A podcast from the desk of Joshua Snyder
Tombstones
One deal at a time. How it was built, and whether it worked.
Every other week, a dealmaker takes apart one transaction: why it happened, how it came together, who held the leverage, and whether it worked. The jargon gets defined as it comes up, and every episode ends with one lesson you can use on your next deal.
The first three episodes arrive November 17 on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and everywhere else you listen.
This announcement appears as a matter of record only.
TOMBSTONES
An every-other-week podcast on deals,
how they were built, and what they teach
will be launched by
Joshua Snyder
November 17, 2026
Launching November 17
The first three deals
Episode 1 · M&A · 2025–26
Paramount / Warner Bros. Discovery: the $40 billion signature
Netflix had a signed deal. Then Paramount went hostile, and Larry Ellison put his name on $40.4 billion.
Nov 17, 2026 · 21 min
Episode 2 · M&A · 2009
Disney / Marvel: buying an IP library with holes in it
Spider-Man was at Sony and the theme parks were at Universal. Disney paid $4 billion anyway.
Nov 17, 2026
Episode 3 · M&A · 2012
Facebook / Instagram: the billion-dollar weekend
A deal for a company with no revenue, negotiated in days. Prophecy, or a smart defensive buy?
Nov 17, 2026
How every episode works
Five parts, about 25 minutes
Deal terms like reverse termination fee, stalking horse and second-lien get a plain-English definition the first time they come up.
- 01 The tombstone The deal on one card: who, what, how much, and how it was paid.
- 02 The why Why each side did it, and the theories when the reason isn't obvious.
- 03 How it came together The bids, the financing, and the one term that decided it.
- 04 The verdict Was it a good deal? Judged against the numbers, with a grade for each side.
- 05 The Lucite The deal toy for the MVP, and one takeaway to use on your next deal.
Your host
Joshua Snyder
Investor. Operator. Dealmaker. Reader.
Joshua is a serial SPAC sponsor and capital markets professional. He is Managing Director of Squares Capital and founder of Radical Capital Partners, and he writes about buying, building and financing businesses in Making M&A Work.
He started Tombstones to do on air what he does at the table: take a deal apart and find the part that teaches you something.