Billy. That's what everyone called the distinguished William Salomon, whose place of command was a desk in the middle of the vast trading emporium of Salomon Brothers at One New York Plaza. Simply Billy. After all, instant communication among the hard-driving bond and stock traders in the years of dynamic growth in order to make split-second decisions about employing the Salomon family's capital to make the transition into the company of legendary giants like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. Billy was the captain of the ship, keeping the rowdy sailors and officers under his command in line. No mean feat. But, once you shook Mr. Salomon's sturdy hand and heard his bold plans you knew you were in a place of action-packed power. Big money was changing hands on the 42nd floor of One New York Plaza. I ought to know as Billy and then his successor John Gutfreund gave me free run there to build my reputation on financial stories.
|