In this episode, Cole and Bill are joined by Perry Mehrling, author of the book, Money and Empire. Mehrling’s work tracks the life of Charles P. Kindleberger, an international economist from the twentieth century, whose deep interest in history and economics fed his appetite to learn how the global financial system worked. The conversation covers Kindleberger’s background and upbringing, his experiences in the world of finance, and understanding the current dollar framework of the world.

CNBC Senior Markets Correspondent Bob Pisani joins Cole and Bill to discuss his book, Shut Up and Keep Talking. Bob’s book is a collection of real-life stories and firsthand encounters over the course of his 33-year career in the financial industry. The conversation covers Bob’s time as a journalist, the technological evolution of the New York Stock Exchange, the major players and key investors Bob has come across, and the many investing lessons he’s learned along the way.

Author Amity Shlaes joined Bill and Cole for a live podcast recording at the 2023 Smead Investor Oasis to discuss her new book, Great Society. During their conversation, they discuss comparisons between the failure of the Great Society’s idealism of the 1960s and today's challenges. The conversation covers topics such as socialism, capitalism and today’s relevance to the thoughtless idealism of political leaders in history.

If you’re really in favor of more abundant resources, then you really have to be in favor of people having the freedom to innovate, discover, share, and consume knowledge.” Author Gale Pooley joins Cole to discuss his book, Superabundance: The Story of Population Growth, Innovation, and Human Flourishing on an Infinitely Bountiful Planet. Along with co-author Marian Tupy, Gale’s research explores the way, contrary to popular belief, resources have become more abundant as the world’s population has grown. The conversation covers “time prices”, climate change, and how more people leads to more innovation.

Cole and Bill kickoff season two with author Robert Hagstrom to discuss his book, Warren Buffett: Inside the Ultimate Money Mind. Hagstrom’s work explores the philosophical and mental aspects that helped shape Buffett and allowed him to become one of the world’s most successful investors. The conversation touches on Buffett’s upbringing, his investment ideology, and how he reached his many achievements.

Interested in what is on the Smead Capital Management book list? Listen in to hear Cole and Bill list the books they have recently read, what they’re currently reading, and the books they have on deck. Have a book you would like to recommend for the podcast? Email suggestions to [email protected].

“If the vice of greed is the bane of capitalism, then the vice of socialism is envy.”Catholic priest Robert Sirico sits down with Cole and Bill to discuss his book, The Economics of the Parables. Rev. Sirico’s work highlights the economic and biblical wisdom derived from the parables with a modern spin. The conversation covers helping the poor, building wealth, and the many life lessons this timeless collection can teach.

“The commitment and the patience that you need are two of the real attributes of proper investment.”In this episode, author and value investor Richard Oldfield joins Cole to discuss his book, Simple But Not Easy: A Practitioner's Guide to the Art of Investing. Richard’s book provides investors a commonsense approach to investing and provides stock pickers, of all experience levels, with ways to model their decisions. The conversation covers stocks vs. bonds, hedge funds, market conditions, the art of value investing and more.

“I’ll never forget the day I found out my sons were degenerates.”Spencer Jakab of The Wall Street Journal joins Cole and Bill to discuss his book, The Revolution That Wasn't: GameStop, Reddit, and the Fleecing of Small Investors. Jakab’s work explores the GameStop saga and how the modern-day squeeze unraveled. The trio discusses the characters involved in the mania, the role smart phones played, how the financial industry underestimated the power of algorithmic social media, as well as the real winners and losers of it all.

“The smarter people knew that if Gould was coming after them, it was better to negotiate a peace rather than fighting to the bitter end.”Author and journalist Greg Steinmetz joins Cole and Bill to discuss his book, American Rascal: How Jay Gould Built Wall Street's Biggest Fortune. Greg’s book details the life of Jay Gould, one of the most polarizing robber barons of the 19th century. The conversation covers Gould’s early business ventures, his path to becoming a railroad tycoon, and how he ultimately became the man who controlled Wall Street.

Political speechwriter Jeff Nussbaum joins Cole to discuss his book, Undelivered: The Never-Heard Speeches That Would Have Rewritten History. Almost every given speech in history had a raw opposite that went undelivered. Jeff’s work provides an in-depth look into the noteworthy and captivating speeches that would have altered the course of history, had they ever been spoken out loud. Jeff and Cole examine the undelivered speeches by historic figures like Helen Keller, Richard Nixon, John F. Kennedy, and more. They explore why those speeches stayed on paper, and the alternate outcomes that would have resulted had they been given.

In this episode, Cole is joined by Sir Howard Davies, author of the book, The Chancellors: Steering the British Economy in Crisis Times. Howard’s book reexamines the last 25 years of British economic history and the role the Treasury has played. Cole and Howard discuss the issues that struck the Treasury, some of the notable names involved, and solutions moving forward.

“There was an overwhelming feeling of melancholy, of loss, that they could never adjust to.”Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author Helen Rappaport joins Cole to discuss her book, After the Romanovs: Russian Exiles in Paris from the Belle Époque Through Revolution and War. Helen’s work details the Russian aristocrats, artists, writers, philosophers, and intellectuals who searched for refuge in Paris after the revolution of 1917 and during the civil war that followed. Cole and Helen discuss how the Russian immigrants assimilated to life in France and the struggles they endured.

“At the end of the day, money is what was most important to John D. Rockefeller.”Peter Doran joins the podcast to discuss his book, Breaking Rockefeller: The Incredible Story of the Ambitious Rivals Who Toppled an Oil Empire. Peter’s work takes a deep dive into the growth of the oil industry, how John D. Rockefeller grabbed control and built a worldwide monopoly, the underdogs who joined forces to defeat him, and how greed played a crucial role. The group also examines the issues prompted by the consolidation of capital and the importance of competition in America.

Interested in what’s on the Smead Capital Management book list? In this episode, Cole, Bill, and Senior Analyst Seamus Sullivan list the books they have recently read, what they’re currently reading, and the books they have on deck. Have a book you would like to recommend for the podcast? Email suggestions to [email protected].

Matthew Bernstein joins Cole to discuss his book, George Hearst: Silver King of the Gilded Age. Matthew’s book examines Hearst’s unique path to building a mining empire, his career in politics, a quest for wealth, and the many life lessons that can be learned from it all. Cole says, “This is a book that helps investors understand how money can be made when it’s not being printed in Washington D.C. or New York.”

Through the lens of Karen Southwick’s book, High Noon, Cole is joined by former Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy to explore the author’s work and the company’s history. Scott was with Sun Microsystems as COO “In the Beginning.” In this episode, the podcast takes on an alternative format known as “In the Beginning” where we have a discussion with a founder/early executive from the foundation of a book about the company. Karen’s book highlights Sun’s ascent to power and the crucial role McNealy played. Cole and Scott discuss Sun’s early stages, its growing pains, disputes with Microsoft, and how it became a company that helped develop the internet.

To understand the bond market, you have to understand the Bond King. In this episode, Mary Childs joins Cole and Bill to discuss her book, The Bond King: How One Man Made a Market, Built an Empire, and Lost It All. Mary’s book explores the rise of Bill Gross, how he shaped the inner workings of the investment business and bond industry, and the culture at one of the world’s largest money management firms. The book also serves as a vessel to understanding the bond bull market that began in the early 1980s.

In this episode, Cole is joined by Ed Larson author of the book, To the Edges of the Earth: 1909, the Race for the Three Poles, and the Climax of the Age of Exploration. Ed’s book takes a deep dive into the famous explorers who raced to reach some of the world’s most extreme destinations in 1909. It’s a story about the human spirit, an adventure into the unknown, and the journey to get there.

"Fire can be destructive. It can also be useful. The same, we think, is true with bubbles.” In this episode, Cole is joined by William Quinn and John D. Turner, authors of the book Boom and Bust: A Global History of Financial Bubbles. The trio discuss the history of financial bubbles, how they’re created, why bubbles aren’t always destructive, and how to spot a bubble when you’re in the middle of one.

Will Google and its technologies always have the importance they do in our lives? In this episode, Cole Smead tries to answer that question with George Gilder, author of Life After Google: The Fall of Big Data and the Rise of the Blockchain Economy. Cole and George discuss artificial intelligence, the evolution of technology, the future of computer sciences, and the important role knowledge and order play in our lives.

Interested in what is on the Smead Capital Management book list? In this episode, Cole and Bill list the books they have recently read, what they’re currently reading, and the books they have on deck. Have a book you would like to recommend for the podcast? Email suggestions to [email protected].

In this episode, Cole and Bill are joined by Lauren Templeton co-author of the book, Investing the Templeton Way: The Market-Beating Strategies of Value Investing's Legendary Bargain Hunter. Lauren discusses the life of her great uncle and famed investor Sir John Templeton, how he capitalized on buying at the point of maximum pessimism, and his route to becoming known as one of the greatest stock pickers in history.

Are surgeons psychopaths? In this episode, Cole Smead is joined by Thomas Morris, author of the book The Matter of the Heart: A History of the Heart in Eleven Operations. Thomas’ book explains how eleven milestone procedures set the stage for ‘The Golden Age of Heart Surgery’, ultimately leading to an extraordinary period of innovation, ingenuity, and a deep understanding of the heart.

All learning is pattern recognition. In this episode, Cole and Bill are joined by Robert G. Hagstrom, author of the book Investing: The Last Liberal Art. Robert explains how achieving worldly wisdom can allow investors the opportunity to recognize patterns in wide-ranging fields of study to gain market insight through a broader lens.

Carry trades have existed since the beginning of time. Rarely have we run into periods like today that have caused so many investors to be seemingly smart.In this episode, Cole Smead sits down with Kevin Coldiron, co-author of the book The Rise of Carry: The Dangerous Consequences of Volatility Suppression and the New Financial Order of Decaying Growth and Recurring Crisis to discuss what carry trades are, the constancy of them and how today's carry regime shapes the complex world of finance. 

Financial success and frontier exploration, but at what cost? In this episode, Cole is joined by Peter Stark, author of the book Astoria, to discuss America’s first millionaire, John Jacob Astor, and his public-private partnership strategy with Thomas Jefferson to open the North American west coast to global trade.

As the world becomes more energy efficient, demand will always remain high. In this episode, Cole and Bill Smead speak with Mark Mills, co-author of the book The Bottomless Well: The Twilight of Fuel, The Virtue of Waste and Why We Will Never Run Out Of Energy. Mark explains why demand for energy will never drop and how supply is limitless.

The stock market crash of 1929 will forever be considered one of the darkest hours of the U.S. economy. Decades later, many economists are still searching for the exact reasons as to why it happened.In this episode, Cole and Bill Smead sit down with Amity Shlaes, the author of the book The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression. Amity’s book takes a deep dive into possible causes of the Great Depression and the people who were responsible for the market’s collapse.

News wasn’t always readily available at the click of a button. Ted Turner forever changed that in 1980 when he brought the Cable News Network to life. In this episode, hosts Cole and Bill Smead are joined by Lisa Napoli, author of the book Up All Night: Ted Turner, CNN and the Birth of 24-Hour News. Lisa shares incredible insight into the life of Ted Turner and how the media mogul rolled the dice with the launch of CNN. She also discusses the evolution of cable news, its transition from “pure-play journalism” to “theatrics”, and what the 24-hour news cycle might look like in the future.