The compelling story of Steve Vizard, much-loved TV comedian, chat-show host, Gold Logie winner and one of Australia's most influential businessmen -- until it all came crashing down.
Steve Vizard had it all: wealth, fame and power, in equal and impressive proportions. Once a much-loved TV comedian and household name, he had gone on to win two Gold Logies and even Father of the Year, before devoting himself full time to the business of making money. With a 20-page CV and on the boards of countless companies, including Telstra, Vizard also fostered art and other good causes via the Vizard Foundation, while mixing with all the powerful people at all the right parties in the all the right places.
Then a few dodgy-looking transactions in his personal finances finally led Westpac to sue Vizard's former accountant, Roy Hilliard, who had swindled Vizard of $3 million over several years. The disgraced accountant's trial became a kind of trial of Vizard, when the high-flying businessman was accused of insider trading and more, and of being a master of deception whose public persona was a charade. Vizard soon found himself doing a deal with ASIC, admitting to insider trading five years earlier. His punishment, whereby he was not prosecuted but was banned from acting on any board for 10 years, remains controversial - after all, many have gone to prison for less.
In this lively and comprehensive examination of Vizard's fall from grace, Wood seeks to uncover the man behind the public persona, and to answer the question on the lips of many: why did he do it? Was it greed, audacity or sheer stupidity? And what do we really know about Steve Vizard?
