We lost one of the greats this week: Art Cashin passed away Sunday at the age of 83.
CNBC’s Bob Pisani did a wonderful remembrance of Art: “In the intensely competitive and often vicious world of stock market commentary, Cashin was that rarest of creatures: a man respected by all, bulls and bears, liberals and conservatives alike.”
It made me want to share a few of my favorite Art Cashin stories…
I first met Art when I was a newbie strategist in the 2000s. He had been on the NYSE floor for longer than I had been alive. He knew things, had seen things, and, during his tenure, was able to apply those experiences to markets. His insights were unique, and I always received them with gratitude. He was always very generous with me, allowing many of his unique works to be republished on this blog (despite the usual concerns from compliance).
My buddy Mark Lehman had been at UBS in Switzerland for nearly his entire career. He had been part of the UBS Wednesday calls with Art since 1997 (when he transferred to the NY office, he was still technically a Geneva employee.) Mark introduced me to Art sometime in the mid-2000s, pre-GFC. He recalls, “There always was a Dewar’s and ice ready for when Arthur arrived at Bobby Vans.”
At the time, I had been writing about subprime mortgages, derivatives, and other elements of risk that had been widely ignored by The Street. Art wanted his crew to at least consider these risks, which so many were overlooking. He invited me to present to that audience on his morning call to the firm—around 2008(?). The fact that Cashin had brought me on gave me needed credibility, and a very respectful audience peppered me with questions.
I would occasionally sneak down to the Bobby Vans across from the NYSE after the close, where the FOF crew – Friends of Fermentation – perfected the art of marinating ice cubes. Any chance you could get to spend time with him was always well spent.
He had me back to UBS discuss Bailout Nation (was it in ‘09 or ‘10?). He generously introduced me to that crew, reminding them of my prior visit. A few years later, he was the keynote Fireside chat at the Big Picture conference.
Cashin announced he would be speaking at the TBP conference with his usual understated humility: “He invited me to end the conference with a somewhat informal fireside chat—just a few anecdotes from 50 years in the game. I hope they frisk the audience for spoiled fruit or hard rolls. It should be fun—for me at least.”
Never one to stand between a crowd and Happy Hour, he began the final session of the day by saying, “The New York State Liquor Authority and the New York Bartenders Association have asked me to be brief.”
A few other stories stand out from that event:
Art the Musician: “It was the beginning of the age of folk music, I figure if I’m going to make $39 a week [at the NYSE] I can do better than this… so I put together a group. I talked my way into an audition… with the Chairman of ABC/Paramount Records. We performed some songs and the execs said that if the guy they had just seen didn’t work out, they would sign us to a record deal. The guy they had just seen, however, was Ray Charles. So I went back to Wall Street,” Cashin told the laughing crowd.
Price discovery: Louis Tiffany knew JP Morgan loved diamond stick pens. He delivered one to JPM with a note: “The pen is $5,000. If you choose to accept it, you can send your man over to my office with the $5,000; if you choose not to, you can send your man over with the pen.”
The next day, JPM’s man went to Tiffany with a note and the pen box. The note said, “$5,000 was too much; enclosed is a check for $4,000.” JPM’s note said that if Tiffany didn’t want the deal, he could send back the $4,000 check and keep the pen.
Tiffany knew he had the right price for the pen, so he decided to send the check back. When he opened the pen box, though, he didn’t find the pen! Instead, there was a check for $5,000 with a note from JPM: “Just checking the price.”
End of the World: “Most of what I learned came from sitting in saloons that had encyclopedias behind the bar – usually to settle bets. The things I learned in the saloons were not the same things you learn in places like the Sloan School of Management – usually they were better.
For example, there was the lesson I learned during the Cuban Missile Crisis. At the time I was studying with “Professor Jack” under a Moosehead, in a saloon called “Eberlin’s” down the block from the exchange. The tuition was paid in scotch “old fashions.” Classes lasted until either you ran out of money to buy drinks or Jack ran out of the ability to stand. Jack was actually a 62 year-old trader in silver stocks but he had more in his head than is in most university libraries.
Anyway, it was the Cuban Missile Crisis and there were rumors that Russia had launched rockets and the Dow took a dive near the bell. I cleaned up my desk and raced to the Moosehead, as animated as only an 18 year-old can be. Jack was already there and as I burst through the door, I shouted: “Jack! Jack, there was a strong rumor that the missiles were flying and I tried to sell the market but failed.”
Jack said “Calm down kid! First buy me a drink and then sit down and listen to me.” I ordered the drink and meekly sat down.
Jack said – “Look kid, if you hear the missiles are flying, you buy them. You don’t sell them.”
“You buy them?” I said, somewhat puzzled.
“Sure you buy them!” said Jack. “Cause if you’re wrong, the trade will never clear. We’ll all be dead.”
That’s a lesson you won’t learn in the Wharton School.”
Art was one of a kind. He will be deeply missed.
Sources:
Art Cashin, New York Stock Exchange fixture for decades, dies at age 83
Bob Pisani
CNBC, Dec 2 2024
Cashin on the Cuban Missile Crisis / North Korea (August 14, 2017)
The World Is Ending? Invest as If It Won’t.
Bloomberg, October 9, 2015
Art Cashin’s Tis the day before New Year’s (December 31, 2014)
Art Cashin Just Gave A Hilarious Wall Street History Lesson Going Back To The 1950s
by Linette Lopez
Business Inside, Oct 8, 2013
TBP 2013: Fireside Chat with Trading Legend Art Cashin (October 3, 2013)
Art Cashin: Black Monday, An Unforgettable Single Day (October 19, 2012)
