Wall Street (1987) - Quotes - IMDb Wall Street (1987) Quotes Showing all 78 items Gordon Gekko : The richest one percent of this country owns half our country's wealth, five trillion dollars. One third of that comes from hard work, two thirds comes from inheritance, interest on interest accumulating to widows and idiot sons and what I do, stock and real estate speculation. It's bullshit. You got ninety percent of the American public out there with little or no net worth. I create nothing. I own. We make the rules, pal. The news, war, peace, famine, upheaval, the price per paper clip. We pick that rabbit out of the hat while everybody sits out there wondering how the hell we did it. Now you're not naive enough to think we're living in a democracy, are you buddy? It's the free market. And you're a part of it. You've got that killer instinct. Stick around pal, I've still got a lot to teach you. Share this: Facebook | Twitter | Permalink Hide options Gordon Gekko : [at the Teldar Paper stockholder's meeting] Well, I appreciate the opportunity you're giving me Mr.

Cromwell as the single largest shareholder in Teldar Paper, to speak. Well, ladies and gentlemen we're not here to indulge in fantasy but in political and economic reality. America, America has become a second-rate power. Its trade deficit and its fiscal deficit are at nightmare proportions. Now, in the days of the free market when our country was a top industrial power, there was accountability to the stockholder. The Carnegies, the Mellons, the men that built this great industrial empire, made sure of it because it was their money at stake. Today, management has no stake in the company! All together, these men sitting up here own less than three percent of the company. And where does Mr. Cromwell put his million-dollar salary? Not in Teldar stock; he owns less than one percent. You own the company. That's right, you, the stockholder. And you are all being royally screwed over by these, these bureaucrats, with their luncheons, their hunting and fishing trips, their corporate jets and golden parachutes. Cromwell : This is an outrage! You're out of line Gekko! Gordon Gekko : Teldar Paper, Mr.

Cromwell, Teldar Paper has 33 different vice presidents each earning over 200 thousand dollars a year. Now, I have spent the last two months analyzing what all these guys do, and I still can't figure it out. One thing I do know is that our paper company lost 110 million dollars last year, and I'll bet that half of that was spent in all the paperwork going back and forth between all these vice presidents. The new law of evolution in corporate America seems to be survival of the unfittest. Well, in my book you either do it right or you get eliminated. In the last seven deals that I've been involved with, there were 2.5 million stockholders who have made a pretax profit of 12 billion dollars. Thank you. I am not a destroyer of companies. I am a liberator of them! The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind.

And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA. Thank you very much. Share this: Facebook | Twitter | Permalink Hide options [Blue Star has gone from 24 to 16 1/2 in a very short time] Gordon Gekko : Fox, where the hell are you? I am losing MILLIONS! You got me into this airline and you sure as hell better get me out or the only job you'll ever have on the Street is SWEEPING IT! You hear me, Fox? Bud Fox : You once told me, don't get emotional about stock. Don't! The bid is 16 1/2 and going down. As your broker, I advise you to take it. Gordon Gekko : Yeah. Well you TAKE IT! [shouts] Gordon Gekko : [meeting alone together in Central Park] Hiya, Buddy. Bud Fox : [nods as the both walk up to face one another] Gordon. Gordon Gekko : [with a smirk on his face] Sand bagged me on Bluestar huh?

I guess you think you taught the teacher a lesson that the tail can wag the dog huh? Well let me clue you in, pal. The ice is melting right underneath your feet. [punches Bud and grabs him by the coattails] Gordon Gekko : Did you think you could've gotten this far this fast with anyone else, huh? That you'd be out there dicking someone like Darien? No. You'd still be cold calling widows and dentists tryin' to sell 'em 20 shares of some dog shit stock. I took you in. [hits him again] Gordon Gekko : A NOBODY! [and again] Gordon Gekko : I opened the doors for you! Showed you how the system works! The value of information! How to *get it*! Fulham oil! Brant resources! Geodynamics! And this is how you fucking pay me back you COCKROACH? [hits him once again and Bud falls to the ground] Gordon Gekko : I GAVE you Darien. I GAVE you your manhood. I gave you EVERYTHING!

[calms down, then takes out his handkerchief and throws it to Bud to clean off the blood] Gordon Gekko : You could've been one of the great ones Buddy. I looked at you and saw myself. Why? Bud Fox : [getting up] I don't know. I guess I realized that I'm just Bud Fox. [firmly] Bud Fox : As much as I wanted to be Gordon Gekko, I'll *always* be Bud Fox. [tosses back the handkerchief and walks away] Share this: Facebook | Twitter | Permalink Hide options Carl Fox : He's using you, kid. He's got your prick in his back pocket, but you're too blind to see it. Bud Fox : No. What I see is a jealous old machinist who can't stand the fact that his son has become more successful than he has! Carl Fox : What you see is a guy who never measured a man's success by the size of his WALLET! Bud Fox : That's because you never had the GUTS to go out into the world and stake your own claim!

[Long Pause] Carl Fox : Boy, if that's the way you feel, I must have done a really lousy job as a father. Bud Fox : [answers the phone] Yeah. Gordon Gekko : Money never sleeps, pal. Just made 800,000 in Hong Kong gold. It's been wired to you. Play with it. You've done good, but you gotta keep doing good. I've showed you how the game works. Now School's out. Bud Fox : Mr, Gekko, I'm there for you 110%. Gordon Gekko : No, no, no, no. You don't understand. I wanna be surprised. Astonish me, pal. New info. I don't care were or how you get it, just get it. My wife tells me you made a move on Darien. Well, here some inside info for you: That euro-flash G.Q.-type she's going out with has got big bucks, but he's putting her feet to sleep. Exit Visas are imminent, so I don't want you losing your place in line.

[take a look at the sunrise] Gordon Gekko : Ah, Jesus. I wish you could see this. Light's coming up. I've never seen a painting that captures the beauty of the ocean at a moment like this. I'm gonna make you rich, Bud Fox. Yeah. Rich enough, you can afford a girl like Darien. This is your wake-up call, pal. Go to work. Share this: Facebook | Twitter | Permalink Hide options [In the last scene, The Foxes are driving down FDR Drive towards the U.S. Court House downtown] Carl Fox : You told the truth and gave the money back. All things considered in this cockamamie world, you're shooting par. Mrs. Fox : You helped saved the airline, and the airline people are gonna remember you for it. Carl Fox : That's right. If I were you, I'd think about the job at Bluestar that Wildman offered you. Bud Fox : Dad, I'm going to jail and you know it. Carl Fox : Yeah, well, maybe that's the price, son. It's gonna be hard on you, that's for sure.

But maybe in some kind of screwed-up way, it's the best thing that could've happened to you. You stop going for the easy buck and produce something with your life. Create instead of living off the buying and selling of others. [drops Bud off at the Supreme Court House] Carl Fox : We'll park the car and catch up with you. Share this: Facebook | Twitter | Permalink Hide options [Lynch is firing Dan] Dan : We go way back, Harry. You know, I-I've put a lot of money into this firm over the years, and I've brought in a lot of businesses. Lynch : You've taken enough out, too. You know that. You should have something put aside, for chrissake. Dan : Well, I don't. With the divorces and everything, I haven't had a chance. And the kids... Lynch : The bridges are burned. [Bud walks by Lynch's office] Dan : When you fire me, I'm finished, Harry, finished on the street. Lynch : How do think I feel about this? Dan : How do you think I feel? I've got a lot of responsibilities.

Bud Fox : [to Marv] What's goin' on? Marv : Lynch is giving him the boot. He's not pulling his quota. We're all just one trade away from humility, Bud. [Bud arrives at his to see Lynch, agents from the SEC and USPS, an lawyer from the U.S. Attorney's Office, and and an NYPD uniformed officer ready to arrest him] Bud Fox : [shocked] I guess you're not here to open an I.R.A. Postal Inspector : Mr. Fox, I'm Henry Patterson with the Postal Inspection Service. This is Mr. Ebanhopper from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Evan Morrissey from the Securities and Exchange Enforcement Office. SEC Man : You're under arrest, Mr. Fox, for conspiracy to commit Securities fraud and for violating the Insider Trader's Sanction Act. Lynch : [furious] The minute I've laid eyes on you, I knew you were no good. U.S. Attorney : [as the cop places the handcuffs on Bud, he is read the Miranda warning] You have the right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions. Do you understand?

Anything you do say may be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking to the police and to have an attorney present during any questioning now or in the future. [Bud, now fired and disgraced from Jackson-Steinem, is led away from the office in tears amongst onlookers] Bud Fox : [sobs to Carolyn] So long, Carolyn. Gordon Gekko : What the hell do you want? Bud Fox : I just found out about the garage sale down at Bluestar. Why? Gordon Gekko : [GG looks surprised for a split second, then quietly chuckles] Last night, I was reading Rudy the story of Winnie-the-Pooh and the honeypot... You know what happened: he stuck his nose in the pot once too often, and he got stuck. [GG lights a cigarette] Bud Fox : Maybe you oughta read him Pinocchio, Gordon. [GG chuckles while exhaling smoke] Bud Fox : I thought that you were gonna turn Bluestar around, not upside-down! You fucking used me. Gordon Gekko : Well, you're walkin' around blind without a cane, pal.

A fool and his money are lucky enough to get together in the first place. Bud Fox : But why do you need to wreck this company? Gordon Gekko : Because it's *wreckable*, all right? I took another look at it, and I changed my mind. Bud Fox : If these people lose their jobs, they got nowhere to go! My father has worked there for 24 years! I gave him my word. Gordon Gekko : It's all about bucks, kid. The rest is conversation... Hey, Buddy, you're still gonna be president, all right? And when the time comes, you're gonna parachute out, a rich man. With the money you're gonna make, your dad's never gonna have to work another day in his life. Bud Fox : So tell me, Gordon: when does it all end, huh? How many yachts can you water-ski behind? How much is enough? Gordon Gekko : It's not a question of enough, pal. It's a zero-sum game: somebody wins, somebody loses. Money itself isn't lost or made, it's simply, uh, transferred from one perception to another. Like magic.

What Is Greed? What Is Greed? Twitter Facebook Email Subscribe Print Michael Douglas as Gordon Gekko in “Wall Street.” Courtesy of 20th Century Fox. The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed — for lack of a better word — is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms – greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge – has marked the upward surge of mankind. – Gordon Gekko, Wall Street (1987) Gordon Gekko’s rant on the virtues of greed in Oliver Stone’s 1987 movie Wall Street has become an iconic touchstone in our cultural image of business. Over the last 30 years, the media has done much to promote the idea that the essential qualities of the free market system are to promote greed and give unscrupulous businessmen a vehicle to line their pockets at the expense of others. Certainly there have been many non-fictional events to help support this stereotype: Stock trader Michel Milken ‘s indictment and conviction on 98 counts of racketeering and securities fraud in 1989.

The bankruptcy and scandal surrounding energy giant Enron Corporation in 2001. The U.S. subprime mortgage crisis which led to the late-2000’s financial crisis. Contrary to Gordon Gekko, greed is not good. It is extremely destructive. Before we dive into the question of greed and the market, it’s first important to define greed. Common Definitions of Greed Webster’s Dictionary defines greed as a selfish and excessive desire for more of something than is needed. WordNet , a project at Princeton University, defines greed as an “excessive desire to acquire or possess more than one needs or deserves.” Although most people, including many Christians, embrace this definition, where do we draw the line regarding “more of something than is needed” or what do I “deserve”? Is it greedy to drive a Mercedes when a less expensive automobile could get me to my destination just as well? This type of thinking has led some Christian scholars to suggest that the top one percent of wealthy individuals in the United States are all greedy, because by almost anyone’s definition they have more of everything than is needed. This is a relativistic definition of greed. Who decides not only what is needed, but when someone has more than enough?

How do we know when too much is too much? Who decides what one needs and deserves? These definitions aren’t clear on these questions. Fortunately, we as Christians have a better source than Webster’s Dictionary to help us understand the problem of greed. The Bible has a lot to say about greed, and its definition is different than the one that is in use by most of our culture today. Towards A Biblical Definition of Greed Gordon Gekko (Character) - Quotes Gordon Gekko (Character) from Wall Street (1987) The content of this page was created by users. It has not been screened or verified by IMDb staff. Gordon Gekko : Lunch is for wimps. Gordon Gekko : When I get a hold of the son of a bitch who leaked this, I'm gonna tear his eyeballs out and I'm gonna suck his fucking skull. Gordon Gekko : The richest one percent of this country owns half our country's wealth, five trillion dollars. One third of that comes from hard work, two thirds comes from inheritance, interest on interest accumulating to widows and idiot sons and what I do, stock and real estate speculation. It's bullshit.

You got ninety percent of the American public out there with little or no net worth. I create nothing. I own. We make the rules, pal. The news, war, peace, famine, upheaval, the price per paper clip. We pick that rabbit out of the hat while everybody sits out there wondering how the hell we did it. Now you're not naive enough to think we're living in a democracy, are you buddy? It's the free market. And you're a part of it. You've got that killer instinct. Stick around pal, I've still got a lot to teach you. Gordon Gekko : You're walking around blind without a cane, pal. A fool and his money are lucky enough to get together in the first place. Bud Fox : How much is enough? Gordon Gekko : It's not a question of enough, pal. It's a zero sum game, somebody wins, somebody loses. Money itself isn't lost or made, it's simply transferred from one perception to another. Gordon Gekko : Mixed emotions, buddy. Like Larry Wildman going off a cliff in my new Maserati.

Gordon Gekko : [at the Teldar Paper stockholder's meeting] Well, I appreciate the opportunity you're giving me Mr. Cromwell as the single largest shareholder in Teldar Paper, to speak. Well, ladies and gentlemen we're not here to indulge in fantasy but in political and economic reality. America, America has become a second-rate power. Its trade deficit and its fiscal deficit are at nightmare proportions. Now, in the days of the free market when our country was a top industrial power, there was accountability to the stockholder. The Carnegies, the Mellons, the men that built this great industrial empire, made sure of it because it was their money at stake. Today, management has no stake in the company! All together, these men sitting up here own less than three percent of the company. And where does Mr. Cromwell put his million-dollar salary? Not in Teldar stock; he owns less than one percent. You own the company. That's right, you, the stockholder. And you are all being royally screwed over by these, these bureaucrats, with their luncheons, their hunting and fishing trips, their corporate jets and golden parachutes.

Cromwell : This is an outrage! You're out of line Gekko! Gordon Gekko : Teldar Paper, Mr. Cromwell, Teldar Paper has 33 different vice presidents each earning over 200 thousand dollars a year. Now, I have spent the last two months analyzing what all these guys do, and I still can't figure it out. One thing I do know is that our paper company lost 110 million dollars last year, and I'll bet that half of that was spent in all the paperwork going back and forth between all these vice presidents. The new law of evolution in corporate America seems to be survival of the unfittest. Well, in my book you either do it right or you get eliminated. In the last seven deals that I've been involved with, there were 2.5 million stockholders who have made a pretax profit of 12 billion dollars. Thank you. I am not a destroyer of companies. I am a liberator of them! The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works.

Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA. Thank you very much. Gordon Gekko : The point is ladies and gentlemen that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. [Blue Star has gone from 24 to 16 1/2 in a very short time] Gordon Gekko : Fox, where the hell are you? I am losing MILLIONS! You got me into this airline and you sure as hell better get me out or the only job you'll ever have on the Street is SWEEPING IT! You hear me, Fox? Bud Fox : You once told me, don't get emotional about stock. Don't! The bid is 16 1/2 and going down. As your broker, I advise you to take it. Gordon Gekko : Yeah. Well you TAKE IT! [shouts] Gordon Gekko : [calms down] Dump it.

Gordon Gekko : What's worth doing is worth doing for money. Gordon Gekko : I'm gonna make you rich, Bud Fox. Gordon Gekko : I'm talking about liquid. Rich enough to have your own jet. Rich enough not to waste time. Fifty, a hundred million dollars, buddy. A player. Or nothing. Gordon Gekko : I don't throw darts at a board. I bet on sure things. Read Sun-tzu, The Art of War. Every battle is won before it is ever fought. Gordon Gekko : If you need a friend, get a dog. Gordon Gekko : The most valuable commodity I know of is information. Gordon Gekko : Greed captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Gordon Gekko : I look at a hundred deals a day. I pick one. Gordon Gekko : You see that building? I bought that building ten years ago. My first real estate deal. Sold it two years later, made an $800,000 profit. It was better than sex. At the time I thought that was all the money in the world. Now it's a day's pay.

Bud Fox : Why do you need to wreck this company? Gordon Gekko : Because it's WRECKABLE, all right? I took another look at it and I changed my mind! Gordon Gekko : Ever wonder why fund managers can't beat the S&P 500? 'Cause they're sheep, and sheep get slaughtered. Bud Fox : This is really a nice club, Mr. Gekko. Gordon Gekko : Yeah, not bad for a City College boy. I bought my way in, now all these Ivy league schmucks are sucking my kneecaps. Gordon Gekko : [meeting alone together in Central Park] Hiya, Buddy. Bud Fox : [nods as the both walk up to face one another] Gordon. Gordon Gekko : [with a smirk on his face] Sand bagged me on Bluestar huh? I guess you think you taught the teacher a lesson that the tail can wag the dog huh? Well let me clue you in, pal. The ice is melting right underneath your feet.

[punches Bud and grabs him by the coattails] Gordon Gekko : Did you think you could've gotten this far this fast with anyone else, huh? That you'd be out there dicking someone like Darien? No. You'd still be cold calling widows and dentists tryin' to sell 'em 20 shares of some dog shit stock. I took you in. [hits him again] Gordon Gekko : A NOBODY! [and again] Gordon Gekko : I opened the doors for you! Showed you how the system works! The value of information! How to *get it*! Fulham oil! Brant resources! Geodynamics! And this is how you fucking pay me back you COCKROACH? [hits him once again and Bud falls to the ground] Gordon Gekko : I GAVE you Darien. I GAVE you your manhood. I gave you EVERYTHING! [calms down, then takes out his handkerchief and throws it to Bud to clean off the blood] Gordon Gekko : You could've been one of the great ones Buddy. I looked at you and saw myself. Why?

Bud Fox : [getting up] I don't know. I guess I realized that I'm just Bud Fox. [firmly] Bud Fox : As much as I wanted to be Gordon Gekko, I'll *always* be Bud Fox. [tosses back the handkerchief and walks away] Gordon Gekko : Well you take it, right in the ass you scumbag cocksucker. Gordon Gekko : This is the kid, calls me 59 days in a row, wants to be a player. There ought to be a picture of you in the dictionary under persistence kid. Gordon Gekko : It's not always the most popular person who gets the job done. Gordon Gekko : You stop sending me information, and you start getting me some. Gordon Gekko : It's all about bucks, kid. The rest is conversation. [after Bud lost $100,000 on a 'dog' stock] Gordon Gekko : I guess your Dad isn't on the Board of Directors of *that* company, is he? Gordon Gekko : If you're not inside, you're *outside*!

Gordon Gekko : Jesus, if this guy owned a funeral parlor nobody would die! Carl Fox : "There came into Egypt a Pharaoh who did not know." Gordon Gekko : I beg your pardon, is that a proverb? Carl Fox : No, a prophecy. The rich have been doing it to the poor since the beginning of time. The only difference between the Pyramids and the Empire State Building is the Egyptians didn't allow unions. I know what this guy is all about, greed. He don't give a damn about Bluestar or the unions. He's in and out for the buck and he don't take prisoners. Gordon Gekko : You gonna tell me the difference between this guy and that guy is luck? [points at a bum and businessman] Gordon Gekko : I want to know where he goes, what he sees, I want you to fill in the missing pieces of the puzzle. Gordon Gekko : Sir Larry Wildman. Like all Brits, he thinks he was born with a better pot to piss in. Gordon Gekko : [awed by the morning light] I've never seen a painting that captures the beauty of the ocean, at a moment like this.

Darien Taylor : I don't want him to ever know, you understand? Gordon Gekko : Mum's the word. [after a pause] Gordon Gekko : You and I are the same, Darien. We are smart enough not to buy in to the oldest myth running; love. A fiction created by people to keep them from jumping out of windows. [laughs] Darien Taylor : You know sometimes I miss you, Gordon; you're really twisted. Gordon Gekko : That's the one thing you have to remember about WASPs: they love animals and hate people. [Early in the morning, Bud's phone rings] Bud Fox : [answers the phone] Yeah. Gordon Gekko : Money never sleeps, pal. Just made 800,000 in Hong Kong gold. It's been wired to you. Play with it. You've done good, but you gotta keep doing good. I've showed you how the game works. Now School's out. Bud Fox : Mr, Gekko, I'm there for you 110%. Gordon Gekko : No, no, no, no. You don't understand. I wanna be surprised.

Astonish me, pal. New info. I don't care were or how you get it, just get it. My wife tells me you made a move on Darien. Well, here some inside info for you: That euro-flash G.Q.-type she's going out with has got big bucks, but he's putting her feet to sleep. Exit Visas are imminent, so I don't want you losing your place in line. [take a look at the sunrise] Gordon Gekko : Ah, Jesus. I wish you could see this. Light's coming up. I've never seen a painting that captures the beauty of the ocean at a moment like this. I'm gonna make you rich, Bud Fox. Yeah. Rich enough, you can afford a girl like Darien. This is your wake-up call, pal. Go to work. Bud Fox : Why do you have to wreck this company... Gordon Gekko : Because it's WRECKABLE, that's why! Gordon Gekko : What the hell do you want? Bud Fox : I just found out about the garage sale down at Bluestar. Why?

Gordon Gekko : [GG looks surprised for a split second, then quietly chuckles] Last night, I was reading Rudy the story of Winnie-the-Pooh and the honeypot... You know what happened: he stuck his nose in the pot once too often, and he got stuck. [GG lights a cigarette] Bud Fox : Maybe you oughta read him Pinocchio, Gordon. [GG chuckles while exhaling smoke] Bud Fox : I thought that you were gonna turn Bluestar around, not upside-down! You fucking used me. Gordon Gekko : Well, you're walkin' around blind without a cane, pal. A fool and his money are lucky enough to get together in the first place. Bud Fox : But why do you need to wreck this company? Gordon Gekko : Because it's *wreckable*, all right? I took another look at it, and I changed my mind. Bud Fox : If these people lose their jobs, they got nowhere to go! My father has worked there for 24 years! I gave him my word. Gordon Gekko : It's all about bucks, kid. The rest is conversation...

Hey, Buddy, you're still gonna be president, all right? And when the time comes, you're gonna parachute out, a rich man. With the money you're gonna make, your dad's never gonna have to work another day in his life. Bud Fox : So tell me, Gordon: when does it all end, huh? How many yachts can you water-ski behind? How much is enough? Gordon Gekko : It's not a question of enough, pal. It's a zero-sum game: somebody wins, somebody loses. Money itself isn't lost or made, it's simply, uh, transferred from one perception to another. Like magic. Greed is Good: Is it Really, Gordon Gekko? Do more with your money in half the time. Greed is Good: Is it Really, Gordon Gekko? By Philip Taylor “Greed is good.” You’ve heard that line before. But do you know where it’s from? It was taken (incorrectly) from a quote from the 1987 movie Wall Street.

Gordon Gekko and Wall Street the Movie In the movie Wall Street, corporate raider Gordon Gekko, the fictional character played by Michael Douglass, gives a great speech to the shareholders of Teldar Paper, a company he is taking over. In it he actually says, “Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures, the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge, has marked the upward surge of mankind and greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the U.S.A.” The Guy Behind the Guy The real life Gekko is partly Ivan “The Terrible” Frederick Boesky. He is noted as initially using the “greed is good” type language that inspired the speech in the movie. Boesky, also a corporate raider, was also involved in an insider trading investigation which led to jail time. There’s an interesting story from Time magazine on Boesky if you want more details.

By the way, corporate raiding is a term used to describe the act of buying up a large interest in a publicly traded corporation, and then using the power from voting rights to make a decision that will increase the value of shares. It’s not an inherently bad practice, but the corporate and investing world has since decided they no longer want it around and have taken steps to prevent it. Insider trading, a more common term, is when someone trades the stock of a company after having gained insider (i.e. non-public) knowledge about the company. See Martha Stewart’s case of insider trading as a recent example. More About the Movie I highly encourage you to check out the movie. It’s a great look at the excesses of the 80’s (brick cell phones included), provides some insight into the world of the real wall street, and it has some solid performances by Douglass, and by the father and son Charlie and Martin Sheen. Director Oliver Stone does a good job, I think, of laying out both side of the story. But ultimately, a kind of good greed (i.e. hard work) wins out over the type of greed Gekko is really about, illegal trading practices.

If you need another reason to check out this film, here’s one. The sequel to the 1987 film, now titled Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, will be released into theaters on September 24th, 2010. What Are Your Thoughts on Greed? Did you notice that Gekko didn’t actually say that greed was good in his speech? What he said was that he didn’t have a better word to use, so he used greed. A genius move by the writers to make you like Gekko just enough to carry the movie. Being the free-market capitalist that I am, there’s part of me that definitely agrees with Gekko’s theories here. My own daily efforts to increase my business’ bottom line are a positive force (it results in free and hopefully interesting financial information, a vacant corporate job, support of contract services, and more money to support other businesses and charity). I’m driven by several things, but primarily to provide financial security for my family. Is that a selfish, greedy act? Is there a good kind of greed? And what’s the word Gekko should have used? Get 31 Tips to Improve Your Financial Life Subscribe for free.

Get my book (31 Days to Improve Your Financial Life), intro series, and monthly digest. Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription. There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again. Email Address Powered by ConvertKit Last Edited: July 28, 2014 @ 11:53 pm The content of ptmoney.com is for general information purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Visitors to ptmoney.com should not act upon the content or information without first seeking appropriate professional advice. In accordance with the latest FTC guidelines, we declare that we have a financial relationship with every company mentioned on this site. About Philip Taylor Philip Taylor, aka "PT", is a CPA, financial writer, podcaster, FinCon Founder, husband, and father of three. He created PT Money back in 2007 to share his thoughts on money and to meet others passionate about managing their finances. All the content on this blog is original, and created or edited by PT. Read more about Philip Taylor , and be sure to connect with him on Twitter , Facebook , or Google+ . Listen to the new podcast, Masters of Money ! Is Greed Good?

| The Huffington Post 10/23/2007 02:14 pm ET | Updated May 25, 2011 Dave Johnson Fellow, Campaign for America's Future "Greed is good." That line from the 1987 film Wall Street shocked the country with its blatant articulation of the 1980s-era Reagan philosophy of greed. Twenty years ago it was still a shock to civilized people to hear such a vulgar statement promoting self-interest over community. From the movie, The point is, ladies and gentlemen, that: Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right; greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms, greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge - has marked the upward surge of mankind and greed, you mark my words - will not only save Teldar Paper but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA. Greed used to be considered one of the "seven deadly sins." Religions warn against its harmful effects on people and the greater community.

Buddhism warns that greed is one of the three poisons. W.Jay Wood wrote in Christianity Today , Greed is an inappropriate attitude toward things of value, built on the mistaken judgment that my well-being is tied to the sum of my possessions....Greed alienates us from God, from our neighbor, and from our true self. But 20 years after being shocked by the promotion of a "Greed is good" philosophy much of the public instead buys into the consumer culture of greed and self-interest over public-interest. How has this change come about? It had help. For example, John Stossel, co-anchor of ABC's 20/20 and host of ABC's John Stossel Specials reports for ABC radio, and ABCNews.com wrote a 2006 opinion piece titled "Greed Is Good" , which he posted at the far-right Townhall site (and many other far-right sites), Stossel writes, If pursuing profit is greed, economist Walter Williams told me, then greed is good, because it drives us to do many good things.

"Those areas where people are motivated the most by greed are the areas that we're the most satisfied with: supermarkets, computers, FedEx." By contrast, areas "where people say we're motivated by 'caring'" -- public education, public housing etc. -- "are the areas of disaster in our country.... How much would get done," Williams wondered, "if it all depended on human love and kindness?" This Stossel piece is derived from a 1999 20/20 episode of the same name, and for years was widely promoted and distributed as a "Greed" teaching kit for classrooms by the Palmer R. Chitester Fund, Inc. The accompanying teachers guide (PDF document), included such "educational" tidbits as, The video argues that "the more government tries to help, the worse things get" and uses the circumstances of the Lakota Sioux tribe in South Dakota as an example. Would the Lakota Sioux tribe be more prosperous without government support? What evidence would support or refute this argument? and, Some say that decreasing tax rates stimulates the economy by enabling workers to keep more of the money they earn.

As a result, they have added ability to put money back into the economy by spending, saving and investing. Others accept high tax burdens believing that the cost of government is justified based on all of its programs and agencies. The video shows an example of the typical two earner household- Bill and Mary Thurston of St. Louis, who both work from January until May to pay their share of annual taxes. Do you think American taxpayers are getting their money's worth? Which taxes do you think are/are not justifiable? and, Have students research reports of government waste and report the most egregious cases they can find. Have them detail specific examples of what could happen to a private company that operated in the same manner. Anti-government propaganda like that is "educational?" Of course not. But there it is, with the credibility and celebrity of both ABC and Stossel backing up the pro-greed, ideological message. A 2000 Salon.com article titled "Prime-time propagandist," said, "Stossel in the Classroom" is a series of study aids that includes Stossel's popular ABC News special reports, accompanied by study guides written by two conservative economics instructors at George Mason University.

The study guides are emblazoned with a big blue ABC News logo and Stossel's face. ABC News and Stossel had almost nothing to do with the development of "Stossel in the Classroom," but the product is deceptively packaged to look like an ABC product. Who is the Palmer R. Chitester Fund that distributed these so-called study materials? Media Transparency describes The Palmer R. Chitester Fund as follows: The Palmer R. Chitester Fund was created by the combative Bob Chitester, with startup money from the Bradley Foundation, to create right wing "popular" media, and lately has taken to selling educational materials based on the error-prone reporting of ABC TV's arch-conservative correspondent John Stossel. It's Idea Channel distributes "intellectual" videotapes on conversations between mostly members of the right wing movement on topics ranging from political science to economics to history.

Question: The line "Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures, the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge, has marked the upward surge of mankind ..." is from which film?
Answer: Wall Street