30 Year Anniversary of "Black Monday"

We interrupt our normal science-based blogging. 

Today is the 30th anniversary of the Black Monday crash of 1987, when the Dow lost more than 22% of its value in a single day. The biggest one-day crash in history.

These days, too many, especially those under the age of 30, don't seem to understand the critical nature of beginning to invest at an early age. The magic of compound interest can make you very comfortable when you retire but only if you begin when you are young.

I would like to demonstrate the value of the above advice with excerpts from that Friday's Wall $treet Week with Louis Rukeyser. When everyone else was in full panic mode, Lou was calm and cool.


Lou had three of titans of investing as his guests on his show. I was always so impressed with Sir John Templeton. Some called him the greatest investor of the 20th Century.
As was usually the case, the late Sir John was absolutely correct. In 1987, there were no laptop computers, no smartphones, no iPods, no satellite phones, no treatment for AIDS, no internet, no nationwide network of Doppler radars, and no 3D printers. All of those contributed mightily to the expansion of America's economy.

The crash created tremendous investment opportunities. If you had invested $1,000 in a Dow index fund the day this edition of W$W aired, that investment would be worth $11,768.21 today (not including fund expenses).

Unfortunately, Louis Rukeyser is no longer with us to help educate today's audiences how to invest. So, let me offer you an alternative: Andrew Tobias' The Only Investment Guide You Will Ever Need  is a superb, easy to read primer on investing. Highly recommended.