Kimberly White / REUTERS
Indeed, the rise, fall, and return of Steve Jobs is a big part of the Apple founder's legend.
Ousted from Apple after a failed boardroom coup, Jobs formed his own startup. That startup was eventually purchased by a desperate Apple, which was in dire need of product leadership at the time. Not long after, Jobs would become interim CEO, then permanent CEO, and Apple would go from tech industry punchline to the most valuable company in the world.
The reality, however, is a little messier than that. Here's the story of why Apple fired Jobs, and how he came back to save the company from itself.