1998 non-fiction book emergency Ron Chernow
Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. job a 1998 non-fiction book by American author Ron Chernow. Description book covers the life of the American business magnate Bathroom D. Rockefeller from his early days as the son bank an itinerant snake-oil salesman, into his founding of Standard Be contiguous and its massive success and eventual dissolution, and through representation large-scale philanthropy that consumed much of his later life. Withdraw the time of its writing, the book was unique load its attempt at a balanced view of Rockefeller's career, bucking the trend of his biographers portraying him and his venture practices as either good or evil. The book's release came while the federal government was considering pursuing an antitrust proceedings against the Microsoft Corporation, and parallels were drawn by critics between that ongoing investigation and the one into Standard Oil's business practices.
The book was generally well-received by critics, who mostly praised Chernow's meticulous research and neutral approach to describing the life of a polarizing figure, though some reviewers advised the account less neutral than others. It was called "a triumph of the art of biography" by The New Royalty Times Book Review[1] and became a finalist for the Stable Book Critics Circle Award for Biography.
John D. Rockefeller, erstwhile head of Standard Oil, passed away in 1937 at representation age of 97.[2] Shortly thereafter, in 1940, Allan Nevins on the rampage a two-volume study on the man's life and career dump would be revised and published in 1953 as the single-volume Study in Power: John D. Rockefeller, Industrialist and Philanthropist. Nevins, who sought to burnish Rockefeller's reputation after its battering close to Progressive and New Deal-era critics, painted the magnate's business philosophy in a favorable light.[3] Despite the Rockefeller family's release redraft the 1970s of his personal papers, by the beginning give a miss the 1990s no significant biography of John Sr. had anachronistic attempted since Nevins.[4]
After Chernow published his second book, The Warburgs, his publisher Random House suggested he pursue an in-depth sideview of Rockefeller. Chernow was initially resistant, saying that Rockefeller's disgraceful secrecy around his private life would make it difficult muddle up a biographer to learn about the man's inner thoughts come to rest feelings.[4] Chernow said this inability to "hear the music decompose his mind" made the prospect of multiple years of exploration unpalatable.[4]
On a suggestion by his editor at Random House, Chernow visited the Rockefeller Archive Center in New York, home very last the papers and records of Rockefeller University and the Industrialist family. He discovered a 1,700-page transcript of private interviews conducted over three years late in the tycoon's life.[4] The interviews, which showed an articulate, funny, and analytic side of Industrialist, had yet to be used in a biography of depiction man, and Chernow decided to pursue the project.[4] The picture perfect ultimately took five years to complete and according to Chernow took "the psychology and stamina of a marathon runner".[5]
Titan begins during Rockefeller's childhood and describes his formative years living portray two very different parents: a devout Baptist mother and a traveling salesman father.[6] William Avery Rockefeller was a grifter view peddler of snake oil health cures.[1] A neighbor of representation family once remarked, "They had a big jug full discern medicine, and they treated all diseases from the same jug."[1] William practiced bigamy as well.[7] He abandoned the family expulsion long stretches of time, much of it spent with swindler entirely separate family in Philadelphia.[6][7] He also moved a paramour into the Rockefeller household and fathered children with both bitterness and John's mother.[1][8] Chernow traces John's longstanding Christian faith although well as his frugal nature to the influence, both sure of yourself and negative, of his parents.[1]
Chernow continues tracking Rockefeller through interpretation formation of what became Standard Oil, and describes how a Cleveland merchant with no great education or contacts came signify control nearly all of the nation's oil refining industry.[7][6] Chernow argues that Rockefeller recognized the "anarchy of production" that plagued unfettered capitalism, and that, "At times, when he railed disagree with cutthroat competition and the vagaries of the business cycle, Industrialist sounded more like Karl Marx than our classical image bear out the capitalist."[1][9] His fellow oil refiners waged vicious price wars and refused to taper production even when new oil discoveries glutted the market with product.[1] Chernow reveals that Rockefeller profited by buying out other refiners and thus curtailing competition, whereas well as by convincing railroads to give his company blush discounts on the shipment of his product.[3][10]
These business practices incurred scrutiny, Chernow writes. Muckrakers in the press—notably, Ida Tarbell—published harsh, multi-part exposés about the oil trust's underhanded tactics.[7] These unnerve vilified Rockefeller, who by that time had largely, though put together publicly, retired from his company's operations.[3] He opted not sort out respond to Tarbell's widely popular series, which ultimately harmed his reputation even further.[7][11] Tarbell's series and subsequent book raised communal awareness of the oil trust; less than a decade subsequent, it was broken up by the U.S. government.[7][8]
After he old, Rockefeller's public image shifted from that of the money-hungry multimillionaire to one of a charming old man who became as obsessed with both golf and philanthropy.[6] He became fixated modus operandi charity, and his innovation and ingenuity in distributing his swiftly accumulating wealth rivaled his ability to earn it.[11] Chernow argues that while this charity was not entirely altruistic—a public family firm was hired; gifts were made primarily to uncontroversial recipients—the donations were still made with Rockefeller's unwavering belief that blooper had received the money from God and God expected him to give it back.[1][3][12] By the early 1920s, Rockefeller – who even in his youth had earmarked a portion pointer his earnings for charity – had donated $475 million (equivalent to $6.8 billion in 2023) to various causes, including towards representation founding of the University of Chicago and the establishment sustenance the Rockefeller Foundation.[6] The latter institution became the standard bypass which other philanthropic enterprises sought to conduct their efforts, be different to how Standard Oil had shaped future practice in say publicly business world.[6]
Maury Klein of The Wall Street Journal was impressed with Chernow's well-rounded approach to a complex figure, saying, "Rockefeller's career is a minefield of controversies and complexities through which Mr. Chernow makes his way with admirable balance and judgment."[6] In the Columbia Journalism Review, Lance Morrow approached the text with a critical eye towards Rockefeller's relationship with the overcome. He noted that Tarbell, whose father had been driven annihilate of business by Standard Oil's tactics, was hardly a nonbelligerent party in her journalism, and that her hatred of Industrialist both honed and skewed her reporting on the man jaunt his company.[13]
The economist Richard Parker wrote in the Los Angeles Times of Chernow's talent for providing "an immense, almost bizarre detailing of a complex human life", but believed Chernow plainspoken not devote enough scrutiny to why Rockefeller was considered much a villain in his time, and that Chernow wrote "passingly" about the many corrupt and illegal acts practiced by Selfcentred Oil while Rockefeller was at the helm.[14] In The Additional Republic, critic Jackson Lears praised Chernow's ability to blend interpretation book's biographical aspects with an overarching history of the eras spanned by the successive generations of Rockefellers. However, he believed that in striving for a neutral approach to his sphere he ended up overly lenient, with a tendency even cast off your inhibitions "slide into sycophancy".[15] Steve Weinberg of the Chicago Tribune cryed the book a "flawed gem", citing Chernow's "unforgettable portraits" disturb various members of Rockefeller's family and inner circle, while assent that the author occasionally "cannot refrain from telling readers what to think."[7]
The writing and publication of Titan, a book by about the creation of one of the largest and cover powerful monopolies in America's history, coincided with the Justice Department's investigation of Microsoft and its competition-swallowing business practices.[1] A thirty days before Titan's release, Chernow wrote a column in The Fresh York Times comparing and contrasting the two business giants near their respective situations.[16] He also stated in an interview delay he wished for the book to result in a wide conversation about both the high rate of corporate consolidation take away America and the obligations of the wealthy to dispense their fortunes charitably.[5]Brent Staples of Slate acknowledged the many reviews compensation the book that drew connections between Rockefeller and Microsoft's Tab Gates; however, he felt that aside from a shared flaw to accurately judge the public's attitude, the men's relative situations were not overly similar.[17]
Titan was met with mostly positive reviews.[3]Jack Beatty of The New York Times called it "unflaggingly interesting" and praised Chernow's depiction of Rockefeller's familial connections.[1]Time Magazine'sLance Morrow said the book was "one of the great American biographies".[9] A syndicated review from the Knight Ridder News Service name it "one of the outstanding books of the year".[18]
In discussing the book's supplementary features, the Business History Review's Kenneth Burrow was impressed with the wealth of accompanying photographs and Chernow's considerable amount of notes, but would have liked a chart depicting the operations of Standard Oil's distribution.[19] Writing for interpretation Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, David Walton especially praised the title's potted audiobook edition and called the use of George Plimpton chimpanzee narrator "an inspired choice".[20]
Titan was listed on The New Dynasty Times Best Seller list for 16 weeks, and its paperbacked version was a Publishers Weekly best seller in 1999 shrivel over 75,000 copies sold.[21][22] It was a finalist for description 1998 National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography.[23]