James Cameron
Category: Originators
Industry: Film
What Makes Him Haute: The director’s name is synonymous with big blockbuster hits with films like Titanic, which raked in some $1.8 billion worldwide and took home 11 Oscars, including “Best Picture”. Cameron proved once again he can do no wrong with what became the Avatar phenomenon; the movie grossed $2.7 billion worldwide. Without adjusting inflation, these two films are the two highest-grossing films of all time.
Rick Caruso
Category: Originators
Industry: Real Estate Development
Company: Caruso Affiliated
What Makes Him Haute: As L.A. Business Journal’s “Developer of the Year,” and a past president of the Police Commission, Caruso is one the most influential members of the Los Angeles community. The developer of The Grove, the Americana at Brand, and other retail-entertainment projects has transformed neighborhoods and changed the shopping landscape.
Alan Casden
Category: Billionaires
Industry: Real Estate
Company: Casden Properties LLC
What Makes Him Haute: One of the wealthiest men in the world, this self-made accountant-turned-developer billionaire is a builder of inner-city, high-density real estate. He is a loyal backer of Jewish and Israeli causes. Casden has two mixed-use projects in the works in West Hollywood and West L.A.
Michael and Eva Chow
Category: Power Couples
Industry: Cuisine
Company: Mr. Chow Restaurant
What Makes Them Haute: He’s the brain behind the trendy Mr. Chow restaurants; she’s by his side lending her creativity to conceive the design of each location. The authentic Chinese cuisine was first introduced in London in 1968, and since then, the famed restaurateur has opened four U.S. locations (Beverly Hills, two in New York City, and Miami), with plans on opening his sixth location in Las Vegas soon.
George Clooney
Category: Entertainers
Industry: Film
Company: Smokehouse Productions
What Makes Him Haute: Everything. He’s been Hollywood’s most eligible bachelor for as long as we can remember, but the superstar is known not only for his dashing good looks and acting abilities, but also for his social and liberal political activism, which rewarded him the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award at the 62nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards. Clooney’s latest movie, The American, has just recently topped the box office.
Tom Cruise & Katie Holmes
Category: Entertainers
Industry: Film
Company: Cruise/Wagner Productions
What Makes Them Haute: He is a prolific actor, one of the world’s most powerful celebrities, and an accomplished producer who has greenlight authority at United Artists. She has appeared in The Ice Storm, Batman Begins, Mad Money, and her latest film, The Romantics. She was also the face of the Spring 2009 ad campaign for Miu Miu. Together, they bring in $33.5 million, according to Forbes.
Jeffrey Deitch
Category: Thinkers
Industry: Art
Company: Museum of Contemporary Art
What Makes Him Haute: The Harvard MBA graduate and ex-vice president of Citibank is a central figure in the art world, dealing in modern and contemporary art and serving as an art advisor to private and institutional art collectors. The former New York gallerist and owner of Deitch Projects jumped coast to become MOCA’s new director this year, making him the first art dealer to run a major American museum.
Leonardo DiCaprio
Category: Entertainers
Industry: Film
What Makes Him Haute: When it comes to films, this talented actor sure knows how to pick them, or rather, they pick him. DiCaprio went from America’s heartthrob to America’s smartest and most versatile actor, starring in Shutter Island and Inception this year—two movies we still can’t stop talking about.
Robert Addison Day
Category: Philanthropists
Industry: Investment Banking
Company: William M. Keck Foundation/Trust Company of the West
What Makes Him Haute: The billionaire grandson of Superior Oil Co. founder William M. Keck oversees the $1.3 billion non-profit W.M. Keck Foundation, which focuses on science and engineering research, medical research, undergraduate education, and Southern California.
Robert Downey, Jr
Category: Entertainers
Industry: Film
What Makes Him Haute: He’s known as Hollywood’s comeback kid, stemming from several major career comebacks. In particular, he made a comeback in 2008 with an Oscar-nominated performance in Tropic Thunder and playing Tony Stark in Iron Man, which he reprised in Iron Man 2 earlier this year. He reportedly ranked in around $33 million in 2010 with upcoming flicks like the Sherlock Holmes sequel and Due Date.
Philippe Dauman
Category: Thinkers
Industry: Film
Company: Viacom
What Makes Him Haute: Though he’s been with the media conglomerate company since 1987, serving as CEO during the past four years has given him the opportunity to call the big shots.
Ari Emanuel
Category: Entrepreneurs
Industry: Talent
Company: William Morris Endeavor Entertainment
What Makes Him Haute: As the founder of Endeavor and now co-chief executive of WME, this super agent now represents some of the top names in the entertainment industry and is said to be the agent who Entourage’s Ari Gold originates from. Clients of his include Vin Diesel, Reese Witherspoon, Mark Wahlberg, Matt Damon, and Martin Scorsese.
Kevin Feige
Category: Thinkers
Industry: Film
Company: Marvel Studios
What Makes Him Haute: He began working on Marvel movies in 1998 as an associate producer on X-Men. From co-producer to executive producer to president of Marvel Studios, Feige is behind Spider Man 1, 2, 3, Iron Man 1 and 2, and The Incredible Hulk. Marvel movies and licensed properties have generated $7.3 billion at the box office. Up and coming Marvel comic projects include Thor, The First Avenger: Captain America, and The Avengers.
Alan Fuerstman
Category: Entrepreneurs
Industry: Hospitality
Company: Montage Hotels
What Makes Him Haute: He is founder and CEO of Montage Hotels, a budding five-star resort company with landmark locations in Laguna Beach and Beverly Hills. Montage Deer Valley, a luxury ski resort in Utah, is scheduled to open in December 2010. Fuerstman recently won the award for “One to Watch” by Virtuoso’s “Best of the Best” Hotel Awards, which honor the world’s most prestigious hotel and hospitality professionals.
David Geffen
Category: Billionaires
Industry: Entertainment
Company: DreamWorks SKG
What Makes Him Haute: Geffen is an American record executive, film producer, theatrical producer, and philanthropist. He first founded Asylum Records in 1970 (Eagles) followed by Geffen Records (Aerosmith, Guns N’ Roses). He then moved on to start entertainment boutique DreamWorks with partners Jeffrey Katzenberg and Steven Spielberg, eventually selling it to Viacom for $1.5 billion. His personal $175 million profits are said to have gone to charity.
Frank Gehry
Category: Originators
Industry: Architecture
Company: Gehry Partners, LLP
What Makes Him Haute: Gehry is perhaps most famous for his design of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, but Angelenos know him for the Walt Disney Concert Hall, which opened in 2003 and was quickly recognized as perhaps his greatest work, not only for the originality of its design, but for its functionality. The acoustics of the hall were widely praised, and it became one of the great performance venues in the world. It’s a symbol of downtown Los Angeles as a center of culture. In the works is the $3 billion Grand Avenue complex.
Alec Gores
Category: Billionaires
Industry: Private Equity
Company: Gores Group
What Makes Him Haute: Gores is the founder, chairman, and CEO of The Gores Group, an extremely lucrative private-based equity firm that specializes in acquiring multi-million dollar businesses. Their most recent acquisition was Alliance Entertainment in early September, which is the largest wholesale distributor of CDs, DVDs, and video games in the U.S.
Betty Graham
Category: Entrepreneurs
Industry: Real Estate
Company: Coldwell Banker
What Makes Her Haute: Since 2005, she’s been president and COO of the Greater Los Angeles branch of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, the country’s longest running real estate company. She currently oversees more than 50 sales offices and 3,800 sales associates in Southern California, but she stays true to her roots by keeping her company intimate and agents happy.
