On a summer night in 2015, Tom Gelehrter was standing by himself in the driveway of Jeff Berding’s Mount Lookout home, waiting.



It had been just a few weeks since Gelehrter quit his job at the University of Cincinnati as the athletic department’s director of new media to start his own production company, 4th Floor Creative. Gelehrter had a wife and two young kids at home but was ready for a new challenge. He was confident he could create something new, become his own boss and still make things work for him and his family.



Lingering outside an empty house as the daylight slowly dissolved, one couldn’t blame Gelehrter if he were secretly questioning that decision.



Berding came racing home, finally, about 7:30 p.m., after putting in a full day at his job as director of sales and public affairs for the Cincinnati Bengals, apologizing profusely for making Gelehrter wait. Both men were following up on leads. Shortly after leaving his previous...