Friends, along with one million other new acquaintances. So, michael and i go way back, and lets just start out talking about, you are an art history major at princeton. And then you go off to wall street and you do really well, and you could have been rich. I mean, you could have had your own plane at this point. Instead you went into the book business. Tell us why you did that, how that has come about. Host so you know, joe and i were classmates in college, it is actually just an accident he was asked to interview me. They thought we would be good together. Didnt knoll we have no each other. This is an opportunity for joel to express all of the recentments he feels. Thats right. This is actually the undoing project. Joel and michael. The fact that yes. So, the question is, why i kuwait wall street. So i didnt know i wanted what wanted to do with my life when i was in college unlike you. You knew you want ted be a journalist and a writer. And when i got out, i didnt have any plans. I didnt didnt occur to me i think partly because of how i grew um. Grew up in new orleans where nobody really did anything for a living, so it didnt otour me that i would have to. And so hence our history. Right . It was a place where careers go to die. But it was a great place to study. I love it and did it because i loved it. When it got out i didnt have any kind of plan. And the job onwall street fell into the lap and a dui make a living. By the time i got it. I had figured out i wanted to write it and was a kind of twoyear gap in there. How did you figure that out. You had to write a senior thesis you had to write book. And so i was volunteering at a soup kitchen. And talk about your cordless the ball. You like the peace we do understand and then with people andess then started to get some things in place. To basically give me my start but then i a cold called to give me a chance and it doesnt sound like a fortune now with that is a couple hundred thousand dollars. And to think that was incredible. So i have a friend joking about i could have been rich and then to hit wall street just at the right time. So with a first day of class with the mortgage bonds and one never but i already had it in mind. At least in the back of my mind and while there started to publish pieces about wall street on the wall street journal with Michael Lewis as the associate in the peas are geared but i was working in london i came into work the next day and then sitting at my desk. And with a guy who gave me my job and said she realized you have done . Guess. [laughter] to have a crisis meeting of the board of directors to talk about how that would be reprinted all these local newspapers around the country. To say this is a big big problem. You can fire me yet but how will we fix this problem . That you dont write any more. But then under a different name . And then with my mothers maiden name this is perfect. And never were make the connection. Then they sit under the name of the ibm and then i get a call from work and then that wall street 1977. And his dad with Simon Schuster to say that i found out that you are diana and i thank you should write a book. And i knew that is what i wanted to do i. M. The potted plant. [laughter] so what happened next . I waited until i got my bonus year andd of the then said i amus leaving to write amo book. And that is not what concerned them. But you do understand with millions of dollars a year . You could be here another decade. D dont do this yourself. But i was so out theel door and i was so enamored to say whatse happened . I sat down for girl but i was 26 then. Go with your gut. So with his career path. That is a good personality trait and i do have some props your. [applause] but antiend of the book it is incredibly harrowing encounter may he rest in peace as my former boss so there is a moment with a major career to put it in slightly different terms. So is seemed clear to me that those that led to the financial crisis set in motion while i was on wall street at the end of the process with john goodman helped to put into motion. With these wall street partnerships. He was terrified. And he booked a table at his favorite restaurant instead of a like to sit down with you and i got there on time where you sit down and then i started to sweat. And said we will select as for two hours. And the first thing that he says your fucking barack made your career and ruined my. And that is a misinterpretation of history but dont think it with nuclear. But then we settled in. And after that he kept a box of the of books under his desk to sign for people who came into his office. [laughter] and said i am your biggest customer. To have the commencement speech and you described yourself as lucky. Those of us that no yuval you worked incredibly hard you have a gift for telling a story you write with the vernacular you are not lucky but not only what people want to read but what they have told . With all the ridings of the financial crisis that nobody else had written. Th there was incredible serendipity. To get this at the very best place so i was given the leisure by my parents i doubt i would have become a writer. A huge advantage. There is an odd conceived in the culture and in fact, that is not how it works. And such a the recipient and to tell thefi story because it is getting harder and harder there was a question. Yes. See you have the freedom that you found the stories. But then with an incredible book. Which was typical the u. S. The it is just a chance. Is started with the bottle of wine so then you think important people when you think jimmy diamond. Jaime diamond how that future change my life he happened to be my baseball coach but was my teacher. And i thought i have to write to this personal story about this coverage. Played by tim mcgraw in the movie the blind side. I had not seen him since high school he picks me up and he made good of himself by the Cincinnati Reds and made a fortune in the fastfood business. And though whole time with the black kid who did as a warden was not introduced to me. He said that is lee dance project. He was standing waiting for the best in the snow in tshirts andin shorts she recognized him who had come into the kids school she stopped and put him in the car and he has not left. With no Family Living on the streets the of she was illiterate with the of rich white evangelical republican i will make camera rich white evangelical christian. [laughter] they were just amused. So i just started to follow that. That is odd. So because that is not a book. That is interesting. I just want to know more. Flash forward a few weeks money ball came down not that long l before so some of them wore a brain trust that the blade the braintrust and he said there is in dave many balls story how to figure hour to distribute the money. That you have this character on the offensive line whose salary had gone to the second highest. One of the most viable assets because he couldnt get her in the way people largely due. So now i have been hearing about michael but that is not my story and they said you cannot believe what just happened. The lsu head coach came to the school looking at players and hes of michael on the basketball court. That is a future nfl left tac dough just by the way that he moves. Thats what it was and then i started to think so witchy indeed became the most price kid in the universe with the most valued 17 in a flash. What does the forces . One of those that happened in that strategy and once i realized that and there is someone better to write this. Th someone who knows about to call it psychology so there shouldnt be the one to do it. So why you should do it. Then we went to dinner after they fled worriers and then took them into the room and he said i never had a bad part of an my wife started to cry you are an idiot if you dont do anything their rights is brought. And in various forms over and over we have the unrecognized value that every business person in america and then on the of life inside the blind side with the new project there is value out there if you can recognize it. But what does seem to happen a lot i can guess why with the way that the markets go because i came from a place that was a very charming place to grow up with interesting and rich childhood love the culture and the place and it was a failed place. You see this over and over especially he dont get back properly. Those undervalued very highly that has always interested me since i was a little kid and i was introduced to the stock market. Otherwise i have no interest but he was assessed with it like watching his portfolio. I dont get that. I will show you so you can watch it to and a little black book to keep that record. But i looked at them at 20 a share at 12 a share to say that is what we had to pay to buy the stock. That is outrageous. And how does that have been . So even backth then. Saw then we should talk as a noveltyy about your new broker. [laughter] so how did you get into that it is a little more academic fundamentally a friendship and a love story but it is a love story. But when i finished it it was being sold into a movie. They called me and asked me what is the one line elevator pitch for this but . And i said book Back Mountain that day fuck each others ideas. [laughter] we can deletee that. Nobody would be offended by that word so what happened is the way this story came about is to israeli psychologist i like to talk about the book while i amt working on it is how quickly can be described in the way people dont know anything about it. [laughter] so by writing a book about baseball. But with these israeli psychologist. That is let this is about. But that this valuation of people by people making intuitive judgments and the book comes out and then it is reviewed by this distinguished legal scholar and then it says in the new republic my story that he has missed the point of the whole story. Is a case study whether he is operating from the gatt. The way that was announced by the israeli psychologist. And i missed the story . You get one bad review. Even though an economics. That is impressive. And it bothered me. In the explanation is where it comes director. I all the material. And define something great that i did not find. It did not even occur to me to be wired in certain ways to exploded a whole money mostly. It just bothered me for years. Just like the way mine thought the large stockmarket he said he lives half a mile from your house said girl talk to him andou get off of your chest. I knocked on his door and to talk about his colleague, his lover, not every other way. And said i will with ms. Penney dropped. And to say i did not do a very good job. And one of my best since turns out it was the oldest son. But that material. And then this takes place with the of backdrop of the israeli state. And at no particular interest of psychology up to that point. Solar that took me forever to be in a place that i thought i should be doing that. But it took me eight years. Soto the people who knew the story were starting to die. Select edit was incredibly important story. Emotional story. And then it will seem odd to you but i want to write a book aboutut this. So i said somebody will write a book about this. And then to spend all these years. Did you ghostwrite that book for him . And on the way to the garbage can and. And then you come at a good time. And then was so much you would ruin my reputation. Could i see a chapter or two . I watched him with the quality to a degree i have never seen in any other human being. Including his own thoughts causally chewing up what hen creates so he got to a point he said i know what we will do because he did not trust my judgment but i will give money to a friend of mine, a specialist in my field. To those three people that he likes and their job is to trash the book to write negative reviews to see how bad it is. Paid 5,000 for the shooting with news that his own book. This is a peculiar character. In that the best characters and then soared to go whole way through. To be just a different person. And maybe not even with that thought. Even more than the beaten path. You have these opportunities writing a movie would is brad pitt really like . So we truly get into the movie thing to create that impression the apropos of this gathering people in hollywood all the living author does to have credit or criticize with the precious work of art he wants to hang around with you so oh they conveyed this to the fastidious leave dupont polite and renew arvin conversation in moscow angeles everybody shows often outrageous they could be its not like what street that way to be interested as long as nobody thinks the relationship could be quite lovely and that was lovely and another will ever be together again i hope we are to be a part of brad pitt that he must me done because he is so beautiful but he is very smart and very a interested and surprisingly shocking but this is the brad pitt story. To apply where he refused to go to the set. After he said no fear of ever making a movie. And then said you teach golf brad pitt just cause he is on his way to my house and my wife is putting on her makeup. [laughter] you bastard. [laughter] so in the middle of making a movie set then tuesday but you think. And wasnt coming to the set but was it in his office and then refuse to come down. One day they called me. Everybody is upset. Just s put everybody out of their misery. You can be charming and you can leave. And then they recreated as a body double with 8,000 people. So i gullet my daughter who was nine years old and then brad pitt is Walking Around the field and i use them alone. I look down and said alice that we go . With a look of terror in her eyes. R [laughter] and then he vanished a Production Assistant as a folder comes running over and said theyd you for coming mueller my he read your book changed my life and then i said its his book. He said no. It was your book please sign my book. There were two in baseball playing on the same team. The othereb being came out and murder book. [laughter] and then wrote a book. And then that kind of title . And nobody answers at that point. But then brad pitt is rolling around laughing. The older reason he wanted him to, to the movie. [laughter] that isan the bad history. I am glad that i asked. [applause] we have microphones we will do questions dont make a speech how much you love him. I guess i will start. I have read several of your i books it seems to have a fairly consistent technique for you strongly personalized a themes so you write about the emergence of the left tackle with the player in football with the restructuring of the economics of the game so you really drill down on michael oehr are the economics of baseball, with a big short a couple of main characters but still very strongly personalizing the larger themes. Clearly there are damages to that talk about the pluses and minuses of that approach. I dont know any other way to do that. While i was the main character and i found myself very easy to sympathize with. So the track is also how when naturallyso get interested. Through characters than through people with interesting characters to meet interesting conversations. The trek if you catch the leader they will follow that character. Nobody wants to read my description of the cbo collateralized debt obligation. So is a very powerful vice of americans of literature. I dont regard that as a plus or minus. You put undue emphasis but added a nofly characters deserve that. With as it transformation of baseball. I just wanted to do thank you for that flashpoint on wall street and the effect that it had. With data whole battle of fidelity been closed my account because say insisted i should be able to connect directly. So talk about bad a little bit they never die right now was close to dead. With the emails back and forth they got to the point over decades that they are well enough known as an actor because that is crazy but the flash was scary to me to be very much alive. Will that be properly regulated . With a narrow vested interest that causes taxes on the rest of us and right now they are. But to have this force to shine a light on a whole problem. That was very moving and 60 minutes did their peace. And they never demonstrated to me. And those havent been prepared. What are youem working on now . Policy has gotten an interesting. [laughter] i was struck after the day of the election but it was as interesting to me march and april the gap between the effort and the Obama Administration put into the transition and to they have been very grateful for how much effort was put into a the government and obama had people in his administration around him as a short course of the federal Government Works saudis people who really dont know much what is going on with the department of energy then they can quickly get up to speed. The day after the election there was 40 people from the administration cramming for inauguration. To get in touch with those agencies. Et so with that need for a . Education with Mission Critical said the Parking Spaces are empty. This is is day big price but any type of mismanagement that results from this is a big a deal but it makes the material very interesting. [laughter] and with the department of energy. But guess what . If you are the guy on top with doesnt even know that. Is kind of incredible. Hollywood comedy after Hollywood Comedy so what i am doing right now so i am doing the of briefings and i did not know but i pretended. To figure out what the hell this place does. [applause] i have a question with this economics issues so much of wall street to make rational decisions what your thoughts about the impact on wholele business to realize those idiosyncracies and were not as rational as people think we are . If we lived in a sane world much of what wall streetwa does we would not be doing. So to explain him 20 could tell me that wall street floats on bullshit it is amazing this day and age people will give and will claim to know the prices of things to direct peoples money. And with their investment and to demonstrate not only did they not predict them but they are unpredictable. So thosed patterns are defined by a priest and that is crazy but the truth is people dont like taking responsibility for their own Financial Decisions suggest to get rid of the problem they cannot get it in their heads there is no such they nessie expertise he lost my moneyy should not be listening to anybody. So the damage that they can do to wall street is minimal because it is responding to a psychological need steve cannot argue that a way. So in short. H where do you invest your money . [laughter] mattress. E a [laughter] that doesnt mean you dont think of the American Economy is a Wealth Creation because the American Economy but that isnt under the direction of a wall street guru. That there are too smart t