Godmothers Gather: Ari Emanuel & J. R. Moehringer

A bracing memoir about how to make rage and childhood trauma work for you rather than against you. Ari Emanuel—one of Hollywood’s most accomplished, feared, and funny dealmakers—takes the main stage to share “Roll the Calls,” his take-no-prisoners memoir that details a lifetime worth of secrets and stories. The executive chair and CEO of TKO and the executive chairman of WME Group, Ari will be joined in conversation by Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and memoirist J. R. Moehringer, author of “The Tender Bar.” Their conversation will be moderated by Godmothers co-founder Jennifer Rudolph Walsh. Ari has long been one of the most influential people in the world, but he’s also something of a mystery. Part of the reason is his job description. As Hollywood’s best-known super-agent—the inspiration for Ari Gold in the HBO drama “Entourage”—he’s paid to speak for his A-list clients, not himself. Now, for the first time, the agent, the mogul, the fero­cious power broker, speaks for himself, about himself, and about the game of life—often at the top of his lungs. In “Roll the Calls,” Ari tells the incredible stories behind the signings and fir­ings, the triumphant mergers and nasty breakups, the hard-won victories and crushing mistakes. With great comic zest, and in precise cinematic detail, he traces the arc of a classic rags-to-riches career, from suffering through severe dyslexia, to clerking in the mail­room of CAA, to striking out on his own with three fellow agents, launching a new talent agency that would go on to represent some of the most glittering names in show busi­ness, including Larry David, Quentin Tarantino, Denzel Washington, Billie Eilish, Martin Scorsese, and Oprah Win­frey. Along the way, Ari was also raising four kids, fighting and reconciling with friends and colleagues, coping with a failing marriage, and struggling to find love again. Shattering the mold of stodgy CEO memoirs, “Roll the Calls” is told in a punchy, telegraphic style, with disarming humility and ribald candor. It’s a fable about success and failure, about creativity and persistence, and a master class in how to ignore the haters, how to overcome withering self-doubt, and, at moments of profound crisis and despair, how to be a fearless advocate for your most vulnerable client: yourself.