David Geffen

The concept known as bal tashchit – ‘Do no destroy’ – has a special significance in Jewish tradition…We are constantly being warned in our faith that the capricious, thoughtless, wasteful destruction of the elements and creatures of the earth is wrong…We should remind ourselves daily of our responsibility to all aspects of creation.

You can’t do this! We have an arrangement! We have a contract!

[On his mother’s adversity] She had a very difficult beginning… All of my mothers family were killed… and she came to America at the time of the depression. It was not an easy life at all.

Everybody was recording Laura Nyro’s songs and all of a sudden she was a very successful song-writer. And beginning to become hot. She had three songs in the top ten at one time…

I thought Laura’s record was going to be huge… It was not successful it sold something like 20 or 30,000 albums. Laura lacked a certain level of ambition and didn’t really want to do the things that people do to become known. So I thought I’d better get people to record these songs and make them hits so that people will see that she’s a great songwriter.

There are so many people who are trying to make it in the music business. It’s a very open business, more open I think than any other area of show business.

Exchange ideas frequently.

[On Laura Nyro] I said to Laura ‘You know Laura, I think we should sell your music publishing company. I think right now is the right time you have three songs in the top ten this may never happen again and I think we can get a lot of money for it.’ And I made a deal with Clive Davis to sell Tuna Fish Music for $4 million. And that was a hell of a lot of money in 1969. It made her famous, it made her rich. It got people to listen to her music with her singing.

Should I give up my career at this point in my life… and put all my marbles in Laura’s [Nyro] basket?

If you go through some big corporate change, it’s just not going to be the same. If we sold to Yahoo, they would have done something different; if you want to continue your vision of the company, then don’t sell because there’s inevitably going to be some change.

A manufacturer is not through with his customer when a sale is completed. He has then only started with his customer. In the case of an automobile the sale of the machine is only something in the nature of an introduction. If the machine does not give service, then it is better for the manufacturer if he never had the introduction, for he will have the worst of all advertisements-a dissatisfied customer.

The more informative your advertising, the more persuasive it will be.

Ninety-nine percent of advertising doesn’t sell much of anything.

What’s the quickest way to become a millionaire? Borrow fivers off everyone you meet.

We have had just one main purpose during these years, and that is to give the people transportation of the most dependable quality at the lowest possible cost. Our car was called the Universal Car thirty years ago, because it fulfilled so many needs; it is The Universal Car today for the same reason.

They encouraged me to always look for the good in people instead of assuming the worst and trying to find fault.

I’ve learned a tremendous amount from Oprah.

The consumer isn’t a moron. She is your wife.

I have no Napoleonic dream. I’m just hard-working and pragmatic.

My mother taught me to love my work. I learned everything about business from her.

I always look at it that I work with my employees as opposed to them working for me.