"David Ellison's ascent to the summit of Hollywood power traces an unconventional flight path. At 13, the Oracle founder's son received an extraordinary gift from his father: his own airplane. By 17, he was performing aerial acrobatics in professional airshows. Two decades later, he has traded the cockpit for the boardroom, steering his company through a $8 billion merger that placed him atop Paramount, with hopes of adding Warner Bros. to his trophy case."
"After watching Top Gun as a child, David Ellison became fixated on flying. His billionaire father, Larry Ellison, purchased a plane for him at age 13, and they took lessons together. By 16, he was flying a high-performance German aerobatic aircraft capable of rolling 360 degrees in under a second. Wayne Handley, a pilot who worked with the family, told Variety that to "pry this airplane out of David's hands, Larry bought him a top-of-the-line aerobatic airplane out of Germany, the Extra 300.""
David Ellison developed an intense aviation obsession after watching Top Gun and began flying lessons with his father, Larry Ellison, who bought him an airplane at 13. He soloed at 16 and flew a high-performance German aerobatic aircraft capable of extreme maneuvers, then began competing in airshows at 17 and joined the Stars of Tomorrow at 20. He studied film at USC, appeared in Flyboys, and then left acting and competitive flying to focus on production. He founded Skydance Media in 2006 with financial backing from his billionaire father and steered the company through an $8 billion merger that placed him atop Paramount, with ambitions to add Warner Bros.
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