The hit series, which satirizes the media billionaire family, is underrated compared to the true story of the Murdochs and the Redstones.
HBO as the critically acclaimed satirical series “Legacy”.
The Murdochs and the Redstones are said to have inspired dramas about media dynasties like Legacy .
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The usual rule of satire is to amplify the truth, but for years the narrative themes of the Murdoch and Redstone families meant that dramatic amplification was impossible.
one by one
Last week, Rupert Murdoch announced her fifth marriage to Ann Leslie Smith, 66, a former model, police pastor, country widow and Western singer. Murdoch, 92, said they were both “looking forward to living the rest of their lives”. It is unclear whether he was joking or benefiting from an unknown freezing process.
He made the announcement less than 18 months after splitting from former model Jeri Hall, the little-known ex-wife of rock star Mick Jagger. After marrying Hall, Murdoch divorced Wendi Deng (38 years old, his junior), whom Murdoch’s family members suspect of having an affair with former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who believes her were agents of Chinese intelligence (both denied). ).
Try presenting this plot at a writers room meeting and see if anyone understands.
But Murdoch is a Trappist monk compared to the late Sumner Rayston, who ran the billionaire media conglomerate ViacomCBS until his death in 2020. Redstone has only been married twice but in the ’90s he was still banned. obsessed with sex and splurging on a group of young women. .
According to court testimony by one of the men, he sexually assaulted her under the close supervision of medical staff despite having a feeding tube and urinary catheter attached to her.
Now there is no word about his successor
For a time, Redstone appeared to have left his entire fortune to the two young women who lived with him, Sydney Holland and Manuela Herzer. The multilingual Herzer originated in Argentina and was introduced to Redstone by the late director Robert Evans. Holland met Redstone through Patti Stanger, the host of the Millionaire Matchmaker’s dating show
Imagine the inspiration the screenwriters required to create this breathtaking scene, and the inevitable audience punishments that couldn’t be stopped. Despite the smartest efforts to expand this billionaire’s lifestyle, he has an unfair advantage.
Within a few years, Redstone decided to leave billions of dollars to Holland and Helzer rather than to her two children – especially her ambitious daughter Shari. However, Redstone learns that Holland is secretly having an affair with former prisoner and former actor George Pilgrim, and brings her into the Arizona house he bought with Redstone’s money. He flew to his lover’s house by private jet and slept at Redstone every night.
The same blind pilgrim only learned that his rich mistress was also Redstone’s lover after seeing this story in Vanity Fair.
successor
Even the successive scandals that rocked Waystar Royco
Of course, Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes and abuses aren’t forgotten, but Murdoch and Redstone should also consider keeping their filthy skeletons in the corporate closet. Murdoch was forced to shut down News of the World in 2011
Murdoch’s plan to dismantle Ofcom failed due to bad publicity – because of the sunshine, of course
successor
Five years later, when Fox News CEO Roger Ailes was accused of sexual harassment, the Murdoch family was ready to try and buy Sky.
Ailes was forced to resign after the allegations escalated. But any sense of Murdoch’s swiftness was marred the following year when it was reported that Fox had paid millions of dollars to settle sexual harassment claims against network star Bill O’Reilly. Although the Murdoch family quickly overthrew O’Reilly, Sky’s product was once again damaged.
Also in 2018, Redstone’s right-hand man, Leslie Moonves, resigned as CEO of CBS following sexual harassment and assault allegations, which he denied. That same year, the Competition and Markets Authority not only denied Murdoch’s takeover of Sky, but also banned members of the Murdoch family from working for the company. Strange, maybe a successor
In a sense, all of these scandals are just footnotes in history compared to Murdoch’s most egregious carelessness, the creation of Donald Trump. The former does not include Murdoch’s New York Post Office
But it was Murdoch’s media prowess that helped turn a president he called an “easy fool” into the most dysfunctional president in U.S. history, turning the U.S. political scene into one cultural hostility. This must have confused Murdoch’s second son, James, while his eldest son, Lachlan, seemed to be thriving.
True to its name, heritage
The main rivalry in the Murdoch family was between James and Lachlan, although Elizabeth was sometimes concerned. First, the eldest son, Lachlan, was chosen as the heir, whom he said was more righteous than his father. But short-sighted and uncompromising, he lost a key executive, had to pay £100m and leave the family business.
As a modern man, relatively independent and with a softer voice, James is growing up and seems in control, much like Kendall in season one. But Lachlan, who hunted kangaroos as a teenager, remains the father’s favorite and returned to the group in 2015.
When Logan attempts to use Kendall as the cruise ship scandal officer, James is blamed for the failed Sky bid, especially on Lachlan, Murdoch’s brother’s boss. The deteriorating reality caused James to fly to Indonesia after lunch because he did not object to the money.
Like Kendal, she credits Lachlan with supporting her father over the years when he was fishing and doing bad business in Australia. Like Kendall, he’s right, but the most blatant injustice is to believe that the best leaders of multibillion-dollar companies come from the tiny gene pool that owns them.
Perhaps Murdoch, who had never supported succession elsewhere, saw the folly of his approach. Even so, he sold his stake in Sky and a controlling stake in 20th Century Fox, earning $4 billion, bringing his net worth to $18 billion, with his six children earning it. 2 billion dollars each.
over time
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