Gregory Namoff

Gregory Namoff (Born February 26, 1924 in Great Neck, New York) (Died October 12, 2002 in Boca Raton, Florida) was an internationally recognized investment banker .

Namoff was a child of the Great Depression and took a $2 bet on James Braddock to international fame as an investment banker. Namoff invested heavily in US War bonds in World War II and served in the conflict in the Pacific theatre. When he returned to the US, Namoff started a banking firm on Wall Street, relying heavily on pharmaceutical and construction stocks. In 1974 Namoff was implicated in the Watergate scandal, but was never found guilty of any charges. In the early 1980s, Namoff shifted his focus to computers, which he correctly thought would be the key to the future. With heavy investments in Apple Computer and Microsoft, Namoff sold his company, GN Limited, to what is now SolomonSmithBarney in 1990.

Namoff retired to Florida where he unsuccessfully ran for the US Senate against Bob Graham in 1998. Namoff was ahead in the polls at one point but eventually lost to Graham when he ran a smear campaign against Namoff, tying him to Nixon and Watergate again. Namoff then quietly retired, only making rare public appearances on his fishing boat "Braddock" as a tribute to his idol and what he considered his good luck charm. Namoff died in 2002 due to lupus erythematosus.