We see him labor over new products, shrewdly running his finances, adding experts, and expanding his capital plant with steady, persistent control. We see Kodak people becoming something like a family for him. They often worked overtime, faithful to the employer who often stayed at State Street until three in the morning. To others, of course, he seemed aloof, partly because his inner intensity left him oblivious to casual greetings and small talk. It's an important point.
Reticence throws up walls.
Eastman remained a private man. No one was permitted to peer for long into his heart or mind. People so well known, yet so private, tend to become mythologized through trivia and gossip. While there was never much gossip about George Eastman, his image has flattened into a a sketchy portrait of an eccentric genius fashioned by a collage of anecdotes. Brayer's rigorously researched book corrects that impression.