The Millionaire

One of the favorite stories I love to retell is the one Ralph Kiner, the Hall-of-Fame Pittsburgh Pirate and longtime Met broadcaster told--and might even still tell--about Stan-"The-Man"- Musial, the Hall-of-Fame St. Louis Cardinal slugger, and the financial advice Stan had for his fellow players.

Stan, being a relatively well-paid legend, liked to tell the other players that he knew how to make a million dollars and was willing to share the secret. In Stan's era, a $1 million was nothing to sneeze at, and along with owning a convertible and pulling out of your house's circular driveway while entertaining a Marilyn Monroe-type blonde in the passenger seat, was all part of the American dream--at least the male American dream.

Once Stan figured he had as many players listening to him as he was going to get, he revealed his secret formula.  He told them: "Fellas, the best way to make a million dollars is to first start with $2 million dollars, then open a restaurant." He had their attention.

Obviously, there are many permutations that can be spun from this story and its recognition of the difficulty in holding onto money in the face of so many other financial advisers.

One of the best ones I heard since that goes along the same lines of the slippery slope, is the one I just read in a story about Marty Reisman, an 82 year-old former champion ping-pong player (table tennis) and hustler who remarked he had been a millionaire three times in the past, and on three occasions became a former millionaire, the most recent occasion being now.

What a club.

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