The New York Times has a story on the return of Charlie Sheen, the actor and renowned Hollywood bad boy. Sheen’s run on a hit TV series collapsed spectacularly, but he quickly pivoted to other projects without any regrets. It’s a pattern followed by directors at financial firms who crashed their institutions but kept lucrative roles on other boards.
Charlie Sheen’s role on the hit show “Two and a Half Men” on CBS ended in a blur of tantrums and illicit drug use, but now he’s filming a new show for FX that will debut later this month. And he’s still the same guy, according to the Times:
“On his ne
arby tour bus, decorated with hand-stenciled drawings of turkeys made by his young children, a celebratory Mr. Sheen had been handing out glasses of Macallan Scotch. Now outside, he was delivering a freewheeling discourse about his martial-arts training for the movie “Hot Shots! Part Deux”; why he considers himself a retired (not a recovering) gambler; and why, despite his history of substance abuse, rehabilitation and relapses, he should not have to provide his newest employers with any assurances of his continued health.”
Sheen’s ability to rebound from scandal mirrors the experience of executives like James Johnson, former CEO of Fannie Mae; Stanley O’Neal, former CEO of Merrill Lynch; and Charles Prince, ex-CEO of Citigroup. As Andrew Ross Sorkin pointed out in an article a few weeks ago, all of them continue to serve on corporate boards despite their role at the helm when their firms went bust:
“It may be surprising that the former chief of Fannie Mae still remains the director of a public company as prominent as Goldman Sachs and Target. But perhaps more surprising, many other executives who had tumultuous reigns are also board members of major public companies: Charles O. Prince III, the former chief executive of Citigroup, who resigned under pressure in 2007 amid huge write-downs at the bank, is a director of Xerox and Johnson & Johnson. E. Stanley O’Neal, the former chief executive of Merrill Lynch on whose watch the firm loaded up on subprime debt that almost bankrupted the company, is a director of the aluminum giant Alcoa.”
The parallels between Sheen and these executives are striking. Both followed these simple rules:
1. Take the money. For all his bad behavior, Sheen reportedly will get $100 million from the producers of “Two and a Half Men.” Stan O’Neal got a little more, taking $162 million from Merrill Lynch. No matter how badly you behave, grab the cash.
2. Don’t admit mistakes. Sheen might actually have the edge on this score. He apologized for his conduct but hasn’t apologized for being who he is. Charles Prince on the other hand offered what might be the best non-apology from the financial crisis, telling a Congressional panel he was sorry he could not foretell the future.
3. Blame someone else. After his fall, Sheen pointed fingers at studio executives, writers, co-stars and even the media. Speaking to a House panel in March 2008 Stan O’Neal blamed credit rating agencies and market turmoil for Merrill’s woes. It’s never just your fault.