Madrick, Jeffrey G. 1947-

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MADRICK, Jeffrey G. 1947-

PERSONAL:

Born July 15, 1947, in New York, NY; son of Milton and Corazon (De Arego) Madrick; married Gloria Jean Adrian, June 29, 1969 (divorced, 1975); children: Matina. Education: New York University, B.S. (salutatorian), 1969; Harvard University, M.B.A., 1971.

ADDRESSES:

Agent—c/o Author Mail, Basic Books, 10 East 53rd St., 7th Floor, New York, NY 10022. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Journalist, economic consultant, and author. Money Management, New York, NY, writer and columnist, 1972-75; Business Week, New York, NY, financial editor, columnist, 1975-78; Columbia Pictures, New York, NY, executive assistant to the president, 1979-80; ESPN, New York, NY, writer, consultant, 1980-82, TV correspondent, commentator, 1982-85; NBC News, New York, NY, TV correspondent, commentator, 1985-93. Cooper Union, New York, NY, adjunct professor of social science.

MEMBER:

Beta Gamma Sigma.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Page One Award, Newspaper Guild, 1979; Emmy Award, 1986; Business Week award, 1987, for "Taking America: How We Got from the First Hostile Takeover to Megamergers, Corporate Raiding, and Scandal"; New York Times Notable Book Award, 1995, for The End of Affluence: The Causes and Consequences of America's Economic Dilemma.

WRITINGS:

Taking America: How We Got from the First Hostile Takeover to Megamergers, Corporate Raiding, and Scandal, Bantam Books (New York, NY), 1987.

The End of Affluence: The Causes and Consequences of America's Economic Dilemma, Random House (New York, NY), 1995.

Economic Returns from Transportation Investment, Eno Transportation Foundation (Lansdowne, VA), 1996.

(Editor) Unconventional Wisdom: Alternative Perspectives on the New Economy, Century Foundation Press (New York, NY), 2000.

Why Economies Grow: The Forces That Shape Prosperity and How We Can Get Them Working Again, Basic Books (New York, NY), 2002.

SIDELIGHTS:

Jeffrey G. Madrick's economic expertise has made him a valuable resource for many years. He has written for Money Management and Business Week and has served as a commentator for ESPN and NBC News. Madrick is also the author and editor of several books dealing with economic matters.

Taking America: How We Got from the First Hostile Takeover to Megamergers, Corporate Raiding, and Scandal is Madrick's 1987 explanation of the explosive nature and number of takeovers between 1974 and 1986. Madrick decries the practice of takeovers as a plague, comparing it to a game of Monopoly that totally disregards the human factor. His book is a chronological record of the corporate mergers and the personalities involved in them.

" Taking America breaks no new ground. But it provides a useful reminder of how Corporate America got where it is today—and a warning about where it might be going," noted Judith H. Dobrzynski in her Business Week review. Daniel Akst, a Financial World critic, called Madrick "a dogged researcher [who] also knows a lot about business." Although Akst felt that Madrick's work "is ultimately unsatisfying" due to a lack of chapter headings and the fact that the author does not directly address vital questions, he appreciated Madrick's conclusion that "most of the big takeovers … just don't make business sense." "Taking America is a readable and well-paced narrative of some of the biggest deals in recent business history," commented New York Times Book Review writer Myron Kandel.

Madrick's next book, The End of Affluence: The Causes and Consequences of America's Economic Dilemma, was published in 1995. In it, Madrick addresses the economic stagnation that began in the 1970s and manifested in a slowdown in productivity, the decline of real wages, and the diminishing presence of labor unions. He blames the current U.S. economic problems upon several factors: a decline in the number of positions in the manufacturing field, an unhealthy dependence on free trade, and a lack of funding for research on new products.

"Madrick writes clearly, argues persuasively, and can be understood by college students and the general public," Steven Pressman wrote in a Society review. He concluded that The End of Affluence "is a book that presents a realistic picture of the immense difficulties we face in attempting to solve our current problems." R. J. Saulnier of Presidential Studies Quarterly recommended The End of Affluence to readers, but felt that they would also appreciate other, more analytical books in order to understand current economic trends. A reviewer for the Economist questioned Madrick's "gloomy view" that affluent times have come to an end. He "rather glumly accept[s] that the golden age is over, and that the United States must now learn to live within its straitened means," commented American Prospect reviewer Martin Walker. According to Robert Scheer of the Nation, The End of Affluence is "a clearly written and thankfully short guide through the raw economic data."

In Why Economies Grow: The Forces That Shape Prosperity and How We Can Get Them Working Again, Madrick challenges the popularly held belief that technological innovation and lower taxes are necessary components of economic growth strategies. Instead, Madrick concentrates on many important points that contribute to economic growth, including skilled, educated workers, the demand for goods and services, and the creation of new markets.

"His argument … [is] far from mundane," mentioned a Publishers Weekly reviewer. Patrick J. Brunet, a Library Journal critic, praised Why Economies Growfor its "many interesting insights," yet felt that the beginning and conclusion of the work do not measure up to "a strong center section on the Industrial Revolution." "Madrick brings a formidable knowledge and understanding of economic history and principles to his fresh, unconventional examination of America's development," commented a writer for the Century Foundation.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

American Prospect, July-August, 1996, Martin Walker, review of The End of Affluence: The Causes and Consequences of America's Economic Dilemma, pp. 90-95.

Business Week, April 20, 1987, Judith H. Dobrzynski, review of Taking America: How We Got from the First Hostile Takeover to Megamergers, Corporate Raiding, and Scandal, pp. 10-12

Commentary, February, 1996, Amity Shlaes, review of The End of Affluence, pp. 19-24. Economist (U.S.), January 20, 1996, review of The

End of Affluence, p. 85.

Financial World, May 5, 1987, Daniel Akst, review of Taking America, p. 107.

Library Journal, October 1, 2002, Patrick J. Brunet, review of Why Economies Grow: The Forces That Shape Prosperity and How We Can Get Them Working Again, p. 112.

Nation, March 18, 1996, Robert Scheer, review of The End of Affluence, pp. 25-28.

National Interest, fall, 1996, Joseph S. Nye, Jr., review of The End of Affluence, pp. 89-92.

New Republic, May 19, 1997, Jagdish Bhagwati, review of The End of Affluence, pp. 36-41.

New York Times Book Review, May 10, 1987, Myron Kandel, review of Taking America, p. 31.

Presidential Studies Quarterly, spring, 1998, R. J. Saulnier, review of The End of Affluence, pp. 463-464.

Publishers Weekly, September 16, 2002, review of Why Economies Grow, p. 59.

Society, January-February, 1997, Steven Pressman, review of The End of Affluence, pp. 88-89.