52 Ancestors: At Work

Labor Day weekend is always tough for me.  My dad, Gordon Levy, was one of the hardest working people I knew.  Between his "real" job as a stock broker or his many, many volunteer activities, it seems like there were many days in our childhood where we didn't see him - he was always off before we woke up and often times didn't get home until we were tucked in for the night.  But I know he loved every minute of it and wouldn't have had it any other way.

I've written almost every year about Dad on this weekend.  Why?  Because, my "workaholic" dad died on Labor Day, September 5, 2005.  I think the "day" gets to me more than the "date" as I can remember every detail from that day starting at 4:00 p.m. when I got "the" call.  Sometimes when I really miss my dad, I go back and read some of my previous posts.  2017  2016  2015  2011

With the exception of 10 years, Dad spent his entire working career with Dean Witter.  I know during the years the name changed along the way but it was always, always Dean Witter.  As kids we loved Dean Witter, even though I'm not sure we really understood what it was all about, and we "hated" their competitor, Merrill Lynch.

I've learned that Dean Witter founded the business in 1924 with his brother, Guy Witter, and cousins Jean and Ed Witter.  I believe there was a fifth individual involved, Fritz Janney.  In 1928 they purchased a seat on the San Francisco Stock Exchange and in 1928, joined the New York Stock Exchange.  And although they were a new business, they were able to survive the crash of 1929 and the Great Depression.

Dad joined Dean Witter in 1951 in San Jose, California.  I remember they were located at 34 N. First Street but I'm not sure if that's where they were located when Dad joined the business.

In August, 1959, Dad was appointed manager.  I was a little too young to remember it but I'm sure it called for quite a celebration - not a bad gig for a man in his early 30's.

Oakland Tribune, August 28, 1959, page 50

And then, just 5 years later, he was named managing partner.

Fresno Bee Republican
February 2, 1964
Page 93

Gordon F. Levy, manager of the firm's San Jose office and a former Fresnan, has been admitted as general partner.  He has been a manager since 1959 and will continue in this capacity.  Levy received the Young Man of the Year award in 1960 and in 1962 was honored with the distinguished citizen award in San Jose.

One of my favorite memories of Dean Witter was the Boardmarker, who at that time was Taz (or was it Taj?).  Of course I don't have a photo other than the vivid one etched in my mind but she spent her days something like this.  Can you even imagine getting the stock quotes like that?

During a speech to his Rotary club in 1999. Dad described his early years at Dean Witter like this:

Dean Witter was my career until 1974 -- I was the branch manager for 11 of those years, and I can recall when I came here in 1951, the Dow Jones Average was around 240 (now over 11,000), we did not have quote machines, copying machines, FAX machines, computers, cell phones, barely any TV -- instant communications were a thing for the future.  We had a boardmarker to keep stock quotes up to date with chalk, but EF Hutton put in an electric board to show us the wave of the future.  There was no Microsoft, Yahoo or Apple -- everyone was looking for the next IBM, and they sprouted up all around us.

I remember Dad telling me the story of trying to get his retirement benefits after his move back to Dean Witter in the 1980's.  He was asked for something to prove he had been employed there previously - an old pay stub or something - and believe it or not, my packrat father couldn't come up with anything.  But wait!  What about the photo he had of him standing with Dean Witter shaking hands.  I'm sure the photo had some proof of his employment because it worked and his retirement benefits were re-instated.

Another favorite story of his was later in his career when an older woman strolled into their office.  She looked very disheveled as she walked around the office without anyone paying attention to her.  Finally, Dad stood up and walked over to her and asked if he could help her.  "Why yes, young man, I have several hundred thousand dollars I'd like to invest and since you asked, I'd like you to do it for me".  Okay, so maybe I have the details off a little but the point was, he'd remind us, never ignore someone who might need some help no matter what they looked like or what their economic status might be.

Oh boy, would he love the excitement of the stock market today!  Although my husband and I often comment on a particularly ugly day that we're glad Dad wasn't around to witness THAT.

I've run across a few things from his Dean Witter days.  I'm sure my grandparents were happy to have their own 'private' broker to manage their transactions.

I remember as we cleaned out his office finding a bunch of scratch pads.  I've always been a bit sentimental (and have a bit of the 'save everything' mentality that has been passed down from my parents and grandparents) so I hung on to one of the pads just because.  I don't think I will ever bring myself to use one of the papers but it's fun to have it around.

Ah Dad, we miss you every day but Labor Day sure is a tough day!

Gordon Levy, c. 1960