Professor Elam

The definition of a  ‘blue chip’ stock is one that endures by consistently making money and or paying dividends for years on end.  Indeed,one of the vivid impressions of my life is how even the most durable institutions can be gone in the blink of an eye.  Gulf Oil was founded in 1901, Dad worked for them for over twenty years, but in a Boone Pickens challenged buy out, Gulf, then Texaco and now Unocal are all eaten by Chevron.

Which brings us to the story of the James bond franchise.  The story is well detailed on the front page of the weekend journal.  The daughter of Cubby Broccoli, Barbara and her half brother Michael, havev re done the franchise with the latest $105 M Casino Royale epic. No less than Queen Elizabeth II herself is seen greeting the producers at the film premier.  It is an interesting story worth reading of how they have kept the franchise alive with a sense of what is Bond and what is not. Frankly I would argue that they lost their way in the last of the Connery films and wandered aimlessly with Roger Moore but things are finally back on track with a new gritty Bond sans many of the high tech toys. 

You can learn about the creator of the name is Bond, James Bond.  Jack Kennedy listed From Russia with Love as one of his ten favorite books.  Casino Royale was actually published in 1952.  Flemins grew famous by introducing a sleepy world to now famous glittering destinations a decade before jet airline transportations made such destinations easily accessible.  He would take a month off each year, retreat to Jamacia, and write another book.  Live hard die young, Fleming was only 56 when he died in 1964.  My point however is that great fiction is just that, the image of the spy who could successfully play the tables at Monaco in 1954 still fascinates. For a look at what Monaco really was at that time, get the DVD for
To Catch a Theif .  Like Fleming, Alfred Hitchcock featured famous places in his movies.  This was shot on  location in Monaco co starring soon to be Princess of Monaco, Grace Kelly.

While all of this may make you yawn, trust me thirty years from now, you will appreciate someone who can hold an organization together decade after decade.  This will be particularly true should you lose your job in one these corporate disappearance games. The thing to get here is, what endures and what disappears.