Position Wanted – Credit
Work Remotely or Relocate for Right Opportunity

                   
Silverton, Oregon  “Will work remotely:”
30 years’ experience, 20 for others and 10 as a broker. Intelligent, innovative and usually exceeded quotas. Have worked most asset and credit types, indirect (vendor and syndications) as well as direct, mainly mid to large ticket. Cross-border and international experience.  Most recently focused on renewable energy and energy efficiency, which remain underserviced as to financing options. I live in Oregon, not interested in relocation (unless it is international), but any level of travel is fine. Dual USA/Canada citizenship. Looking for base salary plus upside, open to any reasonable options.
Rob Aldridge. raldridge@energyfinance.co 

Each Week Leasing News is pleased, as a service to its readership, to offer completely free ads placed by candidates for jobs in the industry. These ads also can be accessed directly on the website at: http://www.leasingnews.org/Classified/Jwanted/Jwanted.htm

Each ad is limited to (100) words and ads repeat for up to 6 months unless the candidate tells us to stop. Your submissions should be received here by the end of each week.

Please encourage friends and colleagues to take advantage of this service, including recent graduates and others interested in leasing and related careers. 

 

 

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Top Stories
August 20 - August 24

(1) Ascentium – MHT Class Action Settlement
               Approved By Texas Court
By Tom McCurnin, Leasing News Legal Editor
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2018/08_20.htm#asc

(2) The Deception of Leasing
    California SB 1235
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2018/08_22.htm#deception

(3) Senator Glazer’s SB 1235 Moves Forward
           with Minor Changes
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2018/08_24.htm#senator

(4) August 20, 2008
  Paul Menzel, CLP, says “Goodbye”
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2018/08_20.htm#820

(5) New Hires/Promotions in the Leasing Business
          and Related Industries
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2018/08_24.htm#hires

(6) California Supreme Court Allows Trial Courts to
Determine Unconscionability of Consumer Interest
   Rates Even When Rate is Lawful
  By Tom McCurnin, Leasing News Legal Editor
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2018/08_22.htm#california

(7) California Interest Rate Disclosure Near Passage
     By Barry Marks, Esq., CLFP
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2018/08_22.htm#rate

(8) California Interest Rate Disclosure Law
   By Barry S. Marks, Esq., CLFP
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2018/08_20.htm#california

(9) Commercial Financing Expo to host over 50 exhibitors
    in Dallas, September 6-7
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2018/08_22.htm#expo

(10) Commercial Alternative Finance Company List
  OnDeck, Rapid Advance, Channel Partners Capital
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Aug2018/08_20.htm#comm

 

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Lease Blind Discounts

By Tom McCurnin
Leasing News Legal Editor

An Old School Tactic Where Lender Negotiates a Different Price For the Equipment
and Doesn’t Tell the Borrower. Is the Practice Legal?

http://www.leasingnews.org/photos/Tom_sig.jpg

(This actually relates to a major case coming up in September with Leasing News readers’ favorite leasing company. It regards a “subsidy discount,” also perhaps better known as a “blind discount.” Mr. McCurnin was asked to research this as being legal or not legal. Editor).

I was asked to examine the procedure of blind discounts, also known as a “buy down discount” with reference to its practice and legality. I’m old enough to remember back in the 1980s, when in April the prime climbed to 20%, an equipment finance company would offer interest free loans. Officially, the way 0% financing works is there is a blind discount to the customer that the seller of the equipment either overcharges on the invoice or discounts to the finance company for an apparent rate of 0%. There is no free lunch, so either the Vendor, the Borrower, or the Lender eats the discount.  It tends to be that the Borrower unknowingly eats the discount. 

Put another way, if the Vendor is selling a truck at 0% to the customer to be financed by an equipment finance company, the Vendors needs to first decide whether to raise the invoice price or take a hit on its profit. The typical procedure is to advertise an inflated cash price, then the Vendor works out a deal with the Lender to discount the price of the equipment. The Lender finances the equipment on the inflated cash price, but only pays the Vendor the discounted price. The Lender pockets the difference between the phony cash price and the discounted price as its profit. 

The question for me was whether this practice is legal in the equipment finance world.  Certainly, if the Lender wants to be a good Joe and negotiate a better price for the equipment, that is not only legal, but commendable.  The issue is then financing the equipment at the inflated phony price without disclosure to the Borrower. 

The programs I can recall from the 1980s used blind discounts in a vendor program to offset against portfolio losses, and no disclosure was made to the borrower. However, during the last few years, many states have required Lenders to make full disclosure of the charges (principal, interest, and payment amounts) made on behalf of a Borrower. 

California requires all charges made to a borrower to be accurate and based only upon the monies actually advanced by the Lender.  California Administrative Code10 CCR § 1457.  The term “charges” includes any fee or discount.  Cal Financial Code § 22500. Cal Financial Code § 22161 makes it unlawful for any licensee to misrepresent or conceal any material aspect or information regarding a transaction to which the person is a party. This same section makes it unlawful for a licensee to commit an unconscionable act of Civil Code § 1695.13. An unconscionable act is one that is illegal. 

Therefore, I have concluded that blind discounts are illegal under California law unless the Borrower receives disclosure of the blind discount and consents to the paying for the equipment based on the phony price. 

In essence, free financing is not so free – someone is always paying for it. If the Vendor is taking a hit on profit to offer free financing and it is disclosed to the Borrower, then the Borrower should take it. The opposing side of this coin is that the Vendor is merely using free financing as a sales tool and raising the invoice price of the equipment beyond what is considered fair market value. The bottom line is that 0% financing is not so free – someone is always paying for it. 

What are the takeaways here?

• First, Blind Discounting Is An Obsolete Sales Gimmick. While blind discounting was a clever idea in the 1980s, it serves no purpose presently, except as a sales gimmick. I believe it is illegal

• Second, Blind Discounting is Potentially Illegal. California law requires Lenders to make charges based only upon the actual amount advanced. If the amount advanced to the Vendor is less than phony cash price, then the blind discount is illegal. Of course, the Borrower can consent to the practice, as the discount may be a better deal than three to five years of interest payments. 

• Third, Blind Discounts Open Up Tax Problems For the Borrower. Clearly the Borrower can depreciate the purchased equipment. But at what basis? I would think the IRS would take a dim view of depreciating an asset at a phony price. In addition, the Borrower would have to pay sales tax. Again, at what basis? If the Lender doesn’t inform the Borrower of the actual price, then the Borrower is at risk for tax penalties. Does the Lender want to be complicit with tax fraud?

The bottom line to blind discounts is that they are an obsolete sales marketing tool for free interest, which is arguably illegal. There is no free lunch.

Tom McCurnin is a partner at Barton, Klugman & Oetting in Los Angeles, California.

 

Tom McCurnin
Barton, Klugman & Oetting
350 South Grand Ave.
Suite 2200
Los Angeles, CA 90071
Direct Phone: (213) 617-6129
Cell (213) 268-8291
Email: tmccurnin@bkolaw.com
Visit our web site at www.bkolaw.com
Previous Tom McCurnin Articles:
http://www.leasingnews.org

Previous Tom McCurnin Articles:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/leasing_cases.html

 

Positions Available in Chicago, Illinois Area
Apply Now

Byline Financial Group Bannockburn, Illinois Positions Open Customer Service Repesentative  Credit Administrator    Sales Coordinator (Click on position to learn more) bylinebank.com/byline-financial-group/ Byline Financial Group, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Byline Bank, Member FDIC

 

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Sales Makes it Happen
by Leasing News Readers

Sales Techniques Learned by Top Salespeople

These are sales techniques sent in by readers from time-to-time in reaction to many of the "Sales Makes it Happen" columns. They were all received "off the record." They are not in chronological order or in any special order, meaning more important than another. If you care to add to the next group that is published: kitmenkin@leasingnews.org

"When a customer asks what is the best rate or term to get the best rate, I always go into letting them know, if they are going to write off the payments, the shorter the term, the better the write-off but, the higher the monthly payment. Whether they are going to depreciate or write-it off is up to them and their accountant ---and I try not to give advice. The idea is to move from rate to monthly payment. Once they are at this point, I give them a 36 month, 48 months and 60 month quote. The attention this is to the monthly payment, not the rate. "

"When I am asked to compare a rate with another quote, I try to move the customer to another term, talking about a shorter term being good to get the lease over with, but the longer term is a lower payment. Most often the quote comparison goes into a 36 or 60 month quote. If I can find out the quote, it is better that I give a slightly lower rate, and then go back to the shorter time period versus the longer time period. When the customer seems undecided as to what is best for him, I move him into a 48 month  term, which he does not have, and tell him it is a compromise between the higher payment and the lower payment, the best of both worlds, and it is the safest for him."

"My goal is to get the customer to talk more about the equipment that he wants to lease and why he needs it. The more he realizes the value and what it will do for the company, the more important it becomes to him to acquire it. I also don't look at returning to the customer as being afraid he is going to ask more questions, or go back to pricing, but as an opportunity to learn more about his business, the equipment, his goals, and try to move him into a Master Lease where he can draw down upon it and be more concerned and spend more time running his company. "

"This is something that has always worked for me, if I work out a quote, I think about what Wal-Mart and other retailers do. If it is $402 a month, I make it $398.98. If it is $310 a month, I move it to $295, first and last two, taking two months as a security deposit and billing for the first month, when the equipment is delivered and accepted. This works especially when delivery will not be for a few weeks or longer."

"I will try and make the payment more like a retailer, instead of a number. For instance if it is $272.89, I will make it $274.10 or $372.05. I have found the number that stays in their head is the cents number. Over the years, I can move the dollar up, and the cents down, and win the deal every time."

"I often go in with a high 36 month quote, knowing they won't take it, but if they do, it is a higher commission, as I have found they look primarily at the 60 month rate. I always give the 60 month rate the lowest I can, and make the 48 month the better of the two as the numbers work to the applicant's advantage. I move them away from the shorter term to an in-between period. Works all the time for me."

"The numbers are important, meaning $249.00 a month is better than $251 a month, or $810 is not as good as $798.00. Often the lessee realizes that the price is being changed, and I tell them I wanted it below $800, as that was too high, but $798 is okay."

"When I dealing with a tough customer who wants to negotiate, I let him know that in the beginning I know he wants the best rate. I recognize right away he wants the lowest rate, so first I get an approval, which may take financials and a package, and when I get the approval, I tell him, I know you wanted the best rate, and I don't control the rate, but I got my bank (or credit committee) or company to give you the pricing for over $50,000, although this is $38,000. If the equipment is $75,000, I got the pricing for leases over $100,000. It's the best I can do."

"Never lower your rate. If you start negotiating, you will lose. Certain "characters" always want to barter, it's in their culture. If you know you are going into this type of situation, go in with a FMV or 10% residual (using a $1.00 rate factor.) Even if they want $1.00 in the beginning, quote with a FMV or 10% residual. Most likely they will reject the monthly payment no matter what it is, but when you come back, you tell them again, you don't control the rate, but you got your company to waive the 10% residual. You got your company to do the deal with the same monthly payment, but with a $1.00 purchase option."

"Don't laugh, but I think my customers can read my mind. When I meet with them, I try to have a positive thought. In my mind, I purposely think: "This is the best I can do for you." “I like you." "I am proud to be helping you." "I am doing the best I can."---Never negative, never not doing the best I can, and when I leave, I always make it a positive thought to say, "What a great guy." "What a great company." "I did the best I could for him." Being positive in my thought as I really think my customers can read what I am thinking."

Previous "Sales makes it Happen" Columns: 
http://www.leasingnews.org/Legacy/index.html

 

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Equipment Leasing Books

---

Equipment Leasing in Canada

Hugh Swandel, Senior Managing Director-Canada, The Alta Group, recommends, noting, "It was great to be asked to contribute to this new book on equipment financing in Canada. It is now the most current source of  information you can get on all aspects of the Canadian industry. Jon Fleisher has coordinated contributions from an all star team of authors."

Available for $195 as Preorder:
https://store.lexisnexis.ca/en/categories/shop-by-jurisdiction/federal-13/equipment-financing-in-canada-skusku-cad-6692/details

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Scott A. Wheeler, CLFP, a thirty-four year veteran in the commercial equipment leasing and finance industry, has compiled his favorite sales tips into an easy-to-read format for veteran and novice commercial equipment leasing and finance professionals.

"'Call to Action,' 134 pages, is designed to assist individuals to think outside of their current comfort zone, to increase their productivity, and to enhance their personal value proposition," Scott Wheeler explains. "Each chapter in this book touches upon a significant area in the finance and leasing industry. The sales tips are followed by call to action exercises to stimulate group discussions and individual reflection.

"Professionals throughout the equipment finance and leasing industry will benefit greatly from using this book as a reference guide and workbook for self-improvement."

$19.95 at Amazon

A portion of each sale will be donated to the Chris Walker Educational Fund – dedicated to the education of professionals in the commercial equipment leasing and finance industry.

Scott is a well-known author for several leasing publications, including Leasing News, plus issues a weekly newsletter as well as conducts a school for training entrepreneurs to become independent leasing brokers.

Scott A. Wheeler, CLFP
Wheeler Business Consulting
1314 Marquis Ct.
Fallston, Maryland 21047
Phone: 410 877 0428
Fax: 410 877 8161
Email: scott@wheelerbusinessconsulting.com
Web: www.wheelerbusinessconsulting.com

---

 

Written by a team from the IAA-Advisory Group in the United Kingdom. Chairman is Derek Soper.

"The book is handsome with 142 very readable pages. This book, mainly targeted at new entrants whether countries, sectors or individuals, examines the features of all the component parts of this business and explains each without the complication of local environments. This gives the reader the basic knowledge to grow the various financial products within their own jurisdiction and shape them to suit their customer’s requirements."

Table of Contents
Preface 
chapter one: The value of leasing and its impact on markets 
chapter two: What is this thing called leasing? 
chapter three: The commercial framework for leasing 
chapter four: financial terms 
chapter five: risk & Pricing 
chapter six: Lease funding 
chapter seven: Lease accounting 
chapter eight: marketing financing 
chapter nine: using services to add value & differentiate 
chapter ten: What next?

It is easily available at $36.50 at Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Leasing-Deconstructed-IAA-Advisory-Limited-ebook

 

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The Successful Equipment Lease Broker
by Joshua Fant (December, 2010)

He is a real estate broker in the Greater Seattle area.
He was a leasing broker from January, 1999 to August, 2005.
Book may be dated. 14 day return policy (also to their book store).

$39.95 Barnes & Noble
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-successful-equipment-lease-broker-inc-the-leasing-expert/1029662145

 

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Start Your Own Leasing Company!
By Paul Sutton (2014)  111 pages-Fourth edition.

Company appears to have a collection of “how to” books. They have return policy for printed books only.

Book: $44.95   Download $19.46

https://www.businessbooksource.com//books/274/start-leasing-company.cfm

 

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The CLFP Foundation Releases Sixth Edition
Professional Handbook

The Certified Leasing and Finance Professional designation is the only certification for the Equipment Finance Industry. There are currently 571 active Certified Lease & Finance Professionals and Associates in the United States, Canada and Australia.
The book is now available for purchase through the Foundation's website and Amazon. *

The 2018 CLFP Exam will continue to be based on the Fifth Edition of the Handbook, and in 2019, the Exam will be updated to reflect the new content. A primer is being prepared for members who do not wish to purchase the latest edition.

 The goal of the CLFP Foundation was to produce an improved narrative that incorporated perspectives reflective of the larger bank, captive and independent companies that are utilizing the Designation as a tool for professional development.

* https://www.amazon.com/Certified-Lease-Finance-Professionals-Handbook/dp/171743388X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1527969262&sr=8-2&keywords=CLFP+Handbook     $70.00 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/171743388X/ref=cm_sw_su_dp   $70.00

The History of the CLP Handbook
  By Robert Teichman, CLP
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Oct2012/10_10.htm#handbook

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Equipment Leasing
Publisher: Matthew Bender

Three Volume Set; loose leaf; updated with revisions
Updated Yearly

$1,747 Print
$1,544 eBook
(with yearly up-date savings plan)

http://www.lexisnexis.com/store/catalog/booktemplate
/productdetail.jsp?pageName=relatedProducts&catId=167&prodId=10538

Finance and Leasing Industry Recruiters

These companies have experience in the finance and leasing industry

Second Column: YCS - Year Company Started | YELB - Years in equipment Leasing Business

Name  City, State  Contact  Website  Leasing Association	YCS  YELB  (see above for meaning)	Geographic Area	Specialty
Executive Solutions for Leasing & Finance, Inc. Atlanta GA 30308 Jon Gerson, President jongerson@exsolutions.com  678.528.8996 LinkedIn www.exsolutions.com	1990  (1990)	Nationwide	Search firm specializing in leasing industry. Services include retained and contingent search, strategic consultation, compensation analysis, sales & management training, & customizable consulting products.
Recruiters  International, Inc.  (RII)  Pembroke Pines, FL 33025  Emily Fitzpatrick  Sr. Recruiter info@rirecruit.com Phone: 954-885-9241 www.riicareer.com LinkedIn Also follow us on Twitter @RIIINFO	2000	North America	Explanation:  Boutique Executive Search Firm Specializing in the Finance & Equipment Leasing Industries. Our goal is to build long term relationships with our Clients & Candidates, keeping both sides abreast of current and future changes that effect supply & demand of Top Talent.  Excellent References & Testimonials
ZRG Partners 69 Milk St Third Floor Westborough, MA 01581 Contact: Ken Lubin,  klubin@zrgpartners.com Gerry Ricco, gricco@zrgpartners.com www.zrgpartners.com	1999 (32)	Global (Completed search in 33 countries   in leasing and lending)	Senior Level retained Search firm doing C-Suite searches, board searches and VP level positions, We work on a client focused, project basis

 

Labrador Retriever
(Montréal) Kirkland, Quebec, Canada   Adopt-a-Dog

Cesar
Male
2 years old
65 lbs.
Good with Dogs
No Cates
With Children over 12 years old

"About Cesar:
Cesar arrived from the North to find a forever home. He is sweet and loving. Cesar lived outside till he arrived. He loves playing with other dogs. Cesar loves playing outside but needs a fenced in backyard. He enjoys playing with balls, toys and chew toys. He is crate trained. He would benefit from positive dog training. He needs to learn how to walk properly on leash. He is an active dog so will need exercise. He is vaccinated, neutered, Heartworm/Lymes negative and ready for his new home. He loves other dogs! No cats please. No apartments or condos for this guy. Fenced yard is required as he was used to being free and goes where he wanted to go."

"This organization is run entirely by volunteers and we try our best to save as many homeless dogs as possible. Since there are only a few volunteers, please understand that we are unable to answer phone calls about the animals. The first step is to fill out an adoption application which you can find at: www.rosieanimaladoption.org . You will be contacted only if you are a suitable match. Rosie Animal Adoption does not have a shelter where you can come and meet the dogs. All showings are by appointment after your application has been approved, or at adoption clinics. If you have any questions, please email us. All family members must be present at time of adoption."

Application Form:
http://www.rosieanimaladoption.ca/forms/view.php?id=3

Rosie Animal Adoption
3551 Boul. St. Charles,
Suite 440
Kirkland, Quebec, Canada
H9H 3C4
Email: rosieadoption@hotmail.com

Rosie Animal Adoption is located in Montreal, Quebec

Adopt a Pet
http://www.adoptapet.com/

 

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Canadian Finance and Leasing Association
Conference September 25-27, Montreal, QC

Program with Schedule
http://members.cfla-acfl.ca/cfladocs/Program-Draft%205.pdf

Hotel Accommodation
http://members.cfla-acfl.ca/Conference2018/Travel_Info/Hotel/Conference2018/Hotel.aspx?hkey=496c467b-79f7-44f2-bda5-5fa865b64712

Frequently Asked Questions
http://members.cfla-acfl.ca/Conference2018/FAQs.aspx

Charlene Forde
Director, Events & Member Services
charlene@cfla-acfl.ca
Telephone: (416) 860-1133
Toll-free: 1(877) 213-7373
Ext. 21

News Briefs----

After quietly launching, Neumann Finance plans
  to hire 80 employees by end of the year
https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2018/08/24/neumann-finance-hiring-equipment-leasing-sales.html

Wells Fargo lays off more than 600 mortgage workers
60 days notice to 638 mortgage employees across the country
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-wells-fargo-layoffs/wells-fargo-lays-off-more-than-600-mortgage-workers-idUSKCN1L922Y?il=0 

 

 

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You May Have Missed---

Global tensions could spoil Oregon hazelnuts' banner year
https://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2018/08
/global_tensions_could_spoil_or.html

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whiskey moon

 Frank says the full moon
 is for whiskey,
spits tobacco to punctuate
his short sentences,
hours sipping, replaying
his career in slow motion,
oiling the first baseman's mitt,
 then spreading it carefully
 to catch the milky light,
frank says it softens the leather,
I say it embalms the memory.

These come from a  soft cover 128 pages
with index published by www.mcfarlandpub.com
( they take two weeks to send, but you are helping
this company stay alive, or you can buy from
Amazon, for the same price, but perhaps faster
delivery.  While they are all mostly baseball,
some are not.  He is a unique American poet.
He lives in Hickory, North Carolina.

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Sports Briefs---

49ers MLB Reuben Foster suffers concussion against Colts
http://www.theredzone.org/Blog-Description/EntryId/71788/49ers-MLB-Reuben-Foster-suffers-concussion-against-Colts

49ers 17, Colts 23: The good and not so good
https://49ers.pressdemocrat.com/49ers-17-colts-23-the-good-and-not-so-good/

Raiders QB Derek Carr feels ready to go
   despite minimal preseason work
https://www.yahoo.com/sports/carr-feels-ready-despite-minimal-163253770.html

Patriots' Eric Decker announces NFL retirement on Instagram
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/patriots/2018/08/26/patriots-eric-decker-announces-retirement-instagram-new-england/1104984002/

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California Nuts Briefs---

Stung by criticism over wildfire response,
    Verizon lifts data ‘cap’ on first responders
https://www.sacbee.com/latest-news/article217296475.html 

 

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“Gimme that Wine”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJnQoi8DSE8

Local winemaker Patrick Foley dies at 31
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/8665883-181/local-winemaker-patrick-foley-dies?sba=AAS

California's wildfires are deterring tourists
  and hitting taxpayers hard, officials say
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-wildfire-costs-california-20180824-story.html

Wine crush begins in Yolo County
http://www.dailydemocrat.com/article/NI/20180823/BUSINESS/180829944

Legend of Napa, French fine wine Christian Moueix
https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/northbay/napacounty/8639940-181/legend-of-napa-french-fine

California's Most Expensive Wines
https://www.wine-searcher.com/m/2018/08/californias-most-expensive-wines?h=1

US trade war with China worries North Coast wineries
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/business/8657327-181/trumps-trade-war-worries-north

Wine Prices by vintage
http://www.winezap.com
http://www.wine-searcher.com/

US/International Wine Events
http://www.localwineevents.com/

Leasing News Wine & Spirits Page
http://two.leasingnews.org/Recommendations/wnensprts.htm

This Day in History

    1633 - Irish Catholic Cecil Calvert, 27, sent two ships, the Ark and the Dove, from Ireland to establish a colony in America as a refuge for fellow Catholics. His work later earned Lord Calvert the nickname, "Colonizer of Maryland."
    1637 – Coincidentally, Charles Calvert, 3d Baron Baltimore, English politician, 2nd Proprietor of Maryland was born.  It is unknown if they were related.  Charles died in 1715.
    1650 - History records the first expedition, led by Englishman, who crossed the Allegheny Mountains at Fort Henry, at the falls of the Appomattox River, VA, and returned on September 4. The party consisted of Captain Abraham Wood and his servant, Henry Newcombe; Edward Bland, merchant, and his servant, Robert Farmer, Elias Pennant and Sackford Brewster, and two guides, Oyeocker, a Nottaway chief, and Pyancha, an Appamattuck war captain.
    1655 - Accomac, VA, was the site of the first play presented in the North American col­onies. The play was “Ye Bare and Ye Cubb,” by Phillip Alexander Bruce. Three local residents were arrested and fined for acting in the play. At the time, most colonies had laws prohibiting public performances; Virginia, however, had no such ordinance. The actors, Cornelius Watkinson, Philip Howard, and William Darby, were accused of sedition and were summoned to appear in court on November 16, 1665, “in those habiliments that they then acted in and give a draught of such verses or other speeches and passages which were then acted by them.“ They were found not guilty and Edward Martin, who had informed on them, was ordered, “to pay all the expenses of the presentment.”
    1655 - New Amsterdam and Peter Stuyvesant bar Jews from military service. The first Jew to settle in North America, Jacob Barsimson, arrived on Manhattan Island, first of 24 Jewish immigrants, in 1654. In September, three Jews fleeing the Spanish Inquisition in Brazil, arrived in New Amsterdam, and more followed. Their right to stay was upheld by the Dutch West India Company, against the wishes of Governor Peter Stuyvesant. They founded Congregation Shearith Israel, with Saul Brown as first rabbi.
    1776 - In the Battle of Long Island, NY, in what is now Brooklyn, American forces commanded by Gen. Israel Putnam and Gen. John Sullivan were defeated by the British under Gen. Sir William Howe and Gen. Sir Henry Clinton. Howe took Gen. Sullivan prisoner. On August 30, the Americans evacuated Long Island and crossed to Manhattan. The British recognized the strategic importance of New York as the focal point for communications between the northern and southern colonies. General George Washington also recognized this and, in April of 1776, he marched his troops from Boston to New York. He positioned his troops on the western end of Long Island in anticipation of the British arrival. When the British fleet arrived, they had 45,000 troops against Washington's 20,000. The British attacked, forcing Washington to cross the East River into Manhattan. Washington left 3,000 men to defend Fort Washington, then headed north.
http://darter.ocps.net/classroom/revolution/longisle.htm
http://www.britishbattles.com/long-island.htm
    1805 - Sallie Chapman Gordon Law (d. 1894) birthday, Wilkes, NC.  She organized a 12-bed hospital in Memphis for Confederate soldiers and somehow managed to care for the wounded of the great Battle of Shiloh in 1862. When Memphis was taken by the Union forces, Law converted her assets into medicinal drugs which she smuggled into the South.
    1832 – The Black Hawk War ended when Chief Black Hawk of the Sauk nation surrenders to U.S. authorities.
    1849 - Austin College was chartered in Texas at Huntsville under Presbyterian sponsorship. In 1876, the school campus was moved to Sherman, TX.
    1859 - W.A. “Uncle Billy” Smith discovered oil in a shaft being sunk by Colonel E.L. Drake at Titusville, in western Pennsylva­nia. Drilling had reached 69 ft, 6 inches when Smith saw a dark film floating on the water below the derrick floor. Soon 20 bar­rels of crude were being pumped each day. The first oil was refined to make kerosene for lighting, replacing whale oil. Later, it was refined to make gasoline for cars. The first gas station opened in 1907.
    1862 - Confederate female spy Belle Boyd released from Old Capital Prison in Washington, DC
    1871 - Birthday of Theodore Dreiser (d. 1945), American novelist, at Terre Haute, IN. As part of the Chicago group, he was an exponent of American naturalism in literature. His first novel, “Sister Carrie,” (1900), was suppressed by his publisher on moral grounds.  Dreiser's finest achievement is widely considered to be his novel, “An American Tragedy“ (1925), a college requirement.   
    1872 - Mary Anderson (d. 1964) birthday, Lidkoping, Sweden.  Director of the Woman's Bureau of the U.S. Dept. of Labor for more than 20 years. Arrived in the U.S. at 16 not knowing a word of English, worked as a cook, stitched shoes in a factory for 18 years of ten-hour days, and with a fierce determination, educated herself in the evenings. She became active in her local of the International Boot and Shoe Union.
    1873 - American lawyer Horatio G. Spafford's four daughters drowned when their passenger ship, while crossing the Atlantic, collided with another and sank. The following month, as his own ship passed over the spot of the earlier tragedy, Spafford penned the words to the enduring hymn, "It is Well With My Soul."
    1877 - Birth of Lloyd C. Douglas, born Doya Douglas (d. 1951), Columbia City, IN.  American Lutheran clergyman and religious novelist. Douglas published his first best-seller, "Magnificent Obsession," in 1929, followed later by "The Robe" (1942) and "The Big Fisherman" (1948).
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/external-search/103-5362656-4423850?tag=
fast-bkasin00 20&keyword=Lloyd%20C%2e%20Douglas&mode=books
    1879 - Birthday of African-American publisher Robert Lee Van (d. 1940), Ahoskie, NC.  He was the publisher and editor of the Pittsburgh Courier from 1910 until his death.  The Courier under Vann prominently featured Vann's work as a lawyer and public figure. As editor, Vann wrote editorials encouraging readers to only patronize business that paid for advertisements in the Courier and ran contests to attempt to increase circulation.  In his Christmas editorial at the end of 1914, Vann wrote of the paper's intent to "abolish every vestige of Jim Crowism” in Pittsburgh.
    1893 - The first of three great hurricanes that year struck South Carolina, drowning more than 1000 persons in a tidal surge at Charleston.
    1900 - U.S. Army physician James Carroll allowed an infected mosquito to feed on him in an attempt to isolate the means of transmission of yellow fever. Carroll developed a severe case of yellow fever, helping his colleague, Army pathologist Walter Reed, prove that mosquitoes transmit this often-deadly disease.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/aug27.html
    1905 - Mary Jane Ward (d. 1981) birthday, Fairmount, IN.  Author of the chilling “Snake Pit” (1946) about life in an insane asylum. She commented: "There was no attempt to write any sort of fact. Juniper Hills, from tubs to tunnel, was built and peopled by a mind that was on vacation."
http://www.raintreecounty.com/SnakePit.html
    1908 - Sarah J. Rooke, a telephone operator, disregards her personal danger to alert and save most of the people of Folsom, New Mexico, from flood waters. She died when the flood washed away the building as she was desperately trying to reach more residents.
http://folsommuseum.netfirms.com/folsom_floods.htm
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/HC-DryCimarron3.html
    1908 - Birthday of Lyndon Baines Johnson (d. 1973), near Stonewall, TX.  The 36th president of the US who succeeded to the presidency following the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Johnson's term of office: Nov 22, 1963—Jan 20, 1969. In 1964, he said: “The challenge of the next half-century is whether we have the wisdom to use [our] wealth to enrich and elevate our national life—and to advance the quality of American civilization.” He perhaps would have been remembered as one of the greatest presidents of his time for all the domestic acts, laws, events, but all of this was overshadowed by his posture to show he was not weak on communism and the poor military advice he took. He died a few years after leaving office, a broken and very unhappy man. His birthday is observed as a holiday in Texas.
    1909 - Tenor sax player Lester Young (d. 1959) birthday, Woodville, MS.
http://www.shs.starkville.k12.ms.us/mswm/MSWritersAndMusicians/
musicians/YoungLester.html
    1910 - Inventor George Cahill brings his patented lighting system to South Side Park, Chicago. Using twenty 137,000 candlepower arc lights, two amateur teams play a night game before 20,000. However, the first American League night game won't be played there until 1939. 
    1916 – Birthday of actress/comedian Martha Raye, born Margey Reed (d. 1994) in Butte, MT.  She was honored in 1969 with an Academy Award as the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award recipient for her volunteer efforts and services to the troops.  During World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, she travelled extensively to entertain American troops despite her lifelong fear of flying.  She was a star of the 1930s and 1940s and enjoyed a revival in television in the 1970s. 
    1918 – Battle of Ambos Nogales.  US Army, stationed at Nogales, AZ, against Mexican Carrancistas and their German advisors, stationed at Nogales, Mexico in the only battle of World War I fought on American soil.
    1918 – Christy Mathewson resigned as Reds manager to accept a commission as a captain in the chemical warfare branch of the Army.  During this service, he was accidentally exposed to chemical weapons during training. His respiratory system was weakened from the exposure, causing him to contract tuberculosis, from which he died in 1925.   
    1921 - J.E. Clair, who owned the Acme Packing Company, bought a pro football franchise for Green Bay, WI. He wanted to pay tribute to those who packed the meat at his processing plant, thus, the Green Bay Packers. (Note, they are usually not referred to as “Green Bay
Packers, “but THE Green Bay Packers, as is The Bronx, The Fed, and other such Americanisms.)
    1923 - Birthday of trumpet player Idress Sulieman (d. 2002),
St. Petersburg, FL.
    1935 – Birthday of pitcher Ernie Broglio, most famous for being traded by the Cardinals to the Cubs for future Hall of Famer Lou Brock on June 15, 1864, in Berkeley, CA.  It is considered among baseball’s most one-sided trades.
    1937 – Singer Tommy Sands, Frank Sinatra’s first son-in-law, was born in Chicago, his kind of town.  His biggest hit was called "Teen-Age Crush" went over big with the young audience and went to No.2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the Cashbox chart.   This led to a film contract that produced mostly forgettable movies.  In 1960, Sands married Nancy Sinatra, from whom he was divorced in 1965. At that point in his career, Frank had him "blacklisted" in the entertainment industry.
    1939 - Singer Allan Jones recorded "I'm Falling in Love with Someone" on Victor Records.
    1942 – The Captain, Daryl Dragon, of The Captain and Tennille, born in LA.
    1943 – Actress Tuesday Weld, Dobie Gillis’ girlfriend Thalia Menninger, born Susan Ker Weld in NYC.
    1946 - Top Hits
“To Each His Own” - Eddy Howard
“Surrender” - Perry Como
“They Say It's Wonderful” - Frank Sinatra
“New Spanish Two Step” - Bob Wills
    1947 - Dan Bankhead becomes the Major Leagues’ first black pitcher. He doesn't do well in a relief stint, giving up ten hits and six runs in three and third innings in a 16-3 loss to the Pirates, but the Dodger rookie hits a home run in his first Major League at-bat.
    1951 - *HARTELL, LEE R., Medal of Honor.
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Battery A, 15th Field Artillery Battalion, 2d Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Kobangsan-ni, Korea, 27 August 1951. Entered service at: Danbury, Conn. Birth: Philadelphia, Pa. G.O. No.: 16, 1 February 1952. Citation: 1st. Lt. Hartell, a member of Battery A, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty in action against an armed enemy of the United Nations. During the darkness of early morning, the enemy launched a ruthless attack against friendly positions on a rugged mountainous ridge. 1st Lt. Hartell, attached to Company B, 9th Infantry Regiment, as forward observer, quickly moved his radio to an exposed vantage on the ridge line to adjust defensive fires. Realizing the tactical advantage of illuminating the area of approach, he called for flares and then directed crippling fire into the onrushing assailants. At this juncture a large force of hostile troops swarmed up the slope in banzai charge and came within 10 yards of 1st Lt. Hartell's position. 1st Lt. Hartell sustained a severe hand wound in the ensuing encounter but grasped the microphone with his other hand and maintained his magnificent stand until the front and left flank of the company were protected by a close-in wall of withering fire, causing the fanatical foe to disperse and fall back momentarily. After the numerically superior enemy overran an outpost and was closing on his position, 1st Lt. Hartell, in a final radio call, urged the friendly elements to fire both batteries continuously. Although mortally wounded, 1st Lt. Hartell's intrepid actions contributed significantly to stemming the onslaught and enabled his company to maintain the strategic strongpoint. His consummate valor and unwavering devotion to duty reflect lasting glory on himself and uphold the noble traditions of the military service.
    1952 - Birthday of comedian Pee-Wee Herman, born Paul Reubenfeld in Peekskill, NY.  Very popular for his 1950 “look,” until he went to the movies by himself.
http://www.mugshots.org/hollywood/pee-wee-herman.html
    1954 - Top Hits
“Sh-Boom” - The Crew Cuts
“The Little Shoemaker” - The Gaylords
“Hey There” - Rosemary Clooney
“I Don't Hurt Anymore” - Hank Snow
    1961 - Hitting his 51st home run, against the Kansas City A's, Roger Maris has the most homers in Major League history at this point in the season.
    1962 – Mariner 2 unmanned spacecraft is launched to Venus by NASA.            
    1962 - Top Hits
“The Loco-Motion” - Little Eva
“Things” - Bobby Darin
“You Don't Know Me” - Ray Charles
“Wolverton Mountain” - Claude King
    1964 - Hurricane Cleo battered Miami and the South Florida area. It was the first direct hit for Miami in fourteen years. Winds gusted to 135 mph and the hurricane caused $125 million damage.
    1965 - Elvis Presley's manager Colonel Tom Parker contacts Beatles manager Brian Epstein to let him know that Elvis will agree to meet the Beatles in his Los Angeles mansion on Perugia Way. When the group arrive, stoned on marijuana, The King is in the darkened living room, surrounded by his entourage, sitting on an L-shaped couch, looking at the TV with the sound off, fooling around on a bass guitar. "Hi, Elvis," says the group, almost all at once. "Hey, you guys want a drink?" Elvis offers.
 The four sit down to watch TV with Elvis and are taken with his early-model remote control, still a novelty. The group is also thrilled by the King's pool table, and plays a few games with the Mafia, while Presley's jukebox plays Charlie Rich's "Mohair Sam" over and over. Priscilla is presented to the group and then quickly whisked away, dressed, according to Paul, "in a purple gingham dress, with a gingham bow in her very beehive hair, with lots of makeup."
 Awed somewhat by each other's presence, conversation does not come easily, but John thinks to ask if Elvis is working on a new movie. "I sure am," he replies. "I play a country boy with a guitar who meets a few gals along the way, and I sing a few songs." "We all looked at one another," remembers John. "Finally Presley and Colonel Parker laughed and explained that the only time they departed from that formula - for Wild in the Country - they lost money."
 Paul offers to give Elvis some lessons on the bass; the group eventually falls into a very informal, brief, and anticlimactic jam session. Everyone seems pleased with the experience, however: John Lennon, upon leaving, tells Jerry Schilling to make sure Elvis knows that "if it hadn’t been for him, the Beatles would be nothing."
    1965 - Columbia Records releases Bob Dylan's second electric album, "Highway 61 Revisited." Hits include "Like a Rolling Stone" and "Ballad of a Thin Man."
    1966 - The Association's "Cherish" is released.
    1967 - While studying with the Maharishi in Bangor, North Wales, the Beatles receive news that manager Brian Epstein has been found dead in his Belgravia, London home (a death later attributed to an accidental overdose of the sleeping pill Carbitrol, taken with brandy). The Maharishi puzzles the Beatles somewhat by counseling them that Brian's death is cosmically unimportant; nevertheless, they immediately return to London. On the same day, London's Sunday Express newspaper reports that former band drummer Pete Best now works in a bakery, where he pulls down a weekly salary of eighteen pounds.
    1968 - Police and anti-war demonstrators clash at Chicago's Democratic National Convention, polarizing all sides to the issue of the war in Viet Nam.  Hubert Humphrey, President Lyndon Johnson's vice-president, is chosen as the presidential nominee. Protesting the riot, members of the convention's Wisconsin delegation attempt to march to the convention, but police turn them back. Julian Bond, denied his seat in the Georgia state legislature, seconds the nomination of Eugene McCarthy, adding that he has seen such police behavior only in Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. Some say the fight about Viet Nam is still going on today with bitterness remaining in many veterans’ hearts against those who did not support the war or their country: right or wrong.
    1970 - Top Hits
“Make It with You” - Bread
“Spill the Wine” - Eric Burdon & War
“War” - Edwin Starr
“Don't Keep Me Hangin' On” - Sonny James
    1970 - The Troubadour in Los Angeles, CA was the venue of singer Elton John's first concert appearance in America and a record company executive for UNI records (a division of MCA) signed Elton to a recording contract. There were many singers who got their start here, including Neil Diamond.
    1970 - Elko, NV, was deluged with 3.66 inches of rain in just one hour, establishing a state record.    1975 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit: “Get Down Tonight,'' KC and the Sunshine Band.
    1977- Supertramp's  "Give a Little Bit" peaks at #15 on the pop singles chart while Crosby, Stills and Nash's "Just A Song Before I Go" peaks at #7.
    1977 – Jackson Browne releases “Runnin’ on Empty”. 
    1977 - Jimmy Buffett marries his second wife, Jane Slagsvol of Columbia, SC, who had co-written two of his songs, "Something So Feminine About A Mandolin" and "Kick It In Second Wind." They remain married today.
    1978 - Top Hits
“Grease” - Frankie Valli
“Miss You” - The Rolling Stones
“Boogie Oogie Oogie” - A Taste of Honey
“Talking in Your Sleep” - Crystal Gayle
    1981 - Divers probing the wreckage of the luxury cruise ship "Andrea Doria" recovered two safes from the purser's office. The "Andrea Doria" sank in a collision with the Swedish liner "Stockholm" on July 25, 1956, off Nantucket. What was in the safes? Oh, only about a million dollars in cash and jewelry.
    1981 - National Centers for Disease Control announces high incidence of Pneumocystis & Kaposi's sarcoma in gay men
    1982 - Oakland Athletics outfielder Rickey Henderson stole his 119th base of the season in a game against the Milwaukee Brewers, thereby breaking Lou Brock's Major League record for most stolen bases in one season set in 1974. Henderson added three more steals in the game, which Oakland lost, 5-4.
    1982 - Crosby, Stills & Nash's "Daylight Again," the group's first album since the 1977 "CSN," is certified gold. On the album is the current Top 20 tune "Wasted on the Way."
    1984 - The Menetta Lane Theatre in Greenwich Village opened. It was the first new off-Broadway theatre to be built in 50 years in New York City. The ribbon cutting was done by "America's First Lady of the Stage," Helen Hayes.
    1984 - A new face joined the group of journalists on CBS-TV's "60 Minutes." Diane Sawyer became the fifth reporter on the top-rated TV newsmagazine. Mike Wallace, Morley Safer, Harry Reasoner and Ed Bradley welcomed Sawyer to the show.
    1986 - Top Hits
“Papa Don't Preach” - Madonna
“Higher Love” - Steve Winwood
“Venus” - Bananarama
“Strong Heart”- T.G. Sheppard
    1986 - Nolan Ryan of the Houston Astros notched career win #250, by leading the Astros to a 7-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs.
    1987 - Paul Molitor's 39-game hit streak comes to an end as he waits in the on-deck circle watching pinch hitter Rick Manning single home the winning run in a 1-0, 10-inning victory over the Indians.
    1987 - No. 1 Billboard Pop Hit:  “La Bamba,'' Los Lobos. Ritchie Valens hit No. 22 with the song in 1959 just one day before he died in the same plane crash that killed Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper. The Los Lobos version of “La Bamba'' was recorded for the film of the same name with Lou Diamond Phillips in the lead role.
    1987 - Washington D.C. soared to a record hot 100 degrees, while clouds and rain to the north kept temperature readings in the 50s in central and southeastern New York State.
    1988 - Elton John's "I Don't Want To Go On With You Like That" peaks at #2 on the pop singles chart while Pat Benatar's "All Fired Up" peaks at #19.
    1989 - Chuck Berry performs Johnny B Goode for NASA engineers and scientists in celebration of Voyager II's encounter with the planet Neptune.
    1997 - In honor of first baseman Jim Thome's birthday, the Indians begin pulling up their socks to just below the knees. The Tribe will win 17 of 27 games en route to clinching American League East flag while sporting this new look.
    1998 - Top Hits
“The Boy Is Mine”- Brandy
“The First Night”- Monica
“Crush”-Jennifer Paige
    2001 - Joining Babe Ruth (1920-21 and 1927-28) and Mark McGwire (1996-99), Sammy Sosa (1997-2001) becomes the third player in baseball history to hit 50 homers in a season four times.  Babe didn’t have any help!
    2002 - The first video streaming coverage of a Major League baseball game takes place on the internet. Approximately 30,000 fans visit MLB.com to see the Yankees defeat the Rangers, 10-3.
    2003 – Mars makes is closest pass to Earth, in nearly 60,000 years, passing 34,646,418 miles distant.
    2003 – Singer Janis Ian marries her girlfriend, Nashville defense lawyer Patricia Snyder, in Toronto, Canada where gay marriages are legal.
    2006 - Barry Manilow's TV special “Barry Manilow: Music and Passion” was presented with an Emmy Award for Best Individual Variety Performance. The following day Manilow underwent surgery to repair torn cartilage in both hips and faced a six-week recovery.
    2006 – Comair flight 5191 crashes on takeoff from Lexington, KY Blue Grass Airport, killing 49.
    2011 – Hurricane Irene struck the US east coast at Cape Lookout in NC, killing 47 and causing an estimated $15.6 billion in damage.
    2012 – Curiosity, the Mars rover, broadcasts its first audio recording of a human voice from the surface of another planet.
    2013 – Yosemite National Park continues aflame as the Rim fire has grown to 281 square miles.  It was the fourth-largest wildfire in California history and the largest on record for the Sierra Nevada range.  It was fully contained on October 24, 2013 and was declared out on November 4, 2014.
    2015 – The NLRB ruled that recycler Browning-Ferris has employer responsibility for contract workers supplied by an agency.  The ruling may imply similar liability for franchise companies such as McDonald’s.