Praise for The Davis Dynasty

"Equally relevant to the uninitiated and to those of us who have many years’ experience with the Davis dynasty, Rothchild’s book takes a close look at the family’s remarkable success and endurance. I know that many will find it interesting to learn how, even today, Davis endeavors remain focused on the long view, guided by the strong investment philosophy and business principles that Shelby himself lived by in one of the most important periods in commercial history."

–M. R. Greenberg, Chairman and CEO, American International Group, Inc.

"This is really two books in one. It is the story of a rarity in the investment business: a family whose money management skills have evolved and been passed on from the patriarch to two succeeding generations. It is also a how-to book on commonsense investing. As the dot-com phase passes into history, this book provides some useful lessons on how fortunes are built and then used for constructive purpose."

–Byron R. Wien, Managing Director, Morgan Stanley

"This is an unusual biography, a rare gem that captures the history of one of Wall Street’s greatest families. The Davis Dynasty offers unparalleled insight into the Davis family investment philosophy."

–Barton M. Biggs, Chairman, Morgan Stanley Asset Management, Morgan Stanley

"When John Rothchild combines history and biography with investing in one package, history illuminates the biography and investing, biography illuminates the history and investing, and investing illuminates the history and biography. This is a sparkling book on each level, but even more so as an adroitly mixed cocktail of all three."

–Peter L. Bernstein, author of The Power of Gold: The History of an Obsession and Against the Gods: The Remarkable Story of Risk

The story of the Davis dynasty is, in many ways, the story of Wall Street over the last half century. The Davis Dynasty reveals this successful family, their investment discipline, and Wall Street within a historical and literary narrative that is informative, entertaining, and engaging. Take a once-in-a-lifetime journey through Wall Street with one of the most successful investing families in America and watch how a dynasty was built.

John Rothchild tells the story of three generations of the legendary Davis family, who rank among the most successful investors in the history of Wall Street. He chronicles the financial escapades of this eccentric, headstrong clan, revealing the strategies behind their success.

A half-century of Wall Street history as seen through the lives of its most illustrious family

This compelling new narrative from bestselling author John Rothchild tells the story of three generations of the legendary Davis family, who rank among the most successful investors in the history of the Street. With a novelist's wit and eye for telling detail, Rothchild chronicles the financial escapades of this eccentric, pioneering clan, providing a vivid portrait of fifty years of Wall Street history along the way. Rothchild shadows the Davis family's holdings through two lengthy bull markets, two savage and seven mild bear markets, one crash, and twenty-five corrections and, in the process, reveals the strategies behind the family's uncanny ability to consistently beat the markets.

The Davis Dynasty begins in 1947, the year Shelby Davis quit his job as a state bureaucrat and, armed with $50,000 of his wife's money, took the plunge into stock investing. By the time he died in 1994, he had multiplied his wife's original stake 8,000 times! The story continues with his son, Shelby, who established one of the most successful funds of the past thirty years. The final characters in this enthralling family saga are grandsons Chris and Andrew. Both surrendered to the Davis family passion for investing and both went on to earn reputations as investment luminaries in their own right.

John Rothchild (Miami Beach, FL) co-wrote the blockbusters One Up on Wall Street, Beating the Street, and Learn to Earn with Peter Lynch. He is the author of Survive and Profit in Ferocious Markets (Wiley: 0-471-34882-1), A Fool and His Money (Wiley: 0-471-25138-0), and Going for Broke. He has written for Harper's, Rolling Stone, Esquire, and other leading magazines and he has appeared on the Today Show, the Nightly Business Report, and CNBC.

JOHN ROTHCHILD co-wrote the blockbusters One Up on Wall Street, Beating the Street, and Learn to Earn (all with Peter Lynch). He is the sole author of The Bear Book, A Fool and His Money, and Going for Broke. A former editor of the Washington Monthly and Fortune magazine, Rothchild has written for Harper’s, Rolling Stone, Esquire, and other magazines. He has appeared on the Today show, the Nightly Business Report, and CNBC.

Introduction.

Chapter 1. Davis Meets His Bankroll.

Chapter 2. From the Great Depression To the Hitler Crisis.

Chapter 3. Beyond the Rear-View Mirror.

Chapter 4. A Last Hurrah for Bonds.

Chapter 5. A Crib Course in Coverage.

Chapter 6. From Bureaucrat to Investor.

Chapter 7. The Bullish 1950s.

Chapter 8. Davis Shops Abroad.

Chapter 9. Wall Street a Go-Go.

Chapter 10. Shelby Gets Funded.

Chapter 11. The Inheritance Flap.

Chapter 12. Cool Trio Runs Hot Fund.

Chapter 13. The Worst Decline Since 1929.

Chapter 14. Davis on the Rebound.

Chapter 15. Shelby Buys Banks—Davis Buys Everything.

Chapter 16. The Grandsons Get in the Game.

Chapter 17. The Family Joins Forces.

Chapter 18. Chris Inherits Venture.

Chapter 19. Investing à la Davis.

Source Notes.

Index.