In his private life, Jobs was a married man with four children. In 1991, he married, Laurene, then an investment banker. Isaacson says Jobs talked to him about meeting and marrying Laurene: “They went out off and on for a year. As usual, any relationship with Jobs can be somewhat tumultuous. But he said to me, ‘It was tough, but you eventually realize you’ve met the person, you know, who you’re right to live with.’ ”
Laurene and Steve had three children: Reed, Eve, and Erin. Jobs’ eldest child, Lisa, was born in 1978 to Jobs and then-girlfriend Chrisann Brennan. For many years Jobs refused to acknowledge Lisa as his child, but by the time she was in high school, Lisa was living with Steve and Laurene.
As Jobs got sicker, his children wanted time with Isaacson to speak about their father. Isaacson recalls talking with Jobs’ son: “Reed just adores his father. When I was first working on the book, he came to see me and said, ‘Let’s take a walk.’ Very much like his father would have done. And he says, ‘I know you’re gonna hear a lot of stories of my dad being tough and brutal to people. But I want you to know that he really cares about the products and he wasn’t just out to make money or to be a great businessman.’ ”
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