Company Town : Sony’s ‘Invisible Man’ Shows His Face : Studios: Alan J. Levine steps into the limelight, prompting speculation he may seek to succeed Guber as chairman.

At Sony Pictures Entertainment, Hollywood’s most colorful and contentious studio, Alan J. Levine enjoys a remarkable degree of anonymity.

The Sony president and chief operating officer has functioned so quietly during his five-year stint that colleagues privately refer to him as “the invisible man.” And even a close friend confesses, “I’m sorry, but I’m not really sure what he does.”

That’s shielded Levine from much of the criticism directed at Sony over the years for its financial performance and propensity for treating senior managers like temps. But it’s also left him with an identity crisis, which may explain why the 47-year-old executive is finally emerging from his silky cocoon inside Sony’s famous Thalberg building to assume a higher profile.

Levine recently joined colleagues in promoting to state lawmakers a report on Hollywood’s contribution to the Southern California economy. He’s also stepped out in the media to defend Sony’s image and his own achievements--which has led to speculation that he’s trying to better position himself to eventually succeed Sony Pictures Chairman Peter Guber.

When that question is raised, Levine lives up to his reputation for being personally cautious and conservative. He sidesteps any mention of his goals--saying “the COO’s role is to be the center of gravity . . . and a mediator”--but he is quick to challenge criticism of Sony.

“I think we’ve done a very good job of building a strong company,” he said. “The headlines always have to do with the movies, but the scope of this business is much bigger than that.”

As evidence, Levine points to Sony’s growing theatrical exhibition division and its new-media operations, the latter of which has recently started drawing spillover business from George Lucas’ Industrial Light & Magic. Moreover, he says, Sony has a thriving video unit and potentially lucrative partnerships in the Latin American-based HBO Ole and Viva, a German music channel.

Levine also contends that critics tend to ignore Sony’s strong position in TV. With hits such as “Mad About You” and “Married . . . With Children,” Columbia TriStar Television had operating profit of about $100 million in the last fiscal year ended in March, according to sources. The group has also placed nine shows on the upcoming fall network schedule.

Levine says technology will create even more opportunity for a company that, for now, certainly isn’t setting the world on fire financially. Sources have said the studio is a major money-loser for Sony Corp. The Tokyo-based conglomerate reported that Sony Pictures suffered a 7% drop in revenue, to $3.2 billion for the latest fiscal year, which was attributed to movie losses and a lull in TV revenue. Overall pretax entertainment earnings, which include independently run Sony Music, fell to $646 million from $904 million.

As the studio searches for its bearings, sources say Levine’s most important contribution may be his role as a stabilizing presence. They also point out that he enjoys a strong working partnership with the flashy, hyperactive Guber--the polar opposite stylistically of Levine, who favors conservative business suits and is known for his slavish devotion to golf. While Levine concentrates on pure business issues, Guber focuses largely on the creative side.

“Alan has done a real good job of holding things together there through some real tough times,” said one supporter. “And in chaos, there’s often opportunity. We’ll see where he lands, but for now he’s a real strong No. 2 guy.”

Adds Guber with his characteristic flair, “Sometimes lightning only hits the lightning rod . . . but that doesn’t mean (that Levine) is less intrinsic to the operation.”

Levine joined the studio shortly after Sony Corp. purchased it for roughly $6 billion, counting debt, in 1989. A former entertainment lawyer at Armstrong, Hirsch & Levine--where he was mentored by Hollywood power attorney Barry Hirsch--Levine was given the Sony front-office job after negotiating for then-clients Guber and Jon Peters to become co-chairmen.

In the years that followed, the three executives put the once-ailing studio back on the map by expanding its management ranks, pumping untold millions into high-priced talent deals and even embarking on a massive renovation of the old Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer lot they took over.

But Sony’s hopes of duplicating the Warner Bros. model of management stability and steady growth were foiled by unrelenting executive turmoil--including the messy and expensive departures of Peters, Columbia Pictures Chairman Frank Price, TriStar Pictures Chairman Mike Medavoy and, most recently, motion picture group President Jonathan Dolgen.

In most of those cases, sources say, Levine played the hatchet man, which opponents offer up as further proof of his deceptively strong role at Sony. Levine’s reputation as a tough guy (which he calls “one-dimensional”) was sealed when he pushed Peters out of the executive suite three years ago, following repeated clashes between the volatile producer and Sony Corp. executives. “This guy did Jon, and Jon wasn’t easy to do,” says one Hollywood colleague.

Levine also ran Sony’s in-house investigation when company executives were linked to alleged Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss last year in reports never substantiated. And it was Levine who led Sony’s unsuccessful efforts to acquire hockey’s Los Angeles Kings.

Critics say he blew the deal that would have put Sony into the sports business by playing hardball with former Kings owner Bruce McNall. Others say Sony walked away from the deal when McNall’s financial problems surfaced.

In either case, Levine reportedly amassed even more power last spring after Dolgen left to run Paramount Pictures and other entertainment operations for Viacom Inc. Not everyone was pleased. He has been accused of contributing to Sony’s diminished box office presence by being too tightfisted with development and production money.

“He’s basically a bean counter,” said one source. “And that slows the process down.”

But Guber says Levine possesses solid management skills, calling him “a knowledgeable business person and one who has the faith and confidence of the employees of the company.”

Levine has other supporters outside the company. Castle Rock Entertainment Chairman Alan Horn, whose sat across the table from Levine when Sony’s stake in Castle Rock was bought out by Ted Turner, says, “I really feel that Alan Levine is a fellow who understands our business.” And former TriStar Chairman Medavoy calls him “a bright, very quick study.”

Levine himself, whose contract runs through 1998, says most if not all of the old raps against Sony will fade as it moves into the future. He insists the company still has the strong support of its corporate parent and that it is fully financed for the future, even if no one takes it up on its well-publicized effort to sell a 25% stake in the operation.

“There is no question in our minds that our plan is on track, and that does not include any type of issue regarding change of control or ownership,” he said. “We have always had all the money and support we needed.”