Listen free for 30 days
-
The Gambler
- How Penniless Dropout Kirk Kerkorian Became the Greatest Deal Maker in Capitalist History
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 13 hrs and 3 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $37.28
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
You may also enjoy...
-
The Story of Lululemon: Little Black Stretchy Pants
- Written by: Chip Wilson
- Narrated by: Chip Wilson
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The unauthorized story of Lululemon. Chip Wilson’s part in this story comes from the learning of thousands of mistakes. He set the culture, business model, quality platform, and people development program and then got out of the way. Lululemon’s exponential growth, culture, and brand strength have few peers, and it is because of those employees who choose to be great. This book is also about missed opportunity - five years of missed opportunity. Chip was playing to win while the directors of the company he founded were playing not to lose.
-
-
Simply, a great book and guide for entrepreneurs
- By Tyler B on 2018-11-25
Written by: Chip Wilson
-
Am I Being Too Subtle?
- The Adventures of a Business Maverick
- Written by: Sam Zell
- Narrated by: Sam Zell
- Length: 8 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Self-made billionaire Sam Zell consistently sees what others don't. From finding a market for overpriced Playboy magazines among his junior high classmates, to buying real estate on the cheap after a market crash, to investing in often unglamorous industries with long-term value, Zell acts boldly on supply and demand trends to grab the first-mover advantage. And he can find opportunity virtually anywhere - from an arcane piece of legislation to a desert meeting in Abu Dhabi.
-
-
Super Awesome
- By Rod Ross on 2023-06-08
Written by: Sam Zell
-
Raising the Bar
- The Life and Work of Gerald D. Hines
- Written by: Mark Seal
- Narrated by: Jonathan Smallwood
- Length: 12 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Gerald D. Hines stands at the top of the international real estate investment and development world. A Purdue graduate with a degree in engineering, Hines may have arrived in Houston in 1948 for a nine-to-five job at a heating and air conditioning company, but before long he was making the deals that would transform Houston’s skyline. Later, with his revolutionary idea that great architecture was good business, he was reshaping the skylines of the world.
Written by: Mark Seal
-
Invention
- A Life of Learning Through Failure
- Written by: James Dyson
- Narrated by: James Dyson
- Length: 11 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Famously, over a four-year period, James Dyson made 5,127 prototypes of the cyclonic vacuum cleaner that would transform the way houses are cleaned around the world. In devoting all his resources to iteratively developing the technology, he risked it all, but out of many failures and setbacks came hard-fought success. In Invention: A Life, Dyson reveals how he came to set up his own company and led it to become one of the most inventive technology companies in the world. It is a compelling and dramatic tale, with many obstacles overcome.
-
-
Difficult to listen to
- By Michael Watchorn on 2021-09-11
Written by: James Dyson
-
Railroader
- The Unfiltered Genius and Controversy of Four-Time CEO Hunter Harrison
- Written by: Howard Green
- Narrated by: Howard Green
- Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hunter Harrison, the revolutionary railroader from Memphis, dramatically turned four publicly traded companies into cash machines. Starting as a laborer when he was a wayward teenager, Harrison spent a half century in the rail business and nearly two decades running Illinois Central, Canadian National, Canadian Pacific, and CSX. Railroader offers insights into running all businesses. Howard Green’s highly personal biography is deeply researched, based on conversations with Harrison over several years.
-
-
A Must Read!
- By Ryberg Rodrigues on 2023-06-05
Written by: Howard Green
-
Titan
- The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.
- Written by: Ron Chernow
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 35 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Titan is the first full-length biography based on unrestricted access to Rockefeller’s exceptionally rich trove of papers. A landmark publication full of startling revelations, the book indelibly alters our image of this most enigmatic capitalist. Born the son of a flamboyant, bigamous snake-oil salesman and a pious, straitlaced mother, Rockefeller rose from rustic origins to become the world’s richest man by creating America’s most powerful and feared monopoly, Standard Oil. Branded "the Octopus" by legions of muckrakers, the trust refined and marketed nearly 90 percent of the oil produced in America.
-
-
Thouroughly enjoyed every minute!!
- By Andrea on 2020-01-30
Written by: Ron Chernow
-
The Story of Lululemon: Little Black Stretchy Pants
- Written by: Chip Wilson
- Narrated by: Chip Wilson
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The unauthorized story of Lululemon. Chip Wilson’s part in this story comes from the learning of thousands of mistakes. He set the culture, business model, quality platform, and people development program and then got out of the way. Lululemon’s exponential growth, culture, and brand strength have few peers, and it is because of those employees who choose to be great. This book is also about missed opportunity - five years of missed opportunity. Chip was playing to win while the directors of the company he founded were playing not to lose.
-
-
Simply, a great book and guide for entrepreneurs
- By Tyler B on 2018-11-25
Written by: Chip Wilson
-
Am I Being Too Subtle?
- The Adventures of a Business Maverick
- Written by: Sam Zell
- Narrated by: Sam Zell
- Length: 8 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Self-made billionaire Sam Zell consistently sees what others don't. From finding a market for overpriced Playboy magazines among his junior high classmates, to buying real estate on the cheap after a market crash, to investing in often unglamorous industries with long-term value, Zell acts boldly on supply and demand trends to grab the first-mover advantage. And he can find opportunity virtually anywhere - from an arcane piece of legislation to a desert meeting in Abu Dhabi.
-
-
Super Awesome
- By Rod Ross on 2023-06-08
Written by: Sam Zell
-
Raising the Bar
- The Life and Work of Gerald D. Hines
- Written by: Mark Seal
- Narrated by: Jonathan Smallwood
- Length: 12 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Gerald D. Hines stands at the top of the international real estate investment and development world. A Purdue graduate with a degree in engineering, Hines may have arrived in Houston in 1948 for a nine-to-five job at a heating and air conditioning company, but before long he was making the deals that would transform Houston’s skyline. Later, with his revolutionary idea that great architecture was good business, he was reshaping the skylines of the world.
Written by: Mark Seal
-
Invention
- A Life of Learning Through Failure
- Written by: James Dyson
- Narrated by: James Dyson
- Length: 11 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Famously, over a four-year period, James Dyson made 5,127 prototypes of the cyclonic vacuum cleaner that would transform the way houses are cleaned around the world. In devoting all his resources to iteratively developing the technology, he risked it all, but out of many failures and setbacks came hard-fought success. In Invention: A Life, Dyson reveals how he came to set up his own company and led it to become one of the most inventive technology companies in the world. It is a compelling and dramatic tale, with many obstacles overcome.
-
-
Difficult to listen to
- By Michael Watchorn on 2021-09-11
Written by: James Dyson
-
Railroader
- The Unfiltered Genius and Controversy of Four-Time CEO Hunter Harrison
- Written by: Howard Green
- Narrated by: Howard Green
- Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hunter Harrison, the revolutionary railroader from Memphis, dramatically turned four publicly traded companies into cash machines. Starting as a laborer when he was a wayward teenager, Harrison spent a half century in the rail business and nearly two decades running Illinois Central, Canadian National, Canadian Pacific, and CSX. Railroader offers insights into running all businesses. Howard Green’s highly personal biography is deeply researched, based on conversations with Harrison over several years.
-
-
A Must Read!
- By Ryberg Rodrigues on 2023-06-05
Written by: Howard Green
-
Titan
- The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.
- Written by: Ron Chernow
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 35 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Titan is the first full-length biography based on unrestricted access to Rockefeller’s exceptionally rich trove of papers. A landmark publication full of startling revelations, the book indelibly alters our image of this most enigmatic capitalist. Born the son of a flamboyant, bigamous snake-oil salesman and a pious, straitlaced mother, Rockefeller rose from rustic origins to become the world’s richest man by creating America’s most powerful and feared monopoly, Standard Oil. Branded "the Octopus" by legions of muckrakers, the trust refined and marketed nearly 90 percent of the oil produced in America.
-
-
Thouroughly enjoyed every minute!!
- By Andrea on 2020-01-30
Written by: Ron Chernow
Publisher's Summary
The rags-to-riches story of one of America's wealthiest and least-known financial giants, self-made billionaire Kirk Kerkorian - the daring aviator, movie mogul, risk taker, and business tycoon who transformed Las Vegas and Hollywood to become one of the leading financiers in American business.
Kerkorian combined the courage of a World War II pilot, the fortitude of a scrappy boxer, the cunning of an inscrutable poker player, and an unmatched genius for making deals. He never put his name on a building, but when he died, he owned almost every major hotel and casino in Las Vegas. He envisioned and fostered a new industry - the leisure business. Three times he built the biggest resort hotel in the world. Three times he bought and sold the fabled MGM Studios, forever changing the way Hollywood does business.
His early life began as far as possible from a place on the Forbes List of Billionaires when he and his Armenian immigrant family lost their farm to foreclosure. He was four. They arrived in Los Angeles penniless and moved often, staying one step ahead of more evictions. Young Kirk learned English on the streets of LA, made pennies hawking newspapers, and dropped out after eighth grade. How he went on to become one of the richest and most generous men in America - his net worth as much as $20 billion - is a story largely unknown to the world. That's because what Kerkorian valued most was his privacy. His very private life turned to tabloid fodder late in life when a former professional tennis player falsely claimed that the 85-year-old billionaire fathered her child.
In this engrossing biography, investigative reporter William C. Rempel digs deep into Kerkorian's long-guarded history to introduce a man of contradictions - a poorly educated genius for deal-making, an extraordinarily shy man who made the boldest of business ventures, a careful and calculating investor who was willing to bet everything on a single roll of the dice.
Unlike others of his status and importance, Kerkorian made few public appearances and strenuously avoided personal publicity. His friends and associates, however, were some of the biggest names in business, entertainment, and sports - among them Howard Hughes, Ted Turner, Steve Wynn, Michael Milken, Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Elvis Presley, Mike Tyson, and Andre Agassi.
When he died in 2015, two years shy of the century mark, Kerkorian had outlived many of his closest friends and associates. Now, Rempel meticulously pieces together revealing fragments of Kerkorian's life, collected from diverse sources - war records, business archives, court documents, news clippings, and the recollections and recorded memories of longtime pals and relatives. In The Gambler, Rempel illuminates this unknown, self-made man and his inspiring legacy as never before.
More from the same
What listeners say about The Gambler
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Dave Rassell
- 2021-08-22
so good and inspiring I had to read it twice!
So good and inspiring I had to read it twice!
I had heard the name Kirk kirkonian when years ago I had no idea who he was. I thought he was just some random corporate reader.. and that is the opposite of who he was.... From next to nothing to one of the richest men in America and all throughout maintained his values and decency... if Trump had an opposite this would probably be the man.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 2023-06-03
Fantastic read.
This was a great book and great story. Kerkorian was a multi faceted human being.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Megan
- 2021-03-10
Interesting story but light on some details
This was an interesting story, although sometimes light on the details and a bit repetitive.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- FV
- 2019-12-07
Fantastic story!
Well narrated colourful life story about an amazing billionaire. Really enjoyed it and definitely recommended!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!