Forbes' Greatest Business Stories of All Time
20 Inspiring Tales of Entrepreneurs Who Changed the Way We Live and Do Business
1. Edition October 1996
368 Pages, Hardcover
Wiley & Sons Ltd
Robert Morris: America's First Financier
Cyrus McCormick's Reaper and the Industrialization of Farming
John D. Rockefeller and the Modern Corporation
J. P. Morgan Saves the Country
Henry Ford and the Model T
Charles Merrill and the Democratization of Stock Ownership
David Sarnoff, RCA, and the Rise of Broadcasting
Walt Disney and his Family-Entertainment Empire
John Johnson: Finding the Black Consumer
David Ogilvy and the Creation of Modern Advertising
Ray Kroc, McDonald's, and the Fast-Food Industry
Betting the Company: Joseph Wilson and the Xerox 914
American Express and the Charge Card
Mary Kay Ash and her Corporate Culture for Women
Intel's Microprocessor and the Computer Revolution
Sam Walton, Wal-Mart, and the Discounting of America
William McGowan and MCI: A New World of Telecommunications
The Turnaround at Harley-Davidson
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and the Leveraged Buyout
William Gates and the Dominance of Microsoft
A Byron Preiss Visual Publications book
What do Bill Gates, Henry Ford, J. P. Morgan, Mary Kay Ash, and Walt Disney have in common? Uncompromising vision, a willingness to take risks, and exceptional business acumen. Not only did these individuals amass great fortunes, they revolutionized the business world and helped shape society as we know it.
While most of us have a general knowledge of these and other legendary figures, few know the details of their exceptional careers. Daniel Gross and the Editors of Forbes magazine, one of the world's foremost business publications, present twenty fascinating stories. You'll meet the personalities behind some of the best-known name brands in history, including McDonald's, Harley-Davidson, RCA, Merrill Lynch, Xerox, Wal-Mart, and Standard Oil, among others.
Forbes Greatest Business Stories of All Time draws on a wealth of sources to offer this priceless collection. The book brings to life extraordinary achievements, many of them forgotten or little known: how Robert Morris, the preeminent merchant of the eighteenth century, financed the American Revolution with his personal credit; how Ray Kroc used a shrewd real estate strategy to turn a faltering hamburger franchise operation into a fast-food empire; and how Mary Kay Ash built a billion-dollar direct sales cosmetics company by preaching a message of economic empowerment to women.
Covering industries ranging from oil to cosmetics, from the eighteenth century up to the present, Forbes Greatest Business Stories of All Time celebrates larger-than-life ambition, inspired leadership, wheeling and dealing, and hard work. These tales are as entertaining as they are informative-an essential tool for business enthusiasts and anyone interested in how our modern commercial culture was built.
Robert Morris: America's First Financier.
Cyrus McCormick's Reaper and the Industrialization of Farming.
John D. Rockefeller and the Modern Corporation.
Henry Ford and the Model T. Charles Merrill and the Democratization of Stock Ownership.
Walt Disney and his Family-Entertainment Empire.
Ray Kroc, McDonald's, and the Fast-Food Industry.
Betting the Company: Joseph Wilson and the Xerox 914.
American Express and the Charge Card.
Mary Kay Ash and her Corporate Culture for Women.
Sam Walton, Wal-Mart, and the Discounting of America.
The Turnaround at Harley-Davidson.
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.
and the Leveraged Buyout.
William Gates and the Dominance of Microsoft.
Notes on Sources.
Index.
Forbes Magazine, Founded in 1917, Forbes has brought the nation's greatest business stories to readers for more than three quarters of a century. The magazine's unique brand of hard-hitting reporting, challenging the conventional wisdom, has made Forbes must-reading for successful executives. Published biweekly, every issue contains more than 50 concise, original stories, written from a top manager's perspective, about companies and the people who run them.
