Inventing David Geffen

Unlike most men and women profiled in the PBS-aired American Masters series, David Geffen practices no art, save the art of the deal. A poor student with limited prospects, Geffen was motivated by two burning desires: to get out of Brooklyn, and make it in show business. Immediately after graduating high school, Geffen moved to Los Angeles, but after failing to find a break, he returned to New York City, landing a job in the mail room of the William Morris talent agency. Quickly learning the ropes, Geffen began touring clubs in search of talent. Geffen discovered singer-songwriter Laura Nyro, and became her agent, defending her interests with characteristic passion. The 1970s were a heady time in the music business, and Geffen eventually signed Crosby, Stills & Nash, as well as Jackson Browne and other rising stars, finally forming his own record label, Asylum Records. Driven by a desperate desire to succeed and a will to win at all costs, Geffen stepped on a lot of toes on his way to the top. However, for him it was always about the song and the spirit, and he would fight for artists if he believed in their music. Filmmaker Susan Lacy's documentary chronicles Geffen's struggle with his identity as a gay man, his brief and passionate affair with Cher, a cancer scare, dealing with the fear of AIDS (both for himself and others), and breaking the news of John Lennon's death to Yoko Ono (the film also has some lighter moments, such as when Geffen was busted in his reluctant role as a drug courier for David Crosby). Eventually, Geffen triumphed with hits on Broadway (Cats, Dreamgirls), and helped form the film studio DreamWorks. This frank portrait includes extensive interviews with Geffen and other showbiz luminaries, including Cher, Steven Spielberg, and Tom Hanks. An entertaining, insightful tribute to a man—loved by some, hated by others—who has changed the course of the American entertainment industry, this is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (S. Rees)