Boardroom battles, sex, money, drugs, power, crime, tragedy, and family intrigue; at the centre stands the figure of John Paul Getty, the grandfather, an eccentric oil billionaire believed to have been the richest man in the world. Married and divorced five times, he had five sons, and yet was cheated of his dearest ambition-to found an oil dynasty. His angelic youngest son died at age twelve after years of illness. Of the remaining four sons, three proved to be hopeless businessmen and, one by one, dropped out of Getty Oil. Only one had the talent to take the helm of the family business, and he was groomed for the part. And then he killed himself.

With his cherished hopes of a family dynasty crushed, John Paul built a magnificent museum as a monument for all time to his success. But money tainted even his philanthropy; the Getty Museum has become feared for its wealth and ability to pillage the art market. In the manoeuvering that followed John Paul's death, Getty Oil was sold; Texaco acquired it for $9.9 billion, the biggest corporate takeover in history.