When Rocky Wirtz took over the Wirtz Corporation in 2007, including
management of the Chicago Blackhawks, the fiercely beloved hockey
team had fallen to a humiliating nadir. As chronic losers playing
to a deserted stadium, they were worse than bad-they were
irrelevant. ESPN named the franchise the worst in all of sports.
Rocky's resurrection of the team's fortunes was-publicly, at
least-a feel-good tale of shrewd acumen. Behind the scenes,
however, it would trigger a father, son, and
brother-against-brother drama of Shakespearean proportions. The
Breakaway reveals that untold story. Arthur Wirtz founded the
family's business empire during the Depression. From roots in real
estate, "King Arthur" soon expanded into liquor and banking,
running his operations with an iron hand and a devotion to profit
that earned him the nickname Baron of the Bottom Line. His son Bill
further expanded the conglomerate, taking the helm of the
Blackhawks in 1966. "Dollar Bill" Wirtz demanded unflinching
adherence to Arthur's traditions and was notorious for an equally
fierce temperament. Yet when Rocky took the reins of the business
after Bill's death, it was an organization out of step with the
times and financially adrift. The Hawks weren't only failing on the
ice-the parlous state of the team's finances imperiled every facet
of the Wirtz empire. To save the team and the company, Rocky
launched a radical turnaround campaign. Yet his modest proposal to
televise the Hawks' home games provoked fierce opposition from
Wirtz family insiders, who considered any deviation from Arthur and
Bill's doctrines to be heresy. Rocky's break with the edicts of his
grandfather and father led to a reversal for the ages-three Stanley
Cup championships in six years, a feat Fortune magazine called "the
greatest turnaround in sports business history." But this
resurrection came at a price, a fracturing of Rocky's relationships
with his brother and other siblings. In riveting prose that
recounts a story spanning three generations, The Breakaway reveals
an insider's view of a brilliant but difficult Chicago business and
sports dynasty and the inspiring story of perseverance and courage
in the face of intense family pressures.
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