Ex-Apple exec Scott Forstall takes to Twitter for first time, announces Broadway musical

Posted:
in General Discussion edited April 2015
In a marked departure from his former career at Apple, Scott Forstall posted on Twitter for the first time on Friday to announce his role as a co-producer in an upcoming Broadway musical, Fun Home.




During his tenure at Apple, which began in 1997, Forstall was responsible for core aspects of Mac and later iOS software design, ultimately ending up as the senior vice president in charge of iOS. He was forced out in the wake of the release of iOS 6 in 2012, which was poorly received for mistakes and missing features in a new version of Maps. The company stripped out Google content in a bid to distance itself from its main competitor.

In all the time Forstall was at Apple, he never posted to Twitter. Other executives -- such as CEO Tim Cook, Internet Software and Services head Eddy Cue, and marketing lead Phil Schiller -- have posted to Twitter on a semi-regular basis.

"I'm thrilled to be co-producing the Broadway musical Fun Home funhomebroadway.com opening this Sunday," Forstall's post reads. "Bravo to the phenomenal team!"

On Thursday it was discovered that in February 2014, Snapchat granted Forstall 0.11 percent of the company's stock, or 50,000 shares, as payment for work as a company advisor. His stake is estimated to be worth about $16.5 million, although it will only vest next year.

It's not clear what role Forstall had in the development of Snapchat's mobile messaging apps. It's also uncertain how he became involved in Broadway, since his education and work experience is almost exclusively technology-based.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 26
    Broadway musical huh? Who knew???
  • Reply 2 of 26
    That was unexpected.
  • Reply 3 of 26
    Broadway humor :)

    [VIDEO]
  • Reply 4 of 26
    Unexpected this is. I wonder what got him into Broadway musicals? Like I said the other day I miss his presence at Apple.
  • Reply 5 of 26
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,092member

    Good for Scott.  He has enough money to do pretty much anything he wants for the rest of his life.  Good for him that he's doing other things  outside of his perceived comfort-zone.



    I too think that he could have contributed more at Apple, but he's not getting any younger too so he should do other things.  Who know, maybe it'll be a Steve Jobs moment where he will one day come back to Apple.

  • Reply 6 of 26
    sockrolidsockrolid Posts: 2,789member

    Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton View Post



    Broadway musical huh? Who knew???

     

    But will it be skeuomorphic?

    Or just flat?

  • Reply 7 of 26
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member

    "Co-Producer" can mean many things.

     

    Maybe he's not even too much involved in it, and he's just basically the money man.

  • Reply 8 of 26
    dr millmossdr millmoss Posts: 5,403member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Apple ][ View Post

     

    "Co-Producer" can mean many things.

     

    Maybe he's not even too much involved in it, and he's just basically the money man.




    You beat me to it. In theater, "coproducing" means you are bankrolling the show for your name on the program and a share of the profits (if any). Generally no creative control whatsoever comes along with coproducing.

  • Reply 9 of 26
    sflocal wrote: »
    Good for Scott.  He has enough money to do pretty much anything he wants for the rest of his life.  Good for him that he's doing other things  outside of his perceived comfort-zone.


    I too think that he could have contributed more at Apple, but he's not getting any younger too so he should do other things.  Who know, maybe it'll be a Steve Jobs moment where he will one day come back to Apple.
    Be nice to see him return to Apple one day. I still think it was a dick-move on Federhigi's part when he took a dig at Forstall during the iOS7 introduction
  • Reply 10 of 26
    agramonteagramonte Posts: 345member
    Oh wow thats amazing. I went to the preview show last week (girlfrind works for the design agency for the show). Nice production - even with Bechdel's story being a bit dark, still got some fun moments in there. Good for him.
  • Reply 11 of 26
    Be nice to see him return to Apple one day. I still think it was a dick-move on Federhigi's part when he took a dig at Forstall during the iOS7 introduction

    Jony couldn't stand him, so it's probably for the best. I'm sure Scott's contributions were great during his time at Apple, but that was in service of giving Steve Jobs the input he needed to function as the ultimate tastemaker. Tim wants to cultivate a strong, diverse team that collaborates well. And I'm inclined to agree with him. Apple can't do that with a single iconoclast with a big ego running around.
  • Reply 12 of 26
    slurpyslurpy Posts: 5,382member
    That.. Came out of nowhere.

    Wow.

    I mean. Wow. I've been wondering what Forstall has been doing, and if you gave me a list of every possible thing on earth, producing a Broadway music would have been dead last.

    Good for him though. You just expect big names in tech to stay in the same industry, but nice to see him following his passions.

    I'm still in shock though.
  • Reply 13 of 26
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Slurpy View Post



    That.. Came out of nowhere.



    Wow.



    I mean. Wow. I've been wondering what Forstall has been doing, and if you gave me a list of every possible thing on earth, producing a Broadway music would have been dead last.



    Good for him though. You just expect big names in tech to stay in the same industry, but nice to see him following his passions.



    I'm still in shock though.



    I doubt this will be the last of his new ventures.

  • Reply 14 of 26
    dysamoriadysamoria Posts: 3,430member
    What's uncertain about it? He is filthy rich. With money comes the ability to sponsor projects and get producer credits. No brainer.
  • Reply 15 of 26
    zoetmbzoetmb Posts: 2,654member

    He probably just needs a tax write-off unless he's incredibly naive.   I was asked to invest in an off-Broadway show and performed a lot of financial analysis.   Even though the costs are much lower off-Broadway, the chances of making any money are incredibly slim unless you have the very rare hit that plays for a very long time.   It's much harder to make money on a Broadway show in spite of absurdly high ticket prices because the production costs are so high.

  • Reply 16 of 26
    Fun Home, like the comic?
  • Reply 17 of 26
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,092member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by zoetmb View Post

     

    He probably just needs a tax write-off unless he's incredibly naive.   I was asked to invest in an off-Broadway show and performed a lot of financial analysis.   Even though the costs are much lower off-Broadway, the chances of making any money are incredibly slim unless you have the very rare hit that plays for a very long time.   It's much harder to make money on a Broadway show in spite of absurdly high ticket prices because the production costs are so high.




    I doubt he's doing it to make money.  He's got enough money for several lifetimes.  If he wants to blow it - "tax write-off" or not - good for him.  He probably can't spend all that money fast enough so if it enriches society, good for him.



    I make very good money in tech, yet I freelance as an assistant SCUBA-diving instructor often.   I'm lucky to get paid, but it's such a 180 compared to my regular life that it provides balance and contribution.  People should do this more often.



    But hey, if he makes money from those productions... well, that's good too. :)

  • Reply 18 of 26
    nolamacguynolamacguy Posts: 4,758member

    You beat me to it. In theater, "coproducing" means you are bankrolling the show for your name on the program and a share of the profits (if any). Generally no creative control whatsoever comes along with coproducing.

    and....? did anyone claim he was doing otherwise? still sounds like a fun project.
  • Reply 19 of 26
    dr millmossdr millmoss Posts: 5,403member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by NolaMacGuy View Post





    and....? did anyone claim he was doing otherwise? still sounds like a fun project.



    Several posters seem to believe this represents a new career direction for him. Probably few know enough about theater to explain what a coproducer does. Write a check is it, basically.

  • Reply 20 of 26
    lotoneslotones Posts: 58member

    Just don't depend on him for accurate directions to the theater.

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