Toy Monster

Beschreibung

An eye-popping, unauthorized expos? of the House of Barbie From Boise to Beijing, Mattel's toys dominate the universe. Itsno-fun-and-games marketing muscle reaches some 140 countries, andits iconic products have been a part of our culture forgenerations. Now, in this intriguing and entertaining expos?,New York Times bestselling author Jerry Oppenheimer placesthe world's largest toy company under a journalistic microscope,uncovering the dark side of toy land, and exploring Mattel'soddball corporate culture and eccentric, often bizarre, cast ofcharacters. Based on exclusive interviews and an exhaustive review of publicand private records, Toy Monster exposes Mattel'stake-no-prisoners, shark-infested corporate style. Throughout thisscrupulously reported, unauthorized portrait, you'll discover howdangerous toys are actually nothing new to Mattel, and why itsfearsomely litigious approach within the brutal toy business hashelped their products dominate potential rivals such as Bratz. * Introduces you to the larger-than-life personalities that haveshaped Mattel's eccentric world * Offers an inside look- from an experienced author-at thescandals that have been a part of this iconic company * Jerry Oppenheimer is also the author of Madoff with theMoney, an in-depth look at Bernie Madoff the man and hisbillion dollar scam Engaging and accessible, Toy Monster shows you whytoday's toy business isn't always fun and games.

Autor*in

Jerry Oppenheimer

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Business & Management Business & Management Special Topics Spezialthemen Wirtschaft u. Management Wirtschaft Wirtschaft u. Management

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"Jerry Oppenheimer, best known for mordant biographies like "JustDesserts" (about Martha Stewart) or "State of a Union" (on Bill andHillary Clinton's marriage), has now trained his sights on theworld's biggest toy company -- its egos, scandals and flawedproducts. In his toyland, nothing is cute." (The Wall StreetJournal) Oppenheimer (Just Desserts) takes a tour ofMattel's seamier side, highlighting its dubious corporatepractices and kooky cast in this scathing portrait to be publishedto coincide with Barbie's 50th anniversary. Drawing onpersonal interviews and public sources, Oppenheimer paints a bleakpicture of the peculiar practices of the adults running the toycompany--including the "playboy" Jack Ryan, knownas the "Father of Barbie" and rumored to be sexuallyobsessed with his creation, and Mattel cofounder and white-collarcriminal Ruth Handler, who took credit for Barbie'sinvention. The author chronicles the "DollWars"--the fierce competition and eventual litigationbetween Mattel and the creators of the rival Bratz line, as well as2007's "Black Friday the 13th," when potentiallydeadly magnets and lead paint in the company's most populartoys led to two massive recalls. Executive scapegoats andbackpedaling resulted in public lashing from the media and intensepublic mistrust. Fast-paced and engaging, this exposé willabsorb readers until the last page and will forever change the waythey think about the company. (Mar.) (PublishersWeekly, January 26, 2009)Praise for Toy Monster: Jerry Oppenheimer, one of America's great biographers, hasexpanded his vision in this book by probing and exposing the darkside of the multi-billion-dollar, international toy industry.Thoroughly researched, beautifully written, Oppenheimer's opuscontains all the intrigue and drama of an epic novel. Barbie willnever be the same! I can hardly wait for the film version. -C. David Heymann, author of A Woman NamedJackie "'Behind every great fortune is a great crime.' So wrote Balzac,which gave The Godfather its opening epigram. But a greatcrime behind the sweet House of Barbie? Yikes! Terrors in toy land!The scandal. The skullduggery!!! This book is enough to scare SantaClaus." -Kitty Kelley, author of The Family: The Real Storyof the Bush Dynasty
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