Tony Hsieh, the Zappos Luminary Who Revolutionized the Shoe Business, Dies at 46
like honestly at this point Vegas should just close up shop completely and let the desert reclaim it.
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Tony Hsieh, the Zappos Luminary Who Revolutionized the Shoe Business, Dies at 46
like honestly at this point Vegas should just close up shop completely and let the desert reclaim it.
Don't forget to get up to 40% off with coupon code THSUPERAIDS40 on all the latest mens styles
Sanlmar, what was your daughter's reaction to this? Did she ever meet him there? What was the impression of Tony among Zappos workers?
As I've said in previous threads, I see why Zappos succeeded, but they were always a little bit "off" operations-wise.
Really curious as to how he died, given that he was only 46. Drug OD? COVID? Massive heart attack? Stroke? Cancer? The only thing we know is that it was he died "around his family members", making COVID seem unlikely.
He retired as CEO three months ago, which might be indicative that he knew this was coming.
He was a big believer in downtown Las Vegas, and invested $350 million in projects there since 2012.
According to this LVRJ article, Tony initially believed that Zappos would be a failsite when he joined it in the late '90s: https://www.reviewjournal.com/busine...tires-2102935/
werent there a bunch of strange stories going around about his living circumstances in vegas?
i seem to recall something about how there hasnt been any electrical feed to his house there for a long time.
No, I hadn't heard of that, but if anyone has any links to such stories, I'd like to read them. I've been mildly fascinated with Zappos and Hsieh ever since I won that $6k worth of gift cards at Cosmo years ago (which I have almost used up), and the company's innovation combined with strange operational blunders has been interesting to observe.Quote:
Originally Posted by sonatine
Wouldn't surprise me if Hsieh turned out to be a freak and a weird dude. Seems to often be the case with these highly successful, innovative types. Steve Jobs was a great example of this, though I've heard that Hsieh was mostly well-liked, whereas Jobs was a notorious asshole.
It’s the Review Journal so I’d like confirmation but.....
I’ll ask some people I know tomorrow.
Tweet doesn't exist. URL cut/paste fail?Quote:
Originally Posted by Sanlmar
Like, seriously?! Who would have expected that...Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan DruffNo, I hadn't heard of that, but if anyone has any links to such stories, I'd like to read them. I've been mildly fascinated with Zappos and Hsieh ever since I won that $6k worth of gift cards at Cosmo years ago (which I have almost used up), and the company's innovation combined with strange operational blunders has been interesting to observe.Quote:
Originally Posted by sonatine
Wouldn't surprise me if Hsieh turned out to be a freak and a weird dude. Seems to often be the case with these highly successful, innovative types. Steve Jobs was a great example of this, though I've heard that Hsieh was mostly well-liked, whereas Jobs was a notorious asshole.
https://www.reviewjournal.com/busine...-fire-2193165/
Come on Druff. I doubt you followed his story at all.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan DruffNo, I hadn't heard of that, but if anyone has any links to such stories, I'd like to read them. I've been mildly fascinated with Zappos and Hsieh ever since I won that $6k worth of gift cards at Cosmo years ago (which I have almost used up), and the company's innovation combined with strange operational blunders has been interesting to observe.Quote:
Originally Posted by sonatine
Wouldn't surprise me if Hsieh turned out to be a freak and a weird dude. Seems to often be the case with these highly successful, innovative types. Steve Jobs was a great example of this, though I've heard that Hsieh was mostly well-liked, whereas Jobs was a notorious asshole.
Jobs was an asshole. He was an open book in that regard. Hsieh was accessible and public. He too was an open book. He was well liked by his employees and the Las Vegas community.
Vegas will be the loser here at a time when Vegas needs a friend.
Strange.
"Injuries from a house fire" is also a weird description, as most people who die from house fires either suffer from smoke inhalation or are burned to death.
What do they mean by "injuries" here? Is it possible the jumped out the window from the 2nd story to get out of the house, injured himself badly, and died?
Vital Vegas, whatever that is, had him getting seriously hurt in a house fire in New London, Ct and eventually succumbing after a short hospitalization. I didn’t know if that was reliable. I seem to recall talk of that being garbage site, so I didn’t chime in when I searched his cause of death when thread popped up.
Vital Vegas is a one-man operation, and his info is often unreliable. He was also recently sued by Sahara for allegedly putting out incorrect information that they were about to shut down (and refused to retract it), but that lawsuit ended up looking frivolous, and was recently dismissed.Quote:
Originally Posted by BCR
He has an incredibly thin skin, and blocks people on Twitter super easily, including me. He took a lot of heat in March for being a COVID denier, and he kept encouraging people to visit downtown Vegas, insisting it was "just the flu". At the time, he worked for a marketing arm for the Fremont Street Experience.
He also has an attention whoring girlfriend who posts cringey sexually-themed tweets, in a vain attempt to become a social media star. She's like 20 years younger than him (he's 57), and she's also about 6 inches taller than him, so it looks really odd seeing photos of them together.
Anyway, like a broken clock, he is occasionally right. The injury to Hsieh in a house fire seems to be correct, but I hadn't heard that it was in Connecticut. Several years ago I bought an escape ladder which hooks onto the window sill and allows you to climb down, in case of a fire where the staircase is blocked. I bought one for my parents, too. Pretty important thing to have if your house isn't 1 story.
It appears this November 18 fire is what killed him: https://www.theday.com/article/20201118/NWS04/201119437
Smoke inhalation and burns seem to be the main cause of death. He was trapped in the house and couldn't get out. They got him out, and he sat in critical condition for 9 days before passing away. Brutal.
I'm wondering if they will rename a street downtown after him.
i hesitate to say this because fuck man what a shitty way to die, but building codes are pretty straight forward when it comes to homes having egress points in case of fire pretty much everywhere.
again im not trying to cast any shade here but that explanation seems to be designed to save face here.
I don’t think you are wrong.Quote:
Originally Posted by sonatine
Known to be incredibly nice, but out there.
A lot of his ideas were praised as revolutionary but in reality were terrible and just covered up by massive growth. Once the growth dropped off a lot of that stuff imploded.
Things like nobody having a boss, no job titles, make your own job description, etc.
Sad though cause he was so young.
I saw some of this in my dealings with them.Quote:
Originally Posted by abrown83I don’t think you are wrong.Quote:
Originally Posted by sonatine
Known to be incredibly nice, but out there.
A lot of his ideas were praised as revolutionary but in reality were terrible and just covered up by massive growth. Once the growth dropped off a lot of that stuff imploded.
Things like nobody having a boss, no job titles, make your own job description, etc.
Sad though cause he was so young.
For example, there was this really tilting problem where sometimes the site would demand a credit card to pay for tax, even if your gift card balance could easily cover the tax.
This wasn't intended. It was a bug.
I alerted them to it, but years went by and it was never fixed.
Finally I called up, asked for a manager, and told the guy I knew the exact steps to reproduce the bug, and also why it was probably happening. I offered to write this up and send it to them.
"Oh, we get this complaint several times a day for years," he said. "The developers are very aware of it."
"Then why don't they fix it?!", I inquired. "This has to be a simple fix."
"It probably is, but the developers... they work on what they want. They don't listen to anyone. They just don't feel like doing this, and it doesn't get done."
I thought, "This company has some real management issues."
I feel like this site would be alotttttttttt better if todge was somehow an asian jew
This just occurred to me but is it something we should have been thinking about the whole time
I just assume there is something more to the story with situations like this. I didn’t know much about him other than he’s eccentric, but it’s hard to die in a fire as an able bodied adult when you only have to save yourself. I didn’t see mention of others.Quote:
Originally Posted by sonatine
From what I saw, inhalation or whatever, I just assume it’s a lot easier to nod out on drugs with a candle lit, or pass out drunk with something lit, as opposed to being trapped in a fire so bad that you can’t get out some way. It’s possible, but something strange seems far more probable.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BCRI just assume there is something more to the story with situations like this. I didn’t know much about him other than he’s eccentric, but it’s hard to die in a fire as an able bodied adult when you only have to save yourself. I didn’t see mention of others.Quote:
Originally Posted by sonatine
From what I saw, inhalation or whatever, I just assume it’s a lot easier to nod out on drugs with a candle lit, or pass out drunk with something lit, as opposed to being trapped in a fire so bad that you can’t get out some way. It’s possible, but something strange seems far more probable.
this is exactly my starting point for theories here. not looking to speak ill of the dead here as its pretty much out there that he had some demons but yeah, id be surprised if this was really just a horrible accident.
jace true or super true how many times were you called a semen demon for the amount of penises you were sucking while in san fran in the 90s
cuz i heard it was allllllllllllllotttttt like you invented using pronouns to feel woke
EXCLUSIVE: Listen as firefighters describe Tony Hsieh being 'barricaded' inside shed during house fire before the 'unresponsive' Zappos CEO was pulled out from blaze in new dispatch tape
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ouse-fire.html
https://images2.markets.businessinsi...64?format=jpeg
https://www.reviewjournal.com/wp-con...004.jpg?crop=1
EXCLUSIVE: Colleagues of Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh fear his addiction to nitrous oxide whippets, burning candles and Grey Goose vodka could be behind explosion that led to his death - as it's revealed he was 'barricaded' in a shed when blaze broke out
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ouse-fire.html
Candles and Nitrous Oxide don't mix well.
R.I.P.
https://www4.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/...LegKS8iGNl.jpg
There's an old rule about burns and age. Basically you take the percentage of your body affected by 3rd degree or worse burns, and add that to your age. If you hit 140 or more, you're pretty much dead. Baux score it's called.
Weird flex. Fucky way to go out.
Damn, 140. that’s a little too high for me. I don’t like the idea of surviving some 3rd degree on over 85% of my body accident. I’d like to know how to lower my Baux score down to about 80.Quote:
Originally Posted by wrenchjockey
Daily Mail delivers again. They really give no shits and just print everything.
According to the last article X-Factor posted, Tony was a drug addict and alcoholic, who was obsessed with nitrous oxide and candles.
Some of you old-schoolers might remember when neverwin was going through his whippet phase, and was doing them on radio, making a repeatedly annoying sound. Micon was too high to care. I was super close to hanging up and quitting the show for the night, but he finally stopped after I told them I was seriously about to be done. Good times.
Apparently he also lived in an Airstream trailer, despite having like $840 million.
The current working theory is that he passed out from too much nitrous oxide, then the candles ignited, and by the time they got in there to rescue him, it was too late.
By all accounts he was a nice guy and did a lot for people, but his own personal life was out of control.
Also that Rachel Brown chick who owned the house may have been the one he referred to as his "soul mate". He claimed he was going to visit "family and my soul male" before traveling to Connecticut. Rachael rose from a temporary phone rep to a high level manager at the company, so it would make sense that it was largely due to her relationship with him. She looks like an average woman in her 40s, so props to him for dating a regular gal rather than finding some young hot model type who would be using him for $.
steve-o was also a notorious no2 addict and has been transparent about it and his path to recovery. its definitely a thing.
Yeah I figured it would go this way. It’s why I specifically said candle. Didn’t expect the nitrous angle. Addicts and their candles. If you’re curious if someone is an addict, look for big ass candles and dried wax somewhere. They are so multi use for various addictions.
We used to do whip-it’s in high school on spring break in Panama City. They got you high for a very, very short period and that was that. Can’t imagine getting addicted to such.
Too poor to do proper drugs.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tellafriend
Look at you now
By virtue of this thread I broke the news to her. Her instant reaction was, “I wouldn’t be where I am today without Zappos”.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Druff
He partially subsidized her apartment because it was located close to the old city hall/Zappos HQ. Free medical, free food. It went on and on.
The employees loved Zappos. Hsieh kept Amazon out of their hair. Shit rapidly unwound toward the end of Hsieh’s reign. IT all bailed. They were all extremely loyal to one another in the after life. Great great network of ex colleagues. Zappos was like a college experience and is remembered fondly.
I jumped all over you when you posted this.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Druff
You nailed it.
I’m stunned. Such a waste.
sad to hear a guy like this died...remember reading some of your musings when ur daughter worked there...pretty cool that somebody who was undergrad at harvard "got it"...Quote:
Originally Posted by SanlmarBy virtue of this thread I broke the news to her. Her instant reaction was, “I wouldn’t be where I am today without Zappos”.
He partially subsidized her apartment because it was located close to the old city hall/Zappos HQ. Free medical, free food. It went on and on.
The employees loved Zappos. Hsieh kept Amazon out of their hair. Shit rapidly unwound toward the end of Hsieh’s reign. IT all bailed. They were all extremely loyal to one another in the after life. Great great network of ex colleagues. Zappos was like a college experience and is remembered fondly.
I jumped all over you when you posted this.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Druff
You nailed it.
I’m stunned. Such a waste.
the shit druff talked about, the no bosses thing probably went a little too far, but sounds like the guy's heart was in the right place...
treating employees as human...fucking novel concept...first job outta college my boss was like that...woulda taken a bullet for the guy...stayed outta our hair, let us do what we needed to do how we wanted to do it, always there if we needed help...but in return you couldnt be a fucking moron...i loved it...
Next drama: https://www.tmz.com/2020/12/02/ex-za...o-will-family/
He died without a will. He had no wife or kids.
His $840 million fortune will go to the closest relative(s).
Not sure if his parents are still alive. If they are, they'd get it.
The order (with no will is): spouse, children, parents, siblings, and nieces/nephews, grandchildren, grandparents, aunts/uncles.
I felt bad posting this, because by all accounts, Hsieh was a good guy and meant well.Quote:
Originally Posted by SanlmarBy virtue of this thread I broke the news to her. Her instant reaction was, “I wouldn’t be where I am today without Zappos”.
He partially subsidized her apartment because it was located close to the old city hall/Zappos HQ. Free medical, free food. It went on and on.
The employees loved Zappos. Hsieh kept Amazon out of their hair. Shit rapidly unwound toward the end of Hsieh’s reign. IT all bailed. They were all extremely loyal to one another in the after life. Great great network of ex colleagues. Zappos was like a college experience and is remembered fondly.
I jumped all over you when you posted this.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Druff
You nailed it.
I’m stunned. Such a waste.
Unfortunately, I've seen it all too many times where groundbreaking innovators have major psychological flaws as a side effect. In fact, I think these psychological "flaws" are partially what enable them to be as good as they are at what they do.
What was good about Tony Hsieh was also what was bad about Tony Hsieh.
Fortunately, Tony's flaws appear to have been mostly destructive to himself, and not others. The same can't be said for Steve Jobs.
I do hope he's honored in downtown LV with a street name, or something like that. He deserves it, even if he did die while huffing nitrous in a locked shed.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Druff
and the State will get it if no one else does.
Tony Hsieh’s American Tragedy: The Self-Destructive Last Months Of The Zappos Visionary
https://www.forbes.com/sites/angelau...ppos-visionary
https://thumbor.forbes.com/thumbor/1...%3Ffit%3Dscale