tonight on "nightline," the two steves, as millions mourn his death and celebrate his brilliant life, a new biography cast steve jobs as a man willing to abandon family, brutalize employees and tempt his own death all in the ruthless quest to build perfect products but who is the real steve jobs? being elmo. he is the muppet who masses adore. but there is one thing about this little guy you don't know. and gedi yap, honey.

wives ride and successful teamwork. >> tell me again why this is fun for you? >> is wife carrying the ultimate couples' therapy? good evening, i'm bill weir. more than anyone in modern business, steve jobs knew how to create an emotional bond with his customers so with the masses of apple faithful in mind, they should put a label on his new biography, warning, steve jobs was not a nice guy. this book lays bare his flaws while his family still mourns. and while those who truly knew him may dispute what's inside once you've read "steve jobs" you'll never think of him the same way again. since he died, it's become one

of the most watched speeches of all time, fiercely private man opening his soul to stanford's class of 2005 telling of his adoption, his firing and his cancer scare. >> i had the surgery and thankfully i'm fine now. [ applause ] >> reporter: we know now that was not entirely true. as he told his buying gras father walter isaacson jobs rejected that surgery for almost a year to the dismay of his wife and friends he tried herbs and carrot juice instead and when he finally went under the knife the cancer had spread. >> he said in retrospect he's sorry. he said he regrets waiting so long. a lot of people wait before they have an operation. i just think he has such belief in his power of magical thinking that in this case it failed him. >> reporter: here we have the most vivid example of the steve

jobs reality distortion field, his singular ability to convince himself and everyone around him of the impossible. >> the total would be much more incredible than the sum of his parts. >> steve wozny ago talks about it. they had to do a game in four days and wozniak said impossible and then wozniak did it. he said that's the power of it. he can distort reality and make you do what you didn't think you could do. >> did you ever fall under that power. >> oh, i am sure. >> reporter: they had over 40 conversations, but to balance out his influence isaacson drews from interviews from ex-girlfriend, rivals and some he long disputed. >> hey. >> hey. >> from his earliest days on the public stage this adopted former delinquent, this acid-dropping hippie turned brash entrepreneur began to understand the power of his charisma. >> today for the first time ever, i'd like to let macintosh

speak for itself. >> hello, i am macintosh. it sure is great to get out of that bag. >> reporter: that force field turned him into a mul multimillionaire in his 20s then got him fired from the company he made and helped save apple from ruin. you need that to reinvent the telephone. >> and we are calling it iphone. >> reporter: and the retail store and convince rock stars to sell their songs for 99 cents. ♪ hello hello >> reporter: in fact that worked so well bono called him and offered to do these ads for free. ♪ >> reporter: but accordi ining isaacson there was another steve the public never saw. you talk about his ability to

devastate people with a stare or with a tantrum. you write he could stun an unsuspecting victim with an emotional actual snap perfectly aimed. >> a lot of tech geeks, i do cover them all the time, they're kind of disconnected emotionally. they don't emotionally engage. they have trouble making eye contact. steve was at the other extreme. he knew emotionally every single thing about you. when he was upset with somebody's work, he wouldn't just sort of rant, he would rant in a way that would get right to the core of somebody's emotional weaknesses or vulnerabilities. >> reporter: isaacson cries how many were the people he loved the most. the friend who helped build apple then was frozen out of well-deserved options and a girlfriend who wrote neglect is a form of abuse and the daughter he refused to acknowledge even after a court-ordered dna test proved he was her father. >> he said it's one of the th g

things he regrets in his life. he didn't handle it well when his girlfriend got pregnant and he just didn't want to deal with it. he expressed some regrets then and he's had off again on again but fortunately by his later years on again relationship with his daughter lisa. >> reporter: according to the book jobs proposed to laurene powell and then didn't mention it again for months. after she got pregnant. he remained so detached she moved out but then was there 20 years later when he needed her most. in his quest for perfection he found fault in tim cook. a brilliant executive he told isaacson but he's not really a product person, per se. that is a hell of a comment since cook now has to prove they can create great products without him.

the grand question i came away with after finishing this would apple be apple if he had been a nicer guy. >> that's a big question. part of it was just who he was. why do you sometimes get so intense with people? he said that's who i am. i do think that sometimes his temper, whatever it was probably wasn't necessary, may have even been counterproductive but hard to argue with the results which is the type of team he bill and the loyalty he was able to engender. >> here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels. >> reporter: no better proof than the employees only memorial a few days back. how could a tyrant ever leave this kind of devotion behind. >> among his last advice he had for me and for all of you was to never ask what he would do, just do what's right, he said. >> reporter: just listen to jony

ive. frustration over jobs taking credit for his ideas. not here, not now. >> so his i tri was a victory for beauty, for purity and as he would say for giving a damn. >> here's for giving a damn. walter isaacson's book "steve jobs" is out right now. just ahead one of the world's biggest celebrities and we have his biggest secret. before i started taking abilify, i was taking an antidepressant alone. most of the time i could pull myself together and face the day. but other days, i still struggled with my depression. i was coping, but sometimes it really weighed me down. i'd been feeling stuck for a long time. i just couldn't shake my depression. so i talked to my doctor, and he added abilify to my antidepressant. he said it could help with my depression, and that some people had symptom improvement as early as 1 to 2 weeks.

i'm glad i talked to him. i wish i'd done it sooner. now i feel more in control of my depression. [ male announcer ] abilify is not for everyone. call your doctor if your depression worsens or you have unusual changes in behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. elderly dementia patients taking abilify have an increased risk of death or stroke. call your doctor if you have high fever, stiff muscles, and confusion to address a possible life-threatening condition. or if you have uncontrollable muscle movements, as these could become permanent. high blood sugar has been reported with abilify and medicines like it. in some cases, extreme high blood sugar can lead to coma or death. other risks include decreases in white blood cells, which can be serious, dizziness upon standing, seizures, trouble swallowing, and impaired judgment or motor skills. my depression used to be more of a burden. then my doctor added abilify to my antidepressant. now i feel better. [ male announcer ] if you're still struggling with depression, talk to your doctor to see if the option of adding abilify is right for you. and be sure to ask about the free trial offer.

how you doing? my name is steve. he has helped millions of toddlers learn the alphabet, their shape, color, about sharing, making friend, singing song, even about potty training but no toddler and few parents could likely tell you his name.

that's because his talents find expression through an alter ego called elmo and on the off chance there are any young elmo fans in the room, now would be a good time to go brush teeth. here's abc's juju chang. >> reporter: it's a nondescript bag but inside is a creature with the power to mesmerize millions of children the world over. just a yard or so of furry fabric, a little foam and lots of pda. >> a hug. hello. >> reporter: how come you like to hug people all the time. >> come here. >> reporter: oh, thank you, elmo. >> isn't that so nice. >> reporter: it does feel nice. >> that's why elmo likes to hug. >> elmo wrote his own song. >> what's it called? >> "elmo's song." >> reporter: his shtick, superb timing and wide range of expresses. how about a happy face?

how about a mad face? >> reporter: but we confronted him about something shocking you might not know about elmo. who is kevin clash? >> who. >> reporter: kevin clash? >> oh, he's somebody i miss. we don't talk about him. >> reporter: you don't. how come? >> because he's not supposed to be seen. >> reporter: elmo is not who he appears to be. does it freak out children when they discover elmo is a middle-aged black man. >> reporter: elmo is a puppet and this is master puppeteer kevin clash. you are elmo but you can't be elmo all the time. >> i can't walk around saying, good morning. >> reporter: are you a big kid at heart? >> yeah, yeah, i have a peter pan syndrome. >> reporter: kevin's journey from working class baltimore to international stardom is

chronicled in "being elmo" delving with his earlier obsession with puppets. you sewed 80 puppets. >> my mom taught me at age 9 or 10. >> reporter: what did kids tease you about. >> you play with dolls. i did my first local television show and everybody thought, wow, that's cool. >> reporter: then you became most likely to become a millionaire. >> yes, of course. >> reporter: did you become a millionaire. >> yes. >> reporter: not bad for a kid who played with dolls. >> hello. >> reporter: he was almost tossed aside. >> that's the first drawings designs of elmo. >> reporter: much wider. >> much wider and very small body but that's the first design of him. >> reporter: elmo voiced by another puppeteer used to sound quite different. >> elmo squeezed balloon too hard. >> i thought i was probably going to be let go. >> reporter: you did not.

>> oh, yeah. >> reporter: kevin came up with a new voice and saved elmo. and elmo made kevin a star. are you ticklish. >> no, no, stop. >> reporter: seriously. >> yeah, elmo. >> reporter: it's the laugh that launched a toy phenomenon. ♪ something something nice >> reporter: marie from "sesame street" has been on for over 40 years. what is it people connect with. >> he is absolutely positive. things cannot go wrong. elmo is going to make things well. >> reporter: at loneonly 18 inc he stands tall in the pantheon of jim henson's muppet creations. this one is for me. >> noses, mustaches. >> hello, how are you. >> reporter: kevin maintains the

henson legacy. that's what's inside of elmo's arms. beads. perhaps the only regret for a man who entertained the world's children is that his own child after his divorce felt neglected. she actually came to you and said, dad, you need to pay attention to me. >> yeah, a child can do that to new a second. and she did and we're the better for it. >> reporter: yet the hours are still belong at public events kevin makes sure elmo greets nearly each and every child. >> knock, knock. >> who's there. >> kangaroo. >> kangaroo here. >> kangaroo -- peanut butter and jelly sandwich. >> elmo has no idea what she just said but elmo loves her. >> reporter: elmo loves everyone which is why perhaps everyone loves elmo. for "nightline" i'm juju chang in new york. >> elmo and kevin but you won't see him will be on "good morning

america" tomorrow. something to look forward to. our thanks to juju and coming up next, a sporting event to bring couples closer. really closer. hi. you know, i can save you 15% today if you open up a charge card account with us. [ male announcer ] identity thieves never stop coming up with ways to steal from you. they can open up an account in your name and go on a serious spending spree. do you have cufflinks? mm-hmm. gold ones?

[ male announcer ] not on our watch. we're lifelock. go to lifelock.com and learn how our patented billion point database can help protect you. call 1-800-lifelock today. lifelock. relentlessly protecting your identity.

what's your favorite couples activity, doubles tennis, scrabble or maybe you're just looking for that right pastime to enjoy together, something that combines the thrills of wife-induced hernias and mutual humiliation. here's abc's john berman for the question and "the sign of the times." >> reporter: it's one part competition, one part couple

therapy. one part fitness, one part funny. it's one part race and one part racy. what are you looking at exactly? >> his butt. which i mean we're married so i don't mind. it's one of the perks of the job. >> three, two, one, go. >> reporter: yet this is the north american wife carrying championships. the goal, to carry your wife faster than anyone else, the location, the scenic sunday river ski resort in maine and the entry, 2009 champions, dave and lacey castro, 38 and 29 years old combined weight, 275 pounds. 2010 champs, rocco andreozzi and kim wasco, combined weight, 333 pounds. the castros take this very seriously ever since lacey first read about the sport in a magazine and comes to you and

says, honey, i have an idea. let's try wife carrying and you say? >> i say, yeah, let's go for it. >> reporter: they practiced. they read bit, they live it. what does wife carrying do for your marriage. >> it really brings us together. we come home or i come home and i'm excited to talk about it. >> reporter: rocco and kim take a different approach. >> we haven't done it since last year. >> reporter: you haven't practiced at all. >> no, well, we went behind the dumpster when we showed up at 9:00 and practiced for a few minutes. the porter: they're not competition doesn't make that a requirement. both teams almost all competitors utilize what's known as the estonian method for carrying. it looks something like this with the wife's legs around the husband's head. tell me why this is begun for you. >> yeah, it's a really good question right now. it's fun.

i don't know. >> reporter: why is it called the estonian method? it has to do with the legend of the sport. >> in folklore estonians used to come to the finnish villages and steal wives and run as fast as they could back to estonia. >> reporter: and you're celebrating that tradition now. lacey was good enough to let me try it out. it's not easy. how is it for you? >> it's quite comfortable. >> reporter: how did i compare to your husband? >> no comment. >> reporter: but it's time for the pros. these teams were part of 50 who sought the title. couple after couple racing up the hill through the water, over the sand mound, agony and ecstasy. at the end of the first round, there were two couples left. our couples, a match between the 2009 and 2010 champs. on the line, pride, power and an entry into the world's wife

carrying championship in finland. >> three, two, one, go. >> reporter: and they're off. rocco and kim jump out to an early lead. rocco is so fast, over the logs, through the water, dave and lacey come close but just before the finish line, ooh. the winners and returning champions, rocco and kim. still unmarried but victorious. it might just work for you. >> i think it's working. >> it's working. >> reporter: and the runners-up. was it all worth it? >> absolutely. >> i'd do it again if i had to. >> yeah. >> yeah. >> reporter: remember, there are no losers in wife carrying as long as you stick to the estonian method. i'm john berman at sunday river in maine. >> not being married seems like cheating. i can't believe they permit that. thank you for watching abc news. check in on "good morning america" and leave you amazi