Felix G. Rohatyn

"standing in Mr.—throughout our decades together I would always address him as either “Mr.” or “monsieur”—Meyer’s office, meeting him for the first time, I immediately understood the rebuke in his question. After two months at the firm, I had received a raise to $50 a week. Yet I had not thought to write him a letter of thanks. This was not how “family” members were expected to behave."

"in the winter of 1950 I received my draft notice. A year earlier I had become, to my immense joy and pride, an American citizen. I had wrapped my Polish passport in a pink ribbon and sent it back to the Polish embassy. The Korean War had begun, and I considered it a privilege to serve in the army of my new homeland."

"I also told the governor that we should instruct the New York bank superintendent to keep one bank open beyond the normal 3 P.M. closing time. My thought was that if Shanker waited until the last minute to agree, we’d need to have a bank ready to receive the funds. After a conversation with Carey, the state bank superintendent, John Heimann, instructed Manufacturers Hanover to remain open until midnight. To make sure that this “after hours” strategy was actually practical, I called Judge Rifkind and asked for a legal opinion. Did New York have until midnight to pay off its notes rather than the usual bank closing time at 3 P.M.? Rifkind, to my great satisfaction, concurred that default for nonpayment would not occur until the end of the entire day."

"“Geneen’s law”: “Don’t wait until you get all the facts, because by then it will be too late.”"