. He was famed for making and losing several multi-million dollar fortunes and short selling
during the stock market crash
es in 1907
and 1929
.
Born in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts
, Jesse Livermore started his trading career at the age of fourteen. He ran away from home with his mother's blessing to escape a life of farming his father intended for him.
"In a bull market|bull market your game is to buy and hold until you believe that the bull market is near its end."
"My dear boy," said old Partridge, in great distress "my dear boy, if I sold that stock|stock now I'd lose my securities position|position; and then where would I be?"
"It never was my thinking that made the big money for me. It always was my sitting. Got that? My sitting tight!"
"Men who can both be right and sit tight are uncommon."
"The market does not beat them. They beat themselves, because though they have brains they cannot sit tight."
"He really meant to tell them that the big money was not in the individual fluctuations but in the main trend|movements that is, not in reading the tape but in sizing up the entire market and its trend."
"Obviously the thing to do was to be bullish in a bull market|bull market and bearish in a bear market|bear market."
"When your security (finance)|security is acting right, you can safely add to your line from then forward!"
"When I buy stocks for a rise I like to pay top prices and when I sell I must sell low or not at all."
"When this happens I sell the stock short that is, technically. In other words, I sell more stock than I actually hold."