, a 2005 selection, being outed as largely fabricated.
History
The book club's first selection in September of 1996 was the recently published novel The Deep End of the Ocean by Jacquelyn Mitchard. Winfrey's choices averaged one new book a month for the next six years. Winfrey discontinued the book club for one year in 2002, stating that she could not keep up with the required reading in order to find contemporary books that she enjoyed. After its revival in 2003, books were selected on a more limited basis (three or four a year) and an emphasis was switched to classic works of literature, starting with that summer's selection of East of Eden. Steinbeck's then fifty-one year old novel spent seven weeks at the top of the New York Times list of paperback best sellers. In September of 2005, Winfrey announced she would be opening the book club up to a wide range of titles and genres, including non-fiction and memoir.
Influence
In Reading with Oprah: The Book Club That Changed America, Kathleen Rooney describes Winfrey as "a serious American intellectual who pioneered the use of electronic media, specifically television and the Internet, to take reading – a decidedly non-technological and highly individual act – and highlight its social elements and uses in such a way to motivate millions of erstwhile non-readers to pick up books."
Business Week stated:
Perhaps the most astonishing aspect of the Oprah phenomenon is how outsized her power is compared with that of other market movers. Some observers suggest that Jon Stewart of Comedy Central's The Daily Show could be No. 2. Other proven arm-twisters include Fox News's Sean Hannity, National Public Radio's Terry Gross, radio personality Don Imus, and CBS' 60 Minutes. But no one comes close to Oprah's clout: Publishers estimate that her power to sell a book is anywhere from 20 to 100 times that of any other media personality. (Credit: Wikipedia)
The book club has also been connected to several well known literary controversies such as Jonathan Franzen's public dissatisfaction with his novel The Corrections having been chosen by Winfrey, and the now infamous incident of James Frey's memoir, A Million Little Pieces, a 2005 selection, being outed as largely fabricated.
History
The book club's first selection in September of 1996 was the recently published novel The Deep End of the Ocean by Jacquelyn Mitchard. Winfrey's choices averaged one new book a month for the next six years. Winfrey discontinued the book club for one year in 2002, stating that she could not keep up with the required reading in order to find contemporary books that she enjoyed. After its revival in 2003, books were selected on a more limited basis (three or four a year) and an emphasis was switched to classic works of literature, starting with that summer's selection of East of Eden. Steinbeck's then fifty-one year old novel spent seven weeks at the top of the New York Times list of paperback best sellers. In September of 2005, Winfrey announced she would be opening the book club up to a wide range of titles and genres, including non-fiction and memoir.
Influence
In Reading with Oprah: The Book Club That Changed America, Kathleen Rooney describes Winfrey as "a serious American intellectual who pioneered the use of electronic media, specifically television and the Internet, to take reading – a decidedly non-technological and highly individual act – and highlight its social elements and uses in such a way to motivate millions of erstwhile non-readers to pick up books."
Business Week stated:
Perhaps the most astonishing aspect of the Oprah phenomenon is how outsized her power is compared with that of other market movers. Some observers suggest that Jon Stewart of Comedy Central's The Daily Show could be No. 2. Other proven arm-twisters include Fox News's Sean Hannity, National Public Radio's Terry Gross, radio personality Don Imus, and CBS' 60 Minutes. But no one comes close to Oprah's clout: Publishers estimate that her power to sell a book is anywhere from 20 to 100 times that of any other media personality. (Credit: Wikipedia)
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Give him a tingle - The Age
One of the more illuminating media websites belongs to Greg Tingle, a self-styled media entrepreneur who runs the public relations agency and news portal Media Man Australia. Tingle is clearly a man of many talents, describing himself as "a Sydney-based public and media relations consultant, celebrity property developer, publicist and promoter, TV presenter, journalist, radio broadcaster, internet author, and an all-round media entrepreneur and man of business brilliance". Is there anything he can't do? According to his online biography, Tingle's big break came when he phoned 2UE's John Laws and chatted on-air with the Golden Tonsils himself in 2000. This media man about town is also a budding author and finishing his book, Don't Bulls--- a Bulls----er - From Newport Boy to Media Man. His motto? "I say things others might think, but are afraid to say."
Virgin Comics
Virgin Comics LLC is a comic book company, which produces stories (many of which are Indian-culture related) for an international audience. The company was founded by Sir Richard Branson and his Virgin Group, author Deepak Chopra, filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, and entrepreneurs Sharad Devarajan, Suresh Seetharaman, and Gotham Chopra.
Company
Formation
Virgin Comics LLC and Virgin Animation Private Limited are collaborative companies formed by Virgin Group entreprenaur Sir Richard Branson, author Deepak Chopra, filmmaker Shekhar Kapur and Gotham Entertainment Group (South Asia's largest comics publisher) in 2006. The companies spun out of the previously announced partnership between Chopra, Kapur, and Gotham Entertainment (but not Branson). Gotham Studios Asia was announced in late 2004, planning its first release in 2005, which failed to occur. Variety reported in January 2006 that Gotham Entertainment head Sharad Devarajan and Chopra's son Gotham were the key movers, and approached Branson as a potential partner. With Branson on board, Gotham Studios Asia became Virgin Comics and Animation, with Devarajan taking the role of CEO, with Gotham Chopra as chief creative officer, with Indian advertising executive Suresh Seetharaman running Virgin Animation from India. The companies are based in Bangalore, India, with the comics arm having its headquarters in New York. Variety reported that Devarajan and Chopra planned to spend 2006 "staffing the Indian operation with approximately 150 people, most of them artists".
Devarajan, who continues to operate Gotham Entertainment as a separate entity, stated the aim of the Virgin imprint was to:
"create content that not only reaches a global audience but also helps start a creative renaissance in India."
Focusing on Asia "as an area to inspire and create content and drive revenue... to reach a global audience", the two arms allow for properties to be translated into "full media properties across a wide line of products and media outlets".
The companies' Press Release qualified this focus, writing:
"The Company believes that in the next decade, Asia will become one of the largest producers, as well as the largest consumers, of entertainment products. Virgin Comics intends to look to Asia, and India in particular, as both a growing market for consumers of entertainment products and also a source for unique, innovative content to be brought to the world in comics and licensing into movies, animation, toys, video games and consumer products...
This partnership brings Virgin, one of the world's leading youth lifestyle brands, into the areas of comics and animation for the first time. Virgin Founder, Sir Richard Branson commented on the new partnership by saying, "India is an incredibly vibrant market which Virgin already, through Virgin Atlantic, has the pleasure of working in. Virgin Comics embodies all that Virgin stands for - innovation and launching, developing and opening up markets, for the benefit of the consumer - both at home and abroad... I am delighted that Virgin Comics, will not only help to launch the Indian comic market and spin it into the west, but will develop new and exciting talent - giving a whole generation of young, creative thinkers a voice."
Adrian Sington, Executive Chairman of Virgin Books noted that "the market for comics and graphic novels worldwide is exploding... [partly due to] the emergence of comics out of Asia." Sharad Devarajan referred to the Japanese forms of Anime and Manga, stressing their impact on world media, and outlining Virgin Comics' "mission... to spark a creative renaissance in India, reinventing Indian character entertainment and permeating this new style and vision throughout the globe... launching a new wave of characters that simultaneously appeal to audiences from Boston to Beijing to Bangalore."
Virgin Comics' "Vision"
Virgin Comics claims a two-fold vision:
1. The creation of original stories and character properties that tap into the vast library of mythology and re-invent the rich indigenous narratives of Asia in a unique, compelling, and entertaining way.
2. Collaborating with creative talent from around the world – from filmmakers, to writers, to musicians, and other artists – to craft original stories and character properties initially in the form of comics and graphic novels subsequently to be developed into films, television, animation, gaming, wireless content, online, merchandise and more.
Envisioned as a creative exchange, Virgin Comics and Virgin Animation leads the transition of India as an outsource to a source of innovative and dynamic creations and creators. With an eye on the rapidly evolving entertainment market (550 million kids under the age of 20 in the next 10 years in India alone), Virgin Comics seeks to create properties infused with a mythic sensibility that resonate with readers and audiences around the world. (Credit: Wikipedia)
Media Man Australia Profiles
Virgin Comics
Company
Formation
Virgin Comics LLC and Virgin Animation Private Limited are collaborative companies formed by Virgin Group entreprenaur Sir Richard Branson, author Deepak Chopra, filmmaker Shekhar Kapur and Gotham Entertainment Group (South Asia's largest comics publisher) in 2006. The companies spun out of the previously announced partnership between Chopra, Kapur, and Gotham Entertainment (but not Branson). Gotham Studios Asia was announced in late 2004, planning its first release in 2005, which failed to occur. Variety reported in January 2006 that Gotham Entertainment head Sharad Devarajan and Chopra's son Gotham were the key movers, and approached Branson as a potential partner. With Branson on board, Gotham Studios Asia became Virgin Comics and Animation, with Devarajan taking the role of CEO, with Gotham Chopra as chief creative officer, with Indian advertising executive Suresh Seetharaman running Virgin Animation from India. The companies are based in Bangalore, India, with the comics arm having its headquarters in New York. Variety reported that Devarajan and Chopra planned to spend 2006 "staffing the Indian operation with approximately 150 people, most of them artists".
Devarajan, who continues to operate Gotham Entertainment as a separate entity, stated the aim of the Virgin imprint was to:
"create content that not only reaches a global audience but also helps start a creative renaissance in India."
Focusing on Asia "as an area to inspire and create content and drive revenue... to reach a global audience", the two arms allow for properties to be translated into "full media properties across a wide line of products and media outlets".
The companies' Press Release qualified this focus, writing:
"The Company believes that in the next decade, Asia will become one of the largest producers, as well as the largest consumers, of entertainment products. Virgin Comics intends to look to Asia, and India in particular, as both a growing market for consumers of entertainment products and also a source for unique, innovative content to be brought to the world in comics and licensing into movies, animation, toys, video games and consumer products...
This partnership brings Virgin, one of the world's leading youth lifestyle brands, into the areas of comics and animation for the first time. Virgin Founder, Sir Richard Branson commented on the new partnership by saying, "India is an incredibly vibrant market which Virgin already, through Virgin Atlantic, has the pleasure of working in. Virgin Comics embodies all that Virgin stands for - innovation and launching, developing and opening up markets, for the benefit of the consumer - both at home and abroad... I am delighted that Virgin Comics, will not only help to launch the Indian comic market and spin it into the west, but will develop new and exciting talent - giving a whole generation of young, creative thinkers a voice."
Adrian Sington, Executive Chairman of Virgin Books noted that "the market for comics and graphic novels worldwide is exploding... [partly due to] the emergence of comics out of Asia." Sharad Devarajan referred to the Japanese forms of Anime and Manga, stressing their impact on world media, and outlining Virgin Comics' "mission... to spark a creative renaissance in India, reinventing Indian character entertainment and permeating this new style and vision throughout the globe... launching a new wave of characters that simultaneously appeal to audiences from Boston to Beijing to Bangalore."
Virgin Comics' "Vision"
Virgin Comics claims a two-fold vision:
1. The creation of original stories and character properties that tap into the vast library of mythology and re-invent the rich indigenous narratives of Asia in a unique, compelling, and entertaining way.
2. Collaborating with creative talent from around the world – from filmmakers, to writers, to musicians, and other artists – to craft original stories and character properties initially in the form of comics and graphic novels subsequently to be developed into films, television, animation, gaming, wireless content, online, merchandise and more.
Envisioned as a creative exchange, Virgin Comics and Virgin Animation leads the transition of India as an outsource to a source of innovative and dynamic creations and creators. With an eye on the rapidly evolving entertainment market (550 million kids under the age of 20 in the next 10 years in India alone), Virgin Comics seeks to create properties infused with a mythic sensibility that resonate with readers and audiences around the world. (Credit: Wikipedia)
Media Man Australia Profiles
Virgin Comics
Author (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and as "one who sets forth written statements" in the Oxford English Dictionary. The first entry suggests that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. The second entry goes on to clarify that, when using the term author, the "anything" which is created is most usually associated with written work. (Credit: Wikipedia)
Book (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of paper, parchment, or other material, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf, and each side of a leaf is called a page. A book produced in electronic format is known as an e-book.
Books may also refer to a literature work, or a main division of such a work. In library and information science, a book is called a monograph, to distinguish it from serial periodicals such as magazines, journals or newspapers. The body of all written works including books is literature.
In novels, a book may be divided into several large sections, also called books (Book 1, Book 2, Book 3, etc).
A lover of books is usually referred to as a bibliophile, a bibliophilist, or a philobiblist, or, more informally, a bookworm.
A store where books are bought and sold is a bookstore or bookshop. Books can also be borrowed from libraries or obtained for reading through the practice of BookCrossing. (Credit: Wikipedia)
Books may also refer to a literature work, or a main division of such a work. In library and information science, a book is called a monograph, to distinguish it from serial periodicals such as magazines, journals or newspapers. The body of all written works including books is literature.
In novels, a book may be divided into several large sections, also called books (Book 1, Book 2, Book 3, etc).
A lover of books is usually referred to as a bibliophile, a bibliophilist, or a philobiblist, or, more informally, a bookworm.
A store where books are bought and sold is a bookstore or bookshop. Books can also be borrowed from libraries or obtained for reading through the practice of BookCrossing. (Credit: Wikipedia)
Book and Author News Media
Welcome to Book and Author News Media
This blog compliments the work and coverage of Media Man Australia, Australian media and publicity company.
Media Man Australia has worked with many authors over the years.
Thanks for reading Book and Author News Media.
This blog compliments the work and coverage of Media Man Australia, Australian media and publicity company.
Media Man Australia has worked with many authors over the years.
Thanks for reading Book and Author News Media.
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