Michael Eisner

Since 1984, media mogul Michael D. Eisner has been influential in turning Walt Disney Productions into one of the most powerful forces in American entertainment. Before coming to the Disney empire, Eisner, a graduate of Denison University, Granville OH, was a television executive and then, in 1976, the president of Paramount Pictures. The resurgence of the Disney company began in the early '80s when Walt Disney's son-in-law Ron Miller took over the reins. After founding Touchstone Pictures, Disney's prominent subsidiary and main producer of adult-oriented films, Miller got into a power struggle with Roy E. Disney and ended up being fired. Eisner took over as CEO in '84 and, with the help of Jefferey Katzenberg as chairman of the movie-making division, began concentrating on turning out lively, high-quality mainstream films such as Honey I Shrunk the Kids and the blockbusters Pretty Woman and Sister Act. In 1990, he helped found the Hollywood Pictures division, and helped restore the sagging reputation of the company's animation studios with such innovative, high-quality features as The Little Mermaid and Lion King. In addition to dealing with the media aspects, that also include the lucrative Disney Channel cable network, Eisner is in charge of all four Disney theme parks.

~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide