The Good, The Bad, and The Very Ugly

2007 was a banner year for CEOs. Exits and entries into the hallowed halls of corporate stardom were food for thought and gossip throughout the year. From the firings of CEOs at Merrill Lynch and Citi to the first-time placement of a scientist in Eli Lilly's corner office, CEOs made news throughout the year. And 2008 looks to be more of the same.

While only five CEOs lost their jobs because their firms were saddled with deep losses from the subprime market collapse—including the infamous ousters of Merrill Lynch’s Stan O’Neal and Citigroup’s Charles Prince—2007 was second only to 2006 in major CEO departures.

In The Good, The Bad, and The Very Ugly, PR power broker Elizabeth Krupnick reveasl the truth of what really happens in the world of CEOs. Using the platform of the first year in a CEO's tenure, she chronicles the benchmarks in a CEO's life by telling real-life stories about CEOs as they face their first board meetings (did you hear the one about the CEO who introduced his wife and mistress to one another in his opening remarks?), their first press conference (what about when reporters sitting in the front row at New York Life's CEO conferences wore plastic over their suits because the CEO spit so much?), their first public embarassment (what really happened when a temperamental CEO had a temper-tantrum because he couldn't get the presidential suite at the Waldorf-Astoria because President Bush was staying in it), and more.

This kiss-and-tell reveals the darker side of corporate America while entertaining and educating us as well.