Fearless Genius: The Digital Revolution in Silicon Valley


  • Photographer
    Doug Menuez
  • Prize
    3rd Place / Book/Documentary
  • Company/Studios
    Menuez Pictures, LLC
  • Date of Photograph
    1985-2000

1. The Day Ross Perot Gave Steve Jobs $20 Million. Fremont, California, 1986. Steve thought it would be cool to host a formal lunch for Ross Perot and the NeXT board of directors in the middle of the abandoned warehouse he planned to turn into the NeXT factory. He told Perot that they would build the most advanced robotic assembly line in the world. He predicted that NeXT would be the last billion dollar a year company in Silicon Valley . Perot, was blown away by the presentation and invested $20 million, becoming a key board member and giving NeXT a crucial lifeline. 2. Steve Jobs Explaining Ten-Year Technology Development Cycles. Sonoma, California, 1986. Steve planned to ride the next wave by putting the power of a refrigerator-size mainframe computer into a one foot cube at a price affordable to universities, thus “transforming education.” He said he wanted “some kid at Stanford to be able to cure cancer in his dorm room.” 3. Russell Brown in Costume. Mountain View, California, 1989. Adobe Systems creative director Russell Brown pointedly said that software is just a simple tool, like a hammer. You can use it to build a house or tear one down. Many photographers and graphic designers resisted digital technology and heavily criticized Photoshop. Brown deserves credit for the dominance of Photoshop by winning over the creative community with his Photoshop classes and lectures where influential photographers, graphic designers, and artists were invited to come learn the software. 4. Geek Sex. Mountain View, California, 1991. Real-life boyfriend and girlfriend act out a rudimentary electrical metaphor at an Adobe Halloween party. Technology workers were notoriously socially inept and often shy, especially male engineers. Fantasy games and role playing were popular, and any opportunity to dress in costumes was welcomed. This couple repeated the ritual all over the company to the delight of fellow workers. 5. John Sculley Masters His Shyness to Meet the Press. Fremont, California, 1990. Apple CEO John Sculley overcame severe shyness and stuttering to become CEO of Pepsi and Apple after Steve Jobs asked him to join Apple in 1983. After forcing Steve out, John grew Apple from $800 million to $8 billion a year in revenue. Despite this achievement, he was often dismissed in the Valley as the man who fired Steve. Yet he worked hard to encourage the best ideas inside the company, such as the Newton, which paved the way later for Steve's iPhone and iPad and in fact the entire smartphone market, which Sculley predicted.

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