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W. C. Fields
Because of his lingering frustration about movies, Fields decided to move to Hollywood in 1931. He had no contract, but at fifty-one, he was a multiple success in the entertainment world, he had saved a great deal of money for a runaway who spent his young years sleeping in boxes and barrels, and he had limitless faith in his ability. Contrary to nearly all the published reports, Fields survived the crash of the stock market in good order. His survival was, in fact, assured, since he owned no stocks or bonds. There is even room for the belief that he welcomed the market's collapse with a certain selfish glee. In essence, he viewed it as an excellent method for making people think he was penniless. Always thereafter in interviews he took pains to mention the devastating sag in his fortune occasioned by the fiasco of 1929. "I was wiped out," he would say, and look bitter and gloomy.
The most reliable private sources do agree, however, that Fields was subsequently nipped by the deceitful advice of a New York bank official. It is a shocking story, and unquestionably true. The banker came to Fields during the thickest pressure of the Wall Street break and said, "I'm going to let you in on some of our preferred stock — it's a giveaway at this price." Despite his prudence about investments, Fields had always an eye for a bargain, particularly if it carried a slight stigma of slyness, and he bought twenty-five thousand dollars' worth of the stock. At noon the next day, newspapers were ablaze with accounts of the bank's failure. The stock carried the clause for double jeopardy, as bank stock often did, and Fields was obliged to pay over an additional $25,000. His loss — $50,000 in a few days — did little to make him feel more trustful of bankers, brokers, or other financial advisers. He never speculated in any form again.
Besides the heavy penalties for his incautious plunge, he lost an additional sum on deposit in the rump-sprung institution. But he had impressive accounts elsewhere, and he gathered many of
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