July 3, 2008 --
AN ex-employee of Harvey and Bob Weinstein is writing an "explosive" book about their management of Miramax, based on files and tapes compiled over a period of 15 years, a source claims.
The so-far-anonymous author - who signed off an e-mail to Page Six as "The Final Nail" - claims, "The book, which is told from a deep insider's [point of view], will detail the day-to-day . . . manipulation of the Disney company by the Weinstein Bros." Disney owns Miramax, with which the Weinsteins are no longer involved.
"Our database of Miramax files is huge ... This former employee did not sign a nondisclosure agreement. Many of the files and tapes we are working from were given to us by the late Stuart Meltzer, who worked directly for Bob as his assistant before he was killed in the World Trade Center attack in 2001. Stuart was extremely paranoid and saved and recorded everything."
The author attached a seven-minute audio file "just to prove to you this is not some kook writing you." The recording is of a Dec. 12, 1996, phone call between Harvey and Joe Roth, then president of Walt Disney Studios, in which the two complain about the $138 million severance deal that Mike Ovitz negotiated to leave Disney after 16 months.
AUDIO: Listen to the Recording
"Please fire me," Weinstein facetiously tells Roth. "I'll split whatever I get . . . I'll meet you in St. Barts. We'll buy both halves of the island . . . If you don't fire me, then I think we should make bad movies next year. Let's make a series of [bleep]y movies."
Roth replies: "I obviously made a mistake. I made good movies." Harvey says, "Joe, you are a success, so therefore you are a failure in this town." The two then name Peter Guber, Michael Fuchs and Jon Peters as having won huge golden parachutes.
"Everybody got wealthy on failure," Weinstein says. Roth replies: "You know what the problem is with you and me? We care about the movies." Weinstein laughs: "We have character flaws that must be overcome."
A rep for Weinstein had no comment.
