MO OSTIN

Ostin signed deals with major pop and rock talent over the decades, including Joni Mitchell, Fleetwood Mac and R.E.M. He said the industry didn't have to prioritize sales over artistic freedom.

Mo Ostin, a self-effacing giant of the music business who with rare integrity presided over Warner Bros.

Los Angeles in 1974 exerted more influence over popular culture than any other city in America. The "New Wave" that revitalized Hollywood, the smooth Southern California sound that ruled the album charts and radio airwaves, the torrent of groundbreaking comedies that brought new sophistication and provocation to television's prime time – all these emerged from Los Angeles. It was an "extraordinarily creative period," remembered Michael Ovitz, a Los Angeles native who became the entertainment industry's most powerful agent during the 1980s. For Los Angeles, those twelve glittering months represented magic hour. From "Rock Me on the Water: 1974, the Year Los Angeles Transformed Movies, Music, Television, and Politics" by Ronald Brownstein.