WEBVTT - 9 Incredible Stories about Accountants! (Yes, Accountants.)

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<v Speaker 1>Guess what, mango, what's that? Well, So, I don't think

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<v Speaker 1>we've talked about Bennett Surf on this show before, but

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<v Speaker 1>you know who Surf is, right, Yeah, he's the co

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<v Speaker 1>founder of Random House. He's kind of a legend and

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<v Speaker 1>there are so many great stories about him. But one

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<v Speaker 1>of my favorites has to do with a conversation and

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<v Speaker 1>a bet that he had with Dr Seuss. So they

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<v Speaker 1>were having this argument about how many unique words you

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<v Speaker 1>needed to tell a really good story, and so Surf

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<v Speaker 1>made this bet with Dr SEUs for fifty bucks that

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<v Speaker 1>he couldn't write a book with fifty words or less. So,

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<v Speaker 1>of course Dr SEUs proved him wrong, and he wrote green,

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<v Speaker 1>eggs and ham. Yeah, so I've got a bet. I

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<v Speaker 1>knew that story. But um, one thing I learned when

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<v Speaker 1>we were doing our Doctor SEUs episode was that forty

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<v Speaker 1>nine of those words that he used actually were only

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<v Speaker 1>one syllable long, like fox and bode and eggs and could.

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<v Speaker 1>But the only word he used that was longer than

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<v Speaker 1>one syllable was the word anywhere. But but I'm curious

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<v Speaker 1>what did Dr Seuss do with all that cash? Apparently nothing,

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<v Speaker 1>because I don't think Surf ever paid him, just kind

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<v Speaker 1>of figured, you know, the royalties on doctors, who's his

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<v Speaker 1>best selling book, We're probably winnings enough. And he's got

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<v Speaker 1>a good point on that one. I'm sure he made

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<v Speaker 1>a ton of money from those books. But there was

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<v Speaker 1>one thing I didn't realize. Surf actually went to school

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<v Speaker 1>for accounting. And so today's Nine Things is all about

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<v Speaker 1>our favorite accountants. And if it wasn't for an accountant,

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<v Speaker 1>we wouldn't have green Eggs in ham So let's dive in. Hey,

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<v Speaker 1>their podcast listeners, welcome to Part Time Genius. I'm Will

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<v Speaker 1>Pearson and is always I'm joined by my good friend

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<v Speaker 1>man guest Ticketer and sitting behind the soundproof glass just

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<v Speaker 1>organizing his collection of vintage Turbo tax cd ROMs. Have

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<v Speaker 1>you ever seen that many ms? Certainly within the last

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<v Speaker 1>fifteen twenty years, I haven't seen that many CD ROMs

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<v Speaker 1>in one place. But that's our friend and producer Tristan McNeil.

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<v Speaker 1>So mego, we're doing a show today all about account

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<v Speaker 1>its Huh. Yeah. I mean you could say it's an

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<v Speaker 1>honor of tax season finally being over. But the real

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<v Speaker 1>reason I thought we do a show on this is

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<v Speaker 1>because I wanted to dedicate a show to our friend

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<v Speaker 1>and accountant Lisa Vant, who's uh, I know, your longtime

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<v Speaker 1>family friend. Yes, she actually advised Mental Flaws in the

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<v Speaker 1>early days, helped you out so many times when you

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<v Speaker 1>were waiting tables and I was teaching on the side

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<v Speaker 1>and everything we were trying to do to get Mental

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<v Speaker 1>Flaws started. And I'll never forget the first time we

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<v Speaker 1>sat down with tax forms and things like that, and

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<v Speaker 1>we both looked at each other like how does this?

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<v Speaker 1>And this many years later, we still look at each

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<v Speaker 1>other like how does this work? But it's baffling. That's right,

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<v Speaker 1>That's right. Lisa has been there for so many times.

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<v Speaker 1>So you know we've we've already talked about our favorite

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<v Speaker 1>account and now but let's talk about some ridiculous accounting

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<v Speaker 1>and account a story. So where do you want to

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<v Speaker 1>start today? So I want to talk about the Oakland days.

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<v Speaker 1>And you know, I'm not a huge baseball fan, but

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<v Speaker 1>I I've read this story on now I know that

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<v Speaker 1>I love and it's about their accounting department. So in

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<v Speaker 1>the counting team at the A's was confused because they

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<v Speaker 1>had this million dollars surplus, like they were checking their

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<v Speaker 1>books and re checking their numbers, and they were kind

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<v Speaker 1>of freaking out because they couldn't figure out why they

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<v Speaker 1>had an extra million dollars around. And it turns out

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<v Speaker 1>that it was because of Ricky Henderson. So apparently before

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<v Speaker 1>the season, he'd gotten a contract for twelve million dollars

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<v Speaker 1>with a million dollars to be paid up front. So

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<v Speaker 1>he framed his million dollar check and actually never deposited. No,

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<v Speaker 1>Apparently he wanted it up on the wall so he

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<v Speaker 1>could see it every day and it would make them happy.

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<v Speaker 1>But when the accounts finally figured it out, they asked

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<v Speaker 1>him to make a copy of that check and deposit

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<v Speaker 1>the million dollar check, which I guess he eventually agreed to.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, I love that he had to be convinced

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<v Speaker 1>to deposit a million dollars. I think that's a pretty

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<v Speaker 1>good son. You have a little more money than you

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<v Speaker 1>really need. Well, here's the person who actually kind of

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<v Speaker 1>looks like an account but I never realized was trained

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<v Speaker 1>to be on And that's comedian Bob Newhart. Did you

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<v Speaker 1>know this? According to an interview, he said, I didn't

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<v Speaker 1>say to myself, oh, here's a great void to fill.

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<v Speaker 1>I'll be a balding X accountant who specializes in low

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<v Speaker 1>key humor. That's just simply what I was, so it

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<v Speaker 1>was natural for me to be that way. I should

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<v Speaker 1>really love Bob Newhart and I can kind of see

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<v Speaker 1>him being a lovable accountant. Well, apparently he wasn't very

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<v Speaker 1>good at it. I'm sure he was lovable, but not

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<v Speaker 1>good at the craft. And he said they're always seemed

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<v Speaker 1>to be shortages in the accounts he was working on,

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<v Speaker 1>and he even would chip in from his own pocket

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<v Speaker 1>just to balance the books. And his philosophy was apparently

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<v Speaker 1>close enough is good enough. Yeah, I don't think that's

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<v Speaker 1>a motto at many accounting schools. So so, speaking of

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<v Speaker 1>accountants who actually chipped in their own money, have you

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<v Speaker 1>ever heard of Bert Padell? No, so, I've never heard

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<v Speaker 1>him in either, but apparently he's name checked in a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of rap albums. He's mentioned like by Biggie and

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<v Speaker 1>Run d m C and To Leave Quilly. And actually

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<v Speaker 1>only found out about him through this article in New

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<v Speaker 1>York mag Apparently, when Sean Puffy Combs was just starting

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<v Speaker 1>out and without a job, he made an introduction to

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<v Speaker 1>Clive Davis for him. You know Clive Davis is that

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<v Speaker 1>legendary music producer, and uh he's also a little like

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<v Speaker 1>Bob Newir and that he fronted Puffy some money so

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<v Speaker 1>that he could stay in his new house as he

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<v Speaker 1>was figuring out his business. But you know, the more

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<v Speaker 1>I read about him, Padel seemed like more and more

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<v Speaker 1>of an amazing person. So I'm just gonna give you

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<v Speaker 1>some highlights. He actually started out as a bat boy

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<v Speaker 1>for the Yankees, and uh, as a kid, he was

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<v Speaker 1>this promising baseball player. In fact, he said he was

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<v Speaker 1>DiMaggio's bat boy teammate and then his business manager after

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<v Speaker 1>an injury stalled his career. But uh, he had this

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<v Speaker 1>amazing reputation just for being super honest and uh he

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<v Speaker 1>was someone who could get you out of gems and

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<v Speaker 1>really help you focus your business. So over the years

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<v Speaker 1>he moved from like DiMaggio to helping people like Pink,

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<v Speaker 1>Floyd jeth Or Tull, a bunch of other bands, and

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<v Speaker 1>uh and then when Russell Simmons started his business, he

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<v Speaker 1>actually recruited Padel to work with him. So they're all

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<v Speaker 1>these stories of the years of like Padel helping artists

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<v Speaker 1>get their money back, and uh, you know, he actually

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<v Speaker 1>Um turned his office into an early we work for

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<v Speaker 1>young hip hop artists and entrepreneurs like he He'd let

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<v Speaker 1>them work there for free and use his conference rooms

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<v Speaker 1>and whatever. But my favorite part is that one of

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<v Speaker 1>the artists he worked with said that for twenty eight years,

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<v Speaker 1>Bert would call him up early on his birthday and

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<v Speaker 1>sing him Happy Birthday. And he did this for everyone

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<v Speaker 1>he loved and believed in. Wow, that's pretty sweet. Yeah.

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<v Speaker 1>According to this book The Um, the History of Business

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<v Speaker 1>of Hip Hop, as people were exploiting these young artists,

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<v Speaker 1>he was like the person who everyone trusted, and he's

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<v Speaker 1>known as the guy who helped artists get their money right.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, one thing I hadn't thought about in a

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<v Speaker 1>while was that even villains need accountants, which is what

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<v Speaker 1>makes the Accountant story and that that's the book written

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<v Speaker 1>by Pablo Escobar's brother and chief accountant, Roberto, so interesting.

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<v Speaker 1>So the book is filled with all sorts of crazy details,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, from the ingenious methods the cartel used to

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<v Speaker 1>move that much cocaine across international lines. I was reading

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<v Speaker 1>about this. They used to fill airplane tires with coke,

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<v Speaker 1>then they'd figure out how to liquefy it. So it

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<v Speaker 1>was coming across and bottles of cooking oil and hayne

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<v Speaker 1>and whatever else. And you know, then they figured out

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<v Speaker 1>how to embed it in plastic I mean, the science

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<v Speaker 1>just nuts. But and I know, back in our Rats

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<v Speaker 1>episode we talked about how Escobar spent I think it

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<v Speaker 1>was like a month on rubber bands, just want all

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<v Speaker 1>that cash together. And you know, the Rats used to

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<v Speaker 1>eat like ten per cent of the profits, just nibbling

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<v Speaker 1>away at the cash in these warehouses. But there were

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<v Speaker 1>a few other things that I didn't know about. The

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<v Speaker 1>accounting team. So Escobar's brother managed an accounting team of

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<v Speaker 1>ten people to oversee this cash, and you kind of

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<v Speaker 1>forget that at the height of his reign, Escobar controlled

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<v Speaker 1>eighty percent of the cocaine market. Forbes actually had him

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<v Speaker 1>listed as the seventh richest person in the world, with

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<v Speaker 1>a personal fortune of over twenty five billion dollars. But

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<v Speaker 1>all that money became such a problem that they started

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<v Speaker 1>filling warehouses with the cash, than ranch buildings, than buried plots,

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<v Speaker 1>and actually started storing in the walls of anybody they knew,

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<v Speaker 1>And eventually they just started buying submarines and planes in

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<v Speaker 1>all cash d because they knew they could use them

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<v Speaker 1>and you know, in the fleets to ship their product.

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<v Speaker 1>It's just crazy. That's insanity. And it's almost more amazing

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<v Speaker 1>that there were only ten people doing all this accounting,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, for that much money. It's kind of crazy. Anyway,

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<v Speaker 1>here's a quick one that's the opposite of Escobars badass accountant.

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<v Speaker 1>Did you know that Kenny g was also an accountant?

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<v Speaker 1>So you know, we both like music. I don't think

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<v Speaker 1>either of us or Kenny g aficionados or Kenneth Bruce

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<v Speaker 1>gorelick aficionados if you go call him by his full name,

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<v Speaker 1>but I am kind of fascinated by him. Apparently he

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<v Speaker 1>was five Beta Kappa in school and graduated Magna come

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<v Speaker 1>Loud from University of Washington in accounting, and you know,

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<v Speaker 1>those skills helped him manage his money as he was

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<v Speaker 1>just starting out and then pick a really good financial

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<v Speaker 1>manager when he had more money coming in. But one

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<v Speaker 1>of the things I like about him is that he

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<v Speaker 1>actually holds the record for holding a note the longest

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<v Speaker 1>on the saxophone, and he did it for forty five minutes. No,

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<v Speaker 1>that's not possible. Minutes. Yeah, so I didn't think so either.

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<v Speaker 1>I guess he uses this technique called circular breathing. Use

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<v Speaker 1>your cheeks as a bellows and then push out air

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<v Speaker 1>as you're breathing in through your nostrils. I I don't

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<v Speaker 1>know if you saw that amazing ten minute freestyle from

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<v Speaker 1>the Roots and see Terek Trotter. Uh yeah, he was

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<v Speaker 1>just like spitting lyrics NonStop for ten minutes, and apparently

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<v Speaker 1>he used circular breathing just to keep his voice at

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<v Speaker 1>the same pitch and not run out of breath as

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<v Speaker 1>he was talking. You know, I like that there are

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<v Speaker 1>all these would be accountants who ended up doing other

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<v Speaker 1>amazing things. You've got Robert Plant, Eddie Iszard. I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>they all dropped out, but it's a pretty fun list

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<v Speaker 1>to look at. I know, I love thinking about people

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<v Speaker 1>who are almost things like priests or chaplain's like uh

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<v Speaker 1>Michael Moore, John Green, Al Gore, Casanova. You know, I

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<v Speaker 1>don't know how Casanova didn't last Divinity school. It just

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<v Speaker 1>doesn't make any sense that actually there was there was

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<v Speaker 1>one other on the account in front. Mick Jagger was

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<v Speaker 1>supposed to be an account and he's supposedly great at math.

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<v Speaker 1>He was enrolled at the you know, very prestigious London

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<v Speaker 1>School of Economics and then dropped out a year or

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<v Speaker 1>two into it just to pursue music. I guess he

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<v Speaker 1>had pretty good reason to do that. It's pretty fascinating

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<v Speaker 1>to read about. Yeah, I mean I've actually heard that

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<v Speaker 1>he's super frugal. Yeah, there's this story I think it

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<v Speaker 1>was in two and this was in Germany, and he

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<v Speaker 1>made this massive crowd wait like half an hour because

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<v Speaker 1>he wanted to count receipts and make sure that they

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<v Speaker 1>all matched up with the money that he was making

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<v Speaker 1>that night. Apparently he'd been stiffed on tour before. And

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<v Speaker 1>also there's this story that he used to negotiate really

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<v Speaker 1>really low deals on everything from house whereas the escorts,

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<v Speaker 1>and as one newspaper put it, he doesn't like paying,

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<v Speaker 1>but he especially doesn't like being overcharged. Well, we've got

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<v Speaker 1>two more account stories for you, but first a quick break.

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome back to Part Time Genius, where we're discussing the

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<v Speaker 1>tales of accounting and accounts. So, ango, what's your last

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<v Speaker 1>fact of the day. Well, I found this amazing story

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<v Speaker 1>of this mathematician who's named Yatang Jiong. I think he

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<v Speaker 1>also goes by Tom But he grew up during the

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<v Speaker 1>Cultural Revolution in China when academics were really suppressed and

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<v Speaker 1>and he had to work fields and and then he

0:11:12.559 --> 0:11:15.160
<v Speaker 1>um eventually goes to school for math and gets a PhD.

0:11:15.200 --> 0:11:18.600
<v Speaker 1>But for some reason, he's this mild mannered guy who

0:11:18.640 --> 0:11:21.120
<v Speaker 1>can't get a job. Like he works at a subway

0:11:21.160 --> 0:11:24.280
<v Speaker 1>as a sandwich artist. He uh, he delivers Chinese food.

0:11:24.400 --> 0:11:26.679
<v Speaker 1>He actually has to sleep in his car along the way.

0:11:26.720 --> 0:11:28.800
<v Speaker 1>He starts using his skills as an accountant to make

0:11:28.840 --> 0:11:31.120
<v Speaker 1>a little bit more money, and finally he works his

0:11:31.160 --> 0:11:33.640
<v Speaker 1>way up to this very low level teaching job at

0:11:33.640 --> 0:11:36.960
<v Speaker 1>the University of New Hampshire where he teaches intro to calculus.

0:11:37.320 --> 0:11:40.120
<v Speaker 1>And in fact, he's like so low level that his

0:11:40.240 --> 0:11:42.760
<v Speaker 1>bio on the school's website doesn't have a profile pick

0:11:42.800 --> 0:11:44.960
<v Speaker 1>of him like the rest of the professors there. But

0:11:45.320 --> 0:11:47.920
<v Speaker 1>the reason I think he's fascinating and you will too,

0:11:47.960 --> 0:11:50.720
<v Speaker 1>I'm sure, is that he quietly, at the age of

0:11:50.720 --> 0:11:53.319
<v Speaker 1>fifty seven or something so submits his math paper that

0:11:53.440 --> 0:11:56.920
<v Speaker 1>just blows the math world away. So the math gets

0:11:56.960 --> 0:11:59.240
<v Speaker 1>ahead of me here. But basically, there was this ancient

0:11:59.320 --> 0:12:01.920
<v Speaker 1>theory that Dave back to Greece that they're an infinite

0:12:02.000 --> 0:12:04.640
<v Speaker 1>number of prime numbers that are separated by two. So

0:12:04.640 --> 0:12:06.599
<v Speaker 1>if you think about numbers like three and five or

0:12:06.760 --> 0:12:11.520
<v Speaker 1>forty one and forty three one like along the number

0:12:11.520 --> 0:12:14.040
<v Speaker 1>lined ideas that you can find an infinite number of these.

0:12:14.080 --> 0:12:17.000
<v Speaker 1>But Jan proved that there are actually an infinite number

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<v Speaker 1>of prime numbers separated by seventy million. I know, I

0:12:21.720 --> 0:12:24.080
<v Speaker 1>I don't know why seventy million, but he's gonna ask

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<v Speaker 1>why seventy millions and no idea. But he uses something

0:12:28.240 --> 0:12:32.400
<v Speaker 1>called um bounded Gaffs conjecture, and according to Boston dot Com,

0:12:32.400 --> 0:12:34.840
<v Speaker 1>it's the first time anyone proved that they're an infinite

0:12:34.960 --> 0:12:38.520
<v Speaker 1>number of primes separated by an actual number. So this

0:12:38.679 --> 0:12:40.720
<v Speaker 1>just up ends the math world, right, Like he wins

0:12:40.720 --> 0:12:43.559
<v Speaker 1>at MacArthur Genius Prize and all this other stuff. But

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<v Speaker 1>the thing that really blows me away is that he

0:12:46.720 --> 0:12:48.880
<v Speaker 1>never actually uses a computer to do any of this.

0:12:49.320 --> 0:12:51.360
<v Speaker 1>He just thinks the stuff up and works it out

0:12:51.400 --> 0:12:53.559
<v Speaker 1>with a pencil and paper, And the only time he

0:12:53.640 --> 0:12:56.320
<v Speaker 1>used a computer in this entire process was to type

0:12:56.360 --> 0:12:59.840
<v Speaker 1>up the paper to submit it. And he also forgets

0:12:59.840 --> 0:13:01.840
<v Speaker 1>to him his hair and his wife has to remind

0:13:01.960 --> 0:13:05.600
<v Speaker 1>him before he takes photos. I just I just love him.

0:13:05.600 --> 0:13:10.000
<v Speaker 1>He's extra little fact there. Although I probably would have

0:13:10.040 --> 0:13:12.600
<v Speaker 1>predicted that anybody that was able to figure that out

0:13:12.640 --> 0:13:15.480
<v Speaker 1>about the seventy million gap might not comb their hair.

0:13:15.520 --> 0:13:17.400
<v Speaker 1>I don't know why I say that, but I just did.

0:13:18.080 --> 0:13:19.640
<v Speaker 1>All right, Well, I'm gonna end this with a really

0:13:19.679 --> 0:13:22.200
<v Speaker 1>simple story that's from accounting history, and it's a guy

0:13:22.280 --> 0:13:26.440
<v Speaker 1>named Luca Paccioli. And there are records of accountants before Luca.

0:13:26.520 --> 0:13:29.400
<v Speaker 1>You know, the Mesopotamians kept records of taxes on sheep,

0:13:29.520 --> 0:13:33.240
<v Speaker 1>and supposedly they invented the idea of receipts. But Luca

0:13:33.280 --> 0:13:35.840
<v Speaker 1>is interesting because he was a friar in medieval Italy

0:13:36.240 --> 0:13:39.080
<v Speaker 1>and he's the person who convinced society to use ledgers.

0:13:39.480 --> 0:13:41.360
<v Speaker 1>So apparently he said that a person shouldn't go to

0:13:41.360 --> 0:13:44.240
<v Speaker 1>sleep at night until their debits and their credits are equal,

0:13:44.559 --> 0:13:47.559
<v Speaker 1>so basically keeping a balanced book. And he's remembered as

0:13:47.600 --> 0:13:50.679
<v Speaker 1>the father of accounting. But just the fact that our

0:13:50.720 --> 0:13:53.320
<v Speaker 1>pal Lisa has balanced our books and allowed us to

0:13:53.360 --> 0:13:55.719
<v Speaker 1>go to sleep so soundly every night, or you know,

0:13:55.760 --> 0:13:57.640
<v Speaker 1>at least on the nights that we weren't pulling on

0:13:58.679 --> 0:14:01.640
<v Speaker 1>that seems like reason enough to include it. Yeah, I

0:14:01.640 --> 0:14:03.520
<v Speaker 1>think instead of choosing a winner this week, let's just

0:14:03.600 --> 0:14:06.120
<v Speaker 1>leave it at that. That sounds good to me. Well,

0:14:06.160 --> 0:14:07.960
<v Speaker 1>thank you guys so much for listening. We'll be back

0:14:07.960 --> 0:14:10.640
<v Speaker 1>with a full length episode tomorrow. H