Book · 2012 · Jewish businesspeople
The Fish That Ate the Whale
- mentions
- 9
- people
- 3
- podcasts
- 5
- episodes
- 7
- recommendations
- 4
Um one of my favorite biographies ever is this book called the fish that ate the whale by rich cohen which is about samuel zamuri one of the founders of united fruit.
Ryan Holiday · The Daily Stoic · Jun 2025 What they say about it
- Biography by Rich Cohen“biography wrote this book called The Fish That Ate the Whale”3
- About the banana king“about sam zumari who was the banana king”2
- Story of the banana king“the story of the banana King”2
The best things said about it
This is actually written with Rich Cohen, who's one of my favorite writers, who did this book, Fish That Ate the Whale, about the Samuel Zamuri, who starts as the little guy...
Ryan Holiday The Daily Stoic · Oct 2026 I think his best biography wrote this book called The Fish That Ate the Whale.
Ryan Holiday How I Write · Jun 2024 Uh i'll just give my closing the fish that ate the whale a book about sam zumari who was the banana king.
Jason Calacanis All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg · Sep 2020 The reason the book is called the fish to ate the whale is because the the biggest fruit company of the time is called United Fruit and Sams and Murray competes head-to-head with them.
We just did fish that ate the whale the story of the banana King.
Jason Calacanis This Week in Startups · Jun 2020 Where and when it comes up
Mentions per year
How it comes up
Most mentions, by podcast
Why people recommend it
The Fish That Ate the Whale by Rich Cohen is a biographical non-fiction book that chronicles the extraordinary life of Samuel Zemurray, an immigrant fruit peddler who rose to become the powerful head of the United Fruit Company. On The Daily Stoic, Ryan Holiday frequently recommended the biography as one of his absolute favorites, praising Cohen's Gonzo-style writing and noting how specific passages resonated across a fifteen-year gap. Jason Calacanis also recommended the book on All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg during the closing segment, highlighting its depiction of the historical banana king, and later mentioned on This Week in Startups that his book club had recently read the title together. During an appearance on Modern Wisdom, David Senra discussed the biography to illustrate the vital business lesson that true founders must understand their operations thoroughly from top to bottom, specifically noting Zemurray's fierce head-to-head competition with rival corporate giants. Throughout these podcast discussions, hosts and guests consistently praised the book for its fast-paced storytelling, vivid historical detail, and sharp insights into ruthless early-twentieth-century capitalism, immigrant ambition, and the sheer force of individual will in building commercial empires against insurmountable odds.
Every mention
Jason Calacanis uh i'll just give my closing the fish that ate the whale a book about sam zumari who was the banana king 4
“uh i'll just give my closing the fish that ate the whale a book about sam zumari who was the banana king”
“the fish that ate the whale a book about sam zumari who was the banana king”
“we just did fish that ate the whale the story of the banana King”
“and if you look at the banana having just read this book the have you read this book the the fish at eight the whale about the banana king”
Ryan Holiday This is actually written with Rich Cohen, who's one of my favorite writers, who did this book, Fish That At… 4
“This is actually written with Rich Cohen, who's one of my favorite writers, who did this book, Fish That Ate the Whale, about the Samuel Zamuri, who starts as the little guy...”
“I just read The Fish Study at the Whale.”
“um one of my favorite biographies ever is this book called the fish that ate the whale by rich cohen which is about samuel zamuri one of the founders of united fruit”
“Uh and then but his his I think his best biography wrote this book called The Fish That Ate the Whale. Oh, yeah. I saw that in the book store.”
David Senra the reason the book is called the fish to ate the whale is because the the biggest fruit company of the tim… 1
“the reason the book is called the fish to ate the whale is because the the biggest fruit company of the time is called United Fruit and Sams and Murray competes head-to-head with them”
