David Geffen

A notorious and high-powered media mogul, David Geffen rose from a working-class Brooklyn upbringing to become one of the most influential and successful entertainment magnates in history. An adroit businessman, Geffen founded both Asylum Records and Geffen Records, and went on to be one of the co-founders of the film studio DreamWorks, SKG. As a record producer, he helped establish performers as diverse as Joni Mitchell, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, the Eagles, and Guns N' Roses. Named one of Forbes magazine's richest Americans many times over, Geffen's net worth in 2006 was estimated at $4.4 billion. Also a well-known philanthropist, he provided funding and support to medical research, AIDS organizations, the Democratic National party, and the arts; after endowing UCLA's Medical Center with $200 million, the center was renamed The David Geffen School of Medicine. As famous in the tabloids as he was in the business world, Geffen's personal life made headlines many times over. He was linked romantically to both Cher and actress Marlo Thomas before publicly acknowledging that he was gay in 1992, and dealt with a four-year bout of cancer which later proved to be a misdiagnosis. With his overwhelming ambition and financial prowess, Geffen truly became the king of an entertainment empire.