Tom King

A couple of years ago, the New York Times ran a piece lamenting the disappearance of the "masters of the universe" style of Wall Street banker - the sort that would typically hire PR consultants to make sure that Fortune and the The Wall Street Journal touted their feats. "In the 1990s," the article concluded, "publicity is out, modesty is in."

Thomas C King was cited as one of the new school. One of Wall Street's top deal makers, Tom King had been chief strategist in 1997 for Worldcom when it outmanoeuvred British Telecom with a $37 billion bid for MCI Communications. But he was noticed fretting about a press interview. "I don't need this," he said, suspecting colleagues might view it as an attempt to bolster his career. It might also antagonize his bosses who valued teamwork.