Camp [Abridged, Audiobook] [Audio CD]

Michael D. Eisner (narrator) (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2005

Media visionary and business titan Michael D. Eisner presents a candid look back at one of the most formative experiences of his life-the time he spent at summer camp. For the millions who enjoyed childhood summers spent away from home at camp, that time is recalled with everything from dismay to nostalgic bliss. For Disney CEO Michael D. Eisner, the time he spent at Keewaydin summer camp, nestled in the mountains of Vermont, served as a cherished and invaluable starting point for an adult life that would include a career and family life filled with unparalleled success. From the first time his father took Michael to Keewaydin at the age of seven, he realized it would become an important part of his life. Over the years, as a camper and a counselor, Michael absorbed the life lessons that come from sitting in the stern of a canoe or meeting around a campfire at night.With anecdotes from his time spent at Keewaydin and stories from his life in the upper echelons of American business that illustrate the camp's continued influence, Eisner creates a touching and insightful portrait of his own coming-of-age, as well as a resounding declaration of summer camp as an invaluable national institution.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

No one who attended the Walt Disney Co.'s 2004 annual meeting could forget Michael Eisner's sangfroid before a throng of shareholders who were calling for his ouster.What helped calm Eisner during the storm, we now learn, was writing about the lessons he (supposedly) learned all those years ago at Keewaydin, the Vermont camp where Michael and other Eisner lads before him and after spent many happy summers.Eisner is a man of powerful charm and if one knew nothing else about him, this valentine to a place that is clearly his Rosebud might win the reader over (though an attempt to bring current interest to the account by following two disadvantaged youngsters transported to Keewaydin—thanks in part to the largesse of the Eisner family—doesn't really work). The account intercuts between Eisner's experience and the experience of Keewaydin campers today, with a healthy salting of lessons learned, along with a sprinkling of Eisner family history. Eisner perhaps unwittingly paints an unflattering portrait of his father, whom he calls Lester instead of Dad, while paying extensive homage to Lester's stand-in, Waboos, longtime Keewaydin director.Anyone lucky enough to have a happy, hokey place like Keewaydin in his life—a place of simple, steadfastly unchanging charms—can sense Eisner's manifestly genuine love of the experience.But as it happens, we know quite a lot about Eisner and much of it isn't flattering. [Masters has written and spoken widely and critically about the movie business, Disney and Eisner.—Ed.] So it's hard to stay focused on the Camp text when one's eyes keep rolling. (As when he writes, "Working in business can be another canoe trip.") Eisner tells us the Keewaydin code calls for a camper to be honest, loyal and "willing to help the other fellow." When he then says, "Many of my principles were Keewaydin principles," it's easy to wonder what other Keewaydin alumni might make of that statement.Eisner seems irresistibly drawn to write. That much came through during the Katzenberg trial (notes from Eisner's previous book—Work in Progress—were the source of his famous "I hate the little midget" quote). It happened again in last year's shareholder suit over the hiring and firing of Ovitz as Disney's president. On the witness stand, Eisner had to explain away his own memos calling his former pal a "psychopath" and a liar, among other things.Eisner could not stop himself then, and he cannot stop himself now. Camp was delayed last year, in the midst of the Disney drama, and Eisner comments tartly in his prologue that he was distracted by "people who could have used a few summers at camp earlier in their lives."Perhaps it would have helped if that Keewaydin code had included an admonition to "know thyself." 8-page photo insert. Kim Masters covers the business of entertainment for NPR and is the author of The Keys to the Kingdom: The Rise of Michael Eisner and the Fall of Everybody Else (HarperCollins).
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Michael D. Eisner is the chairman of Walt Disney Corp. and has worked variously as the President and COO of Paramount Pictures and Senior VP of ABC Entertainment. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Hachette Audio (June 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1586216538
• ISBN-13: 978-1586216535
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.5 x 5.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,594,415 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Makes for a happy BART ride, January 25, 2006

By 

Cmac-breed (San Francisco) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Camp (Hardcover)

One of the most powerful men in Hollywood says that much of all he needed to learn he learned at camp. He cites examples and weaves them with the present day experiences of two Orange County boys. Seldom has changed within the boundaries of Keewaydin over the last 80 years.

I liked the way that the two men blended their voice...it helps to make one not focus so much on who said what and stay with the story. Having attened a summer camp (Camp Beaverbrook in California) from 1977-1985 (until it's closing) I, too, can say that much of who I am today is derived from those experiences which give a child a parallel universe to school/home.

His retellings of the pivotal experiences that made him "part of the club" of adults and his realization that at 18 he was IN CHARGE of other people's kids just emphazises how "help the other fellow" is so ingrained in everything that this camp does.

Mr Eisner/Mr McPhee were "helped" into that sometimes horrifying revelation by experienced staffers who I KNOW kept an eye out all summer for transitional teens such as these.

I loved the fact that so many folks return each summer to be "staffmen"; a vision I had for myself regarding "my" summer camp. I was happy to see that people did indeed get that chance because my noncamp friends just didn't "get it" when I would say that had my camp remained open, my vacation would have been spent there.

Thank you, Mr Eisner and Mr McPhee for adding some oomph and credibility behind a general summer camp that focuses more on individual growth in a team environment than on competitive "brackets and ladders" ranking children far too early in their lives.

Individual accomplishment for the good of the team so that everyone can "win". (please do NOT confuse this comment with the silly "self-esteem" movement)

America's shareholders would be far better served by this same approach in Corporate America.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good read, for campers or parents of campers, August 6, 2005

By 

Chipcinnati (Cincinnati OH USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Camp (Hardcover)

I enjoyed the book. As a former camper myself (at another summer camp far away), I enjoyed the memories of my own that came back while reading Eisner's memories.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You need to be a camp lover...., January 21, 2012

By 

Nancy S. Kyme (Northern Virginia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Camp (Hardcover)

This work does not aspire to be great literature, nor does it need to. Its simple title, "Camp", says it all. Camp is, and should be, an interlude of simplicity amid adolescent confusion to emphasize life's basic truths; help the other fellow, success requires planning, only you can steer your own canoe, and teamwork is more important than winning. For those of us who love camp, we relish any opportunity to relive the experience. This book accomplishes this. But, more importantly, it reaffirms camp's worth to those brave parents who will make the sacrifice to send their children away for the summer. I appreciate this book, and understand Mr. Eisner's motives in seeing this work to fruition. Not only is it a tribute to his camp, but it validates all camps, and if it keeps such institutions thriving, this work is a success. Mr. Eisner has achieved much to be proud of, especially in the world of Disney, entertainment, and business. However, it would not surprise me if he places "Camp" above it all.

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