 Remembering Louis Rukeyser, Hon '86
by John Sakowicz, A&S '77, '79 (MA)
May 3 , 2006
Longtime TV host Louis Rukeyser died Tuesday at his home in Greenwich, Connecticut at age 73. A best-selling author, columnist and lecturer, Rukeyser was presented the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters by Johns Hopkins University in 1986. Alumnus John Sakowicz remembers this pioneer in financial broadcasting — and remembers him well.
My name is John Sakowicz. In 1978-79, I was a graduate student at the Johns Hopkins University. I was a graduate student in the Department of Writing Seminars. And I fancied myself as a poet. I was a bad one. To support my pregnant wife and myself, I worked as a waiter at the Country Fare Inn in Owings Mill, Maryland.
And I was Louis Rukeyser's regular waiter.
After he finished his show, Wall $treet Week, which was produced out of the broadcast studio of the PBS affiliate in Owings Mills, Maryland, Louis Rukeyser usually brought his regular panelists and his guest of the week to the Country Fare Inn for dinner.
It was his treat.
What I remember about Louis Rukeyser and the dinners he hosted at the Country Fare Inn is that they were always raucous affairs. There was always a lot of loud laughter and friendly arguments about the market and even horseplay. They were a noisy bunch. And they drank. And Louis Rukeyser was always at the center of all the fun. It was like he was holding court, exactly like he did on his show.
For that reason, the owner of the Country Fare Inn, Richard Perone, usually seated Louis Rukeyser's party in the basement of the restaurant. The basement was like an after-hours lounge. It was also our wine cellar. Here, in the basement, Louis Rukeyser's parties wouldn't bother any of the other diners who were eating upstairs.
Frankly, I think the other diners envied all the fun he was having.
Years later, I had my own career on Wall Street. I worked on the floor of the NY Merc and the COMEX for Merill Lynch. I worked on the floor of the NYSE for Spear Leeds Kellogg. And I eventually became the national sales manager at Dean Witter for two important product groups, precious metals and managed futures. And later, I started a hedge fund, Battle Mountain Research Group, in Grand Cayman with some buddies from Wall Street.
In the late 1980's, I called Louis Rukeyser on a whim. I wanted to see if he remembered me, and, if he did, I wanted to catch up with him. I had enjoyed some limited success on Wall Street, and I wanted to tell him that I really got my start in the financial services industry by being his waiter.
That sounds strange. But it's true.
I had learned so much from Louis Rukeyser and his guests by just being a "fly on the wall" in the basement of the Country Fare Inn. Occasionally, Louis Rukeyser would even invite me to sit at his table and join the conversation. But I never did. I was afraid that if my boss saw me, I would get fired. And I couldn't afford to get fired.
Well, to my great surprise, Louis Rukeyser not only remembered me, he asked if he could help me in any way. I said sure. I said, "Help me in any way you can think of."
He eventually got me a few spots as a talking head on FNN, the old Financial News Network and the predecessor to so many of today's investment programs on cable TV.
We fell out of touch again after that. Frankly, I didn't want to bother him.
But I was mistaken. It would have been no bother. Louis Rukeyser had as big and generous spirit as any man I have even known on Wall Street.
And that's a rare quality in our industry. Wall Street is better known for greed and all that greed entails -- huge egos, compulsive personalities, obsession with short-term earnings, grossly overpaid management, resistance and opposition to regulators, ethical lapses, conflicts of interest, little real accountability that isn't mandated, little real transparency that isn't mandated, bad memories, obstruction of justice, destruction of evidence, disappearing e-mails, intimidation of clients, arbitrary firings in bull markets, massive layoffs in bear markets, little employer-employee loyalty, gender and racial discrimination, merger mania, acquisition binges and, sadly, scandal, fraud, and even serious crime.
Greed — it's a bitch.
I will always remember Louis Rukeyser as the opposite of greed.
Ironically, I will always remember Louis Rukeyser as the opposite of Wall Street.
And I will always remember him as a big tipper.
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