to stop his takeover bid. the profit to pickens and his partners -- $89 million. it is no secret that you've made about a half a billion dollars through losing on your attempted takeovers. do you go into it anticipating that a loss is still gonna stand you very well? well, you never like to lose, but if you lose and make money, well, it makes it a little easier. i remember i was someplace and the guy got up and said, "i have a question." he said, "you're making a lot of money out of this," and i said, "the shareholders are, too." he said, "yes, but you're a fast-buck artist." "fast-buck artist." i said, "who in the hell would want to be known as a slow-buck artist?" i see it as a free-enterprise system working at its best. burrough: pickens was really the first major investor to realize how undervalued american companies were and what you could buy there. and it was his early tilts at gulf, city services, all these famous deals that brought this new reality