Beginning as a young trainee at a funeral home, Steven J. Ross (1927-1992) effected an ingenious series of deals and mergers, building a publicly traded company that expanded into publishing and entertainment, acquiring businesses including DC Comics and Mad magazine, before taking over the ailing Warner-Seven Arts motion picture studio in 1969. Under Ross's leadership, the studio became Warner Communication Inc., a leader not only in motion pictures, but in the recording industry and cable television, creating a host of profitable subsidiaries, including MTV, Showtime and the Movie...