When the Sons of Liberty sent out the alarms that the British were coming, that was the line one brave American uttered down in Lexington.  Along one of the main roads in Lexington, Massachusetts, there were homes that were considered way-stations for militia.  These houses were often owned by leaders in the various towns.  They communicated in top-secret ways, often with secret handshakes and statements.  The famous question “Do you know where the grasshopper flies?” was often uttered between Bostonians to make sure there were no British spies infiltrating American pockets of resistance.  (the answer: Faneuil Hall in downtown Boston where a gold grasshopper sits perched atop the building)

I’ll never forget taking a trip to Lexington and reading about these brave men.  I learned that when the word finally came that the British would be bearing down on them, one leader reportedly replied, “I haven’t a man who’s afraid to go.”  It brought tears to my eyes.

This is the spirit of the American soldier and as we head into this holiday weekend.  The bravery the Sons of Liberty exhibited is so overwhelming to me. I am forever grateful to them and the soldiers we have serving today.

To all of you, no matter what corner of the world you’re in right now, I say thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Have a safe holiday, everyone.

–Liz

Hi gang, just got back from Smith and Wollensky restaurant where a huge scene unfolded as Warren Buffett, the Oracle of Omaha, showed up for his annual charity lunch that benefits one of his favorites, the Glide Foundation in San Francisco.

I told you I’d ask him a lot of important questions and in the few minutes we had allotted to us, we got his comments on many crucial subjects. The wire services went nuts, picked up just about everything he said. Below are some of the news flashes from the interview, and btw, the whole interview is already up on www.foxbusiness.com.

His thoughts and opinions matter to the markets. Check them out.

–Liz

How much would YOU pay to pick the brain of the world’s greatest living investor, all the while picking at a salad or steak? We’ll find out Wednesday when a charity called “Glide” announces who has won the bidding of lunch with Buffett.

Warren Buffett offers up lunch once a year to anyone who bids the most money. The guy who won last year (and who gets to cash in at Smith and Wollensky restaurant in Manhattan on Wednesday) bid $2.1 million dollars for the lunch.

I’ll be interviewing Buffett live on Fox Business at noonET on Wednesday right before the lunch.

Due to the rougher economy, it’s a fair bet the lunch might not go for millions this time around but we’ll see, won’t we? The really lucky person in all of this? The Reverend Cecil Williams of the Glide Foundation who told us exclusively on Fox Business today about the day he met Buffett years ago. You will LOVE this story.  The clip is below.

Buffett loves this charity. Glide reaches out and helps the homeless, the poor, the downtrodden in the San Francisco area. Listen to Rev. Williams and you may see why one of the richest men on the planet thinks it’s worth his time to ’say a toast’ to Glide every year.

–Liz

Gang,

Father’s Day used to be one of my favorite days of the year. 

You see, I won the Dad Lottery. My father, Dr. Morris “Moe” Claman, was the greatest influence in and of my life. He was the most compassionate, wise, funny and brilliant man I’ve ever met.  Every single good thing I am is because of him. He’s the one who encouraged me to leave the cozy confines of my hometown of Beverly Hills, California to strike out on my own in Columbus, Ohio where I had gotten my first job offer to be a reporter at the little third-rated station, WSYX.  It was scary to be 22 and heading to a town where I knew no one but he said, “I’m so proud of you. You got this all on your own and I’m just so excited for you.”  He made me feel confident.  “Don’t worry. We’ll be here. I’m  your safety net. If you fall, I’ll catch you.” It was the start of my dream career of being a journalist. 

He talked me through Columbus, Cleveland, Boston, and then—that pivotal moment in 1998 when I got the job offer to go to the then little-known-outside-of-the-hardcore-business-world network of CNBC.  They had offered me a freelance, 13-week, give-it-your-best-shot-and-MAYBE-we’ll-hire-you chance to work there. I would be leaving a great and solid anchor job at WHDH in Boston at the time, chock full of health benefits and friends.   I asked the advice of several people in the news business and they all said, “You’ve worked very hard to get where you are in the news world. There are paths to take, but this business news thing ain’t one of them.” 

I went to the one guy I KNEW would see it in a different light. “Dad, should I go?” And without ANY hesitation he said, “Do it. It’ll be the BEST thing you ever did for your career.  Dive in.  The greatest gains are made when you TAKE A CHANCE on something.  Even if you can’t see how deep or shallow the water is, dive in.”

9 years later when I reached a cross-roads in my professional life, I reached for him and his advice again, but he wasn’t there.  My dad died on January 14th, 2007 of complications from a blood disease. Thankfully I was able to rush to LA to see him.  The giant in my life was so sick he couldn’t talk. I handed him a pen and paper but the man who had deftly written prescriptions for world leaders or passionate Letters to the Editor about universal healthcare couldn’t scratch out a simple word.  He was too weak.

I’ve never been the same since he died, but I had to hold on to that gutsy, risk-taking side he tried to prop up within me so when Fox called months later to tell me, “We’d love to work with you. We can’t tell you what you’d be doing or with whom you’d be working, it’s all so new, but we know we’d love for you to be part of it”, I thought, “What would dad think?”  I knew right away he’d say, “Dive in, Liz.”

So I did. And I’m heartbroken he can’t see me on Fox Business because I just KNOW he’d love it. He always loved a good underdog story… the kind where the little guy takes on the big dog.  He was born during the Great Depression. He grew up as the son of penniless Russian-Jewish immigrants, often hungry.  But he fought through it and became a world-renowned surgeon who saved the lives of so many.  In 1977, he operated on the president of Israel, Ephraim Katzir. I just read that Katzir died recently. He was in his ’90’s. I was envious. Dad died at age 77.

So on this day I hope you appreciate your dads. Especially if they were good to you, guided you, encouraged you.  I’d kill to pinch his cheek today, hug him and say, “Thanks, Moe. ”

My interview with Larry and Lloyd Glazer of Mayflower Advisors on Friday easily has to be one of the most enjoyable ones I’ve ever done. They were so informative and, oh heck I’ll just say it, SO CUTE. I could just envision Larry being 6 years old and talking with his dad about puts and calls. I mean, granted my dad the Urologist used to talk about removing kidney stones (interestingly enough, Lloyd makes a kidney stone reference!) but I didn’t turn out to be a surgeon!

I hope you all get a chance to watch the interview, the clip is below.

Gang,

Eric Dinallo is a key figure in the world of insurance regulation. He’s the New York State Insurance Superintendent and he came on “Countdown to the Closing Bell” with me today for an exclusive interview.  We spoke about many key issues, namely new regulations planned for the financial world and whether bond insurer MBIA should be appropriately split in two parts.  Some big banks disagree, but listen to all Dinallo had to tell us, and you, about how we can prevent another AIG implosion from happening again. Clips are below!

–Liz

It’s been among the most invigorating assignments of my professional life. Fox Business just wrapped up our “3 Days in the Valley” coverage, live  from Silicon Valley, where we spoke to top CEOs and small start-ups to get the real feel of the climate in the world’s most innovative area.

We got live, exclusive interviews with 40 different companies… among them:

Intel, Google, Yahoo, EBay, Autodesk, Symantec, Cisco, Applied Materials, Twitter, Digg, Tesla, Zoran, Marvell, SolFocus, Bridgelux, SolarCity, Roku, and many more.  We were live over the three days at Intel, The Computer History Museum, Google, and Cisco.

We spoke to venture capitalists too. What brilliant people who take the pitches of all the start-ups and decide where to invest.

You can see all of the interviews in the video section at www.foxbusiness.com so please check them out, each and every one is a story of innovation and entrepreneurial spirit, even during these difficult times. 

I’m at the San Francisco airport now. They’re calling my flight.

I’ll see you on the other end!

Liz

We billed it as a “Steel-cage Death Match” between Changewave’s Tobin Smith (BULL) and  Value Engine’s  Richard Suttmeier (BEAR).

The question: Are we out of this Recession? or just getting started. You decide!!

My 3pmET show “Countdown to the Closing Bell” launched one year ago last week.  We put together a little retrospective of some of our highlights and I have to tell you, I was so proud of all we’ve accomplished in one short year.  This show was originally the creation of Kevin Magee, FBN’s head honcho, and Andy Hoffman, FBN’s Executive Producer of Market Hours.  They decided that the final hour of trade should be something ultra-energetic and special that would keep viewers interested and focused on the final hour of trade, highlighting all the news driving the markets that day, plus jumping on any and every bit of breaking news.

I’m proud to say we’re working every day to fill that order for you. Take a look at our “Best of” reel below. You’ll see all we’ve done, but remember, that’s just a taste of what’s yet to come.  Thank you so much for being a part of it. You guys have supported me and the network from Day One and I’m forever grateful.

–Liz

Hi gang,

You all probably have lives and if that’s the case and you’re out all weekend, you probably also have TiVo or a DVR. Set it for tonight (Saturday May 9th) at 9pmET or Sunday, May 10th at 10pm ET to Fox Business. My special on Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and Buffett’s longtime business partner Charlie Munger was completed late last night by our wonderful producers and will air at these times.

Our initial title for the special was “The Richest Men” but when producer Lisa Villalobos and I thought discussed it, we felt that was too cold and mercenary, and that these three men were so much more than just money.  After about 4 seconds of debate, we switched it to “The Richest Minds” because we found that from these three businessmen spring a fount of ideas and opinions during this hour that we hope many will find valuable and fascinating.

We’ve salted the story with the inside look from our Fox Business camera lenses at Buffett’s annual shareholder meeting, along with interviews ranging from Buffett’s kids Susie and Peter (both of whom spent the billion he gave each of them solely on charitable foundations they set up) to CEOs of various Berkshire businesses.  Berkshire just announced it’s swung to a loss. You’ll hear from Warren Buffett what visibility he has of the economy and the crisis, along with stories about his friendships with Munger and Gates.  Munger is something else… he talks about the first time he met Buffett. Gates is even more entertaining. Just watch.  I hope you enjoy it.

I’d like to also take a second here to tell you that, whatever hard work you see in the special that has my face on it, has the fingerprints of some of the best in the broadcasting business all over it too.  My two field producers, Michele Nunes and Lisa Villalobos, worked tirelessly for months in advance to set up logistics, guests and vision, not to mention hotel rooms which are pretty much impossible to get in Omaha for that weekend.  They pulled it all off.  My photographers, Lance and Scott, along with audio tech Melvin, and crew members Craig, Mike, and Mike who ran our satellite truck were just brilliant on all ends for days at a time.   Back in NYC, Executive Producer Terry Baker held down the fort.  He’s the kind of manager everyone in this business dreams of having but never gets.  Calm, always there with support and suggestions. 

Just wanted you all to know that I’m nothing without this team.  Absolutely nothing. 

–Liz