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During the 21-year term of Michael Eisnerr at Disney, helped transform it into an entertainment industry giant whose holdings included movies, theme parks and a cruise line, television networks and sports teams.
Eisner also presided over a “golden age” of animationduring which Disney produced blockbuster movies like Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, and became a marketing powerhouse.
Michael Eisner was born on March 7, 1942 in New York. After graduating from Denison University in 1964, he worked his way through the programming ranges on television networks.
In 1976, the chairman of the board of directors of Paramount PicturesBarry Diller hired Eisner as president and CEO of the company.
During the time of Eisner at Paramount In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the studio produced such successful films as Raiders of the Lost Ark, Flashdance, Saturday Night Fever, Grease, Footloose, Ordinary People, Trading Places, Beverly Hills Cop, Terms of Endearment and An officer and a gentleman.
In the midst of all his success, Eisner got involved in a lawsuit related to former Disney movie studio head Jeffrey Katzenberg; and a multimillion-dollar severance package awarded to Michael Ovitz, who briefly served as Disney chairman under Eisner.
In 2004, Roy Disney, nephew of the company’s founder, resigned from his position on the board to protest what he reportedly perceived as a Eisner mismanagement.
At that moment, Disney stocks were down and his ABC television network was having poor ratings.
At a March 2004 meeting, 43% of voting shareholders expressed his lack of trust in Eisner and a new chairman of the board was appointed.
Eisner remained CEO of the company for the next year and a half, until formally resigned on September 30, 2005. His former second-in-command, Robert Iger, succeeded him.
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