From the General Motors recalls to the Sony hacks to the stunning string of multi-billion dollar tech acquisitions this year, some of the biggest stories of 2014 were from the business world.
Playing starring roles in such stories, CEOs and other captains of industry often offered their own idiosyncratic commentaries on the events. Unencumbered by the restraints of mere mortals and possessing mammoth egos, such businesspeople's loose lips often give publicists agita. At other times, they speak quite eloquently. Here's a roundup of some of the most noteworthy musings to emanate from the business world in 2014:
1. Tom Wheeler
The FCC chairman was responding to a segment on HBO's Last Week Tonight in which John Oliver, noting Wheeler's past career as a lobbyist, likened him to a dingo hired as a babysitter.
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2. Dr. Dre
The full quote, "The first billionaire in hip-hop right here from the motherf*cking West Coast," appeared in a YouTube video that emerged shortly after a report came out stating that Apple planned to buy Beats for $3 billion. Since Apple took a few weeks to actually make the announcement, there was speculation that Dre's seeming confirmation in the video didn't go over well with Apple execs.
3. John Legere
Legere is known for being outspoken, but he outdid himself with this quote about the other major carriers at a June press event. He later apologized for the remark.
4. Kim Kardashian
Kardashian revealed at Re/code's Mobile Conference in October that she stockpiles BlackBerrys and likes them better than iPhones. Who knew?
5. Evan Spiegel
Snapchat's founder and CEO made this remark after turning down a $3 billion-plus buyout offer from Facebook.
6. Elon Musk
Musk's Oct. 1 tweet about the upcoming Model D caused much tittering on Twitter.
7. Mark Zuckerberg
Facebook's CEO and founder on the company's evolving culture.
8. Jan Koum
The WhatsApp's cofounder and CEO's focus paid off big time in 2014.
9. Tim Cook
Apple's CEO publicly declared his sexual orientation in October.
10. Jack Ma
Alibaba's CEO revealed his muse on the day that his company went public.
11. Barry Diller
Diller's comment came after the Supreme Court ruled that Aereo, a startup offering broadcast TV via the Internet, was performing an illegal operation. Diller was an Aereo backer.
12. Mary Barra
The new CEO of General Motors was grilled before Congress a couple of times over recalls related to an ignition glitch that has been linked to more than 13 deaths.
13. Unnamed Sony Pictures exec
This was one embarrassing comment among many that was leaked in December's massive hack of Sony Pictures' emails.