SENIOR WRITER SHELI TEITELbaum (right) has been The Report's man in Los Angeles since Issue No. 1, and since then he's been trying to interview Haim Saban, today Hollywood's richest and most powerful Israeli. He almost succeeded once before. "I think it was back in 1991," recalls Teitelbaum, "before he was Master of the Universe," that is, before he had sprung the "Power Rangers" on the world and changed the face of children's TV - and toys - forever. "I didn't have much trouble getting hold of him, and he agreed to meet."
But it was Teitelbaum who canceled. The morning of the interview he woke up with an infection that landed him in the hospital. "I had someone call him and explain the situation, but after that, I never succeeded in getting through to him again. Once or twice a year, I'd send him copies of the magazine and a letter, and they would all disappear into a black hole. Saban's PR people always professed no recollection of ever receiving the material."
Meanwhile, Teitelbaum wrote for the magazine on subjects ranging from black holes in space to the Yugoslav civil war, Jewish life in the Arctic Circle and, a little closer to home, the effects of the 1994 Northridge Quake on L.A.'s Jewish community, and showbiz topics and personalities like Walter Matthau.
But he never gave up on Saban, and as the "kidvid king's" star soared ever higher, Teitelbaum redoubled his efforts to pin him down. Saban's friendship with Bill Clinton, his eyeball-to-eyeball showdown with the Screen Actors Guild, and his steady movement toward becoming the world's largest producer of children's programming added up into a story The Report felt compelled to cover, one way or another. After being told for the umpteenth time by Saban's publicity head that "Haim is a doer, not a talker," Teitelbaum finally made contact with Saban via a mutual personal friend. At last, things moved smoothly, and the interview was quickly arranged, the results of which appear in this week's cover story, beginning on page 40. "Afterwards," Teitelbaum recalls, laughing, "I needed photographs and I called the PR guy. I kept leaving messages and he kept not returning my calls. Finally, he got on the phone one time when I called, and I could tell he thought I was a wacko who wouldn't take no for an answer. Right then, it dawned on me that he didn't even know Saban and I had met. So I told him, and he said, 'Oh, that's terrific, I'll get you the pictures.'" Teitelbaum says the postscript gave him some insight into the way the Actors Guild strike was resolved. "If Saban chooses not to get involved, things can be stalled permanently. But once he's on board, every door opens, even if it's not always coordinated with the people who work for him."