DAILY RECORD / BUSINESS WEEK — Apr 13 — Diller was born in San Francisco, the son of a wealthy real-estate developer, and he was not a good student. At Beverly Hills High, he was fired from the newspaper for his frequent absences. At age 19, he dropped out of UCLA. Why had he and so many other CEOs, such as Bill Gates, not graduated? "We’re nonconformists. We’re impatient. I didn’t want to say yes in a room at a desk for four years." Diller has gone from the mailroom of the William Morris Agency to ABC to chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures ("Raiders of the Lost Ark") to the Fox Broadcasting under Rupert Murdoch. Sometimes Diller had trouble expressing himself and sometimes he succumbed to clichéish thinking and occasionally even contradicted himself. But he clearly is very intelligent. His comments: ON MURDOCH: "I’m a frightened Tweetiecat compared to him. He’s real savvy. He can take an opportunity and make it happen." ON ONLINE DATING: "For certain people, it’s a better way than randomly meeting someone across a room. It’s magical. It’s a great service. It’s led to an incredible number of marriages." "Would he consider launching divorce.com? the moderator asked facetiously. No, but "We’re working on conflict resolution." ON JACK WELCH (consultant to IAC): "He’s the greatest manager I know, without question – with his experience, his spirit and his energy. He keeps yelling at me, telling me what to do. He’s taught me to have a nonbureaucratic infrastructure and make it work. When I’m in a room with my colleagues, he’s the CEO. ON SELLING EXPEDIA: It’s so large, it has been dominating the company. ON WHY HIS COMPANIES HAVE HIGH TURNOVER: "I believe in conflict. I like people arguing passionately about what they think is true – when there isn’t enough information. Some people don’t like that atmosphere – noisy and harsh. I’m not changing it."
Great article. I feel like the biggest idiot. I always thought that Barry Diller was the Husband of comedian Phyliss Diller. I am a DUH.
Very smart cookie. He got out of the television business when it got fragmented and jumped onto the online businesss. When everyone was running from the industry after the bust he sat tight and started purchasing companies left and right. Still is.
He is at the core of a small group of people that is slowly putting the net back as the foundation of future commerce and services.
Cheers to Mr. Diller.