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Founders: #65 Kirk Kerkorian: Penniless Dropout became the Greatest Deal Maker in Capitalist History

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What I learned from reading The Gambler: How Penniless Dropout Kirk Kerkorian Became the Greatest Deal Maker in Capitalist History by William C. Rempel. ---- [0:16] He was a humble man privately proud of his accomplishments, a business genius who ignored his MBA advisers, a daring aviator and movie mogul, a gambler at the casino and on Wall Street who played the odds in both houses with uncanny skill. [4:34] Kirk believed there was no point in placing small bets. [16:48] He was a day laborer at MGA studios. He made $2.60 a day. Thirty years later he owned MGM and his investment was returning $260,000 a day. [21:27] His low tolerance for mistakes and recklessness made him a demanding instructor. He often repeated the mantra: There are old pilots and there are bold pilots—but there are no old, bold pilots. [46:54] He still relished big risks. And he subscribed to the logic of his friend and casino owner Wilbur Clark of the Desert Inn: “The smaller your bet, the more you lose when you win.” Besides, what’s the point—where’s the thrill—winning a small wager? Betting the limit became Kirk’s trademark. [53:26] Kirk was now sitting on stock worth more than $66 million, a vast fortune by a

[00:00:00] There is an inspiring life story in the 98 years that belonged to Kirk Kerkorian, a boy who ran barefoot in the rich dirt of California's San Joaquin Valley before family financial chaos made him a city boy fighting for his place on the dirty sidewalks of Los Angeles. He was a tough guy who wept at funerals, a humble man privately proud of his accomplishments, a business genius who ignored his MBA advisors, a daring aviator and a movie mogul, a gambler at the casinos and on Wall Street who played the odds [00:00:35] in both houses with uncanny skill. That is an excerpt from the…

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