David Zaslav courtside as WBD stock sinks; Tony Vinciquerra predicts two years of entertainment 'chaos' as investor conferences signal the coming M&A reckoning
David Zaslav courtside as WBD stock sinks; Tony Vinciquerra predicts two years of entertainment 'chaos' as investor conferences signal the coming M&A reckoning
SPORTY SPICE A newly goateed David Zaslav at the U.S. Open with BFFs (from left) Bobby Kotick, Elon Musk and Barry Diller. (MediaPunch/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)
Welcome to the Jamboree, my weekly series of quick(ish) takes on the industry’s passing parade.
This Week’s Jamboree Listening Companion:
(Enjoy with each item as you read)
RR's Jamboree 9-12-24
By Richard Rushfield
Playlist
Hardest Working Sports Fan in Showbiz
Warners Disco stock slid into all-time low territory this week. A good moment, perhaps, for a CEO to fly under the radar a bit? But as series were cut and jobs slashed, one man, as ever, is working overtime. That’d be tireless, indefatigable CEO David Zaslav, who enjoyed the U.S. Open men’s final with . . . well, whom would you most want your CEO pictured sitting next to these days? (See photograph above.)
So it seems a good moment for us to look back at the many game days and buddies of Hollywood’s favorite CEO, David Zaslav.
OLYMPIC NIGHT FEVER Pre-goatee DZ enjoyed Olympic tennis with John Travolta. (Jean Catuffe/Getty Images)
MISSION MAN Zaslav vaulted into the Olympic Women’s Gymnastics event with Chris McQuarrie (left) and Tom Cruise. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
HOMETOWN TV Mr. Z pictured on his own channel amid the NBA bid drama. (X)
WHAT, ME WORRY? With Dustin Hoffman and John McEnroe in March 2024. (Instagram)
NATURAL BORN KILLER? Back at the Lakers courtside with Michael B. Jordan, Bill Maher and Woody Harrelson. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
KNICK KNACK Proving himself again a bi-coastal basketball fan in New York in May 2023. (Instagram)
FORGET PARIS Zaslav smelled the flowers at the 2019 French Open with Woody Harrelson and Patriots owner Robert Kraft. (Jean Catuffe/Getty Images)
GAME SET MATCH Tennis great Henri Leconte with DZ at the 2017 French Open. (Jean Catuffe/Getty Images)
With a big UFC event in Vegas this weekend, football in full gear and the World Series ahead, hope nothing at work interferes with DZ’s busy schedule of being photographed at major sporting events.
Well you can’t say we aren’t being well warned here. Up and down the investor conference circuit, CEOs have been spouting off in the last week very clearly that a wave of consolidation is at hand.
Starting things off Sept. 5 was Sony’s Tony Vinciquerra who spelled out pretty clearly what’s to come:...
Subscribe to The Ankler. to unlock the rest.
Become a paying subscriber of The Ankler. to get access to this post and other subscriber-only content.
