Ron Meyer
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Biography
California native Ron Meyer overcame a somewhat troubled childhood to become one of the most powerful figures in Hollywood in the latter quarter of the 20th Century. The son of German Jews who fled from the Nazis in the late 1930s, he was a troublemaker and poor student who attended three different junior high schools and dropped out of high school at age 15. A self-professed "Jewish delinquent", Meyer occasionally went on the road with his traveling salesman father, but preferred hanging out at pool halls. At age 17, he enlisted in the US Marines and underwent something of a transformation, having read the book "The Flesh Peddlers", a novel about a 1950s talent agent. Deciding that was the direction for him, he applied for work at every L.A. agency when he completed his stint in the Marines.
Meyer's persistence was eventually rewarded when he was hired by agent Paul Kohner as a messenger. Having learned German from his parents, he was able to listen and understand many of the key business conversations there as they were conducted in that language. Over a five-year span, Meyer gradually moved up the ladder from messenger to file clerk to mailroom attendant to Kohner's driver. When he decided to leave the Kohner agency, Meyer was able to land a spot as an agent in the TV department at the William Morris Agency (WMA) -- an almost unheard of accomplishment as WMA had a policy of promoting from within. Ensconced in the television department, he met and began to work closely with another agent, Michael Ovitz. When the duo's mentor, Phil Weltman, was forced into early retirement, they had a dinner meeting with three other agents (Bill Haber, Rowland Perkins and Mike Rosenfeld) and floated the idea of starting their own firm. Setting up a six-month plan, they proceeded without problems until management at William Morris got wind of their defection and let them go. Undaunted, the fivesome formed the nucleus for Creative Artists Agency (CAA).
In the 1980s, CAA redefined agenting in Hollywood. Meyer and Ovitz wielded considerable clout in the production of contemporary entertainment. Representing a mix of writers, directors, actors and producers, CAA began presenting production companies, motion picture studios and TV networks with "package deals" of personnel. As the agency's lineup of big names increased, the company gained leverage that enabled the agents to demand larger salaries for their clients, which in turn made representation by CAA even more appealing. Meyer served as president of CAA but kept his hand in by overseeing "packages" involving clients as diverse as Cher, Goldie Hawn and Michael Douglas.
By the mid-90s, though, there was speculation that Michael Ovitz, CAA's well-known chairman, was looking to move into management at a film studio. Although there was much ink spilled that Ovitz would join MCA/Universal as president following the sale of the company to Seagram Co., that didn't happen. Ovitz instead accepted an ill-fated position at Disney. Edgar Bronfman, the head of Seagram, surprised many when he tapped Meyer for the position at MCA in August 1995. As one of his first completed deals at MCA (which owned Universal), Meyer signed former client Sylvester Stallone to a three-picture deal estimated to be worth $60 million dollars. (By the turn of the century, nothing had come of that deal.) He went on to make deals with other filmmakers including Penny Marshall, Demi Moore, John Singleton and Danny DeVito.
In his favor, Meyer built a strong management team (that included Universal Chairman Stacey Snider) that implemented an aggressive, long-term strategy to maximize the potential of each of the company's divisions. The film division enjoyed strong market share with such franchise hits as "The Lost World: Jurassic Park" (1997) and "Jurassic Park III" (2001), "The Mummy" (1999) and "The Mummy Returns" (2001), "American Pie" (1999) and "American Pie 2" (2001). And for every misfire like the shot-for-shot color remake of "Psycho" (1998) and "Isn't She Great" (2000), there were critical successes like "Out of Sight" (1998) and commercial ones like "The Fast and the Furious" and "K-PAX" (both 2001). The TV division had hits like the syndicated "Blind Date" and NBC's "Just Shoot Me", while its recreation group enjoyed growth in its theme parks and luxury hotels worldwide.
Even the sale of Universal to French media conglomerate Vivendi in 2001 did not dampen Meyer's tenure. Well-liked in the industry as a tough but fair negotiator, he was invited to remain on with the new owners, a tribute to his popularity and his skills.
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