Question 1

True or false: Howard Marks’s famous memos are required reading at the Harvard Business School.

Accepted Answer

True. His investment memos, started in 1990, are widely studied at HBS and other top business schools for their insights on market cycles and risk.

Question 2

True or false: Howard Marks once smuggled 30 tons of marijuana into the US using a fake film crew.

Accepted Answer

False. That was the other Howard Marks—the drug smuggler used cover stories like film crews. The investor never engaged in smuggling.

Question 3

True or false: Howard Marks, the investor, began his career as a professional poker player.

Accepted Answer

False. Marks started at Citibank as an equity research analyst, later moving to junk bonds. No poker career—though he applies poker-like risk thinking to investing.

Question 4

True or false: Howard Marks wrote the book 'The Most Important Thing' about investing.

Accepted Answer

True. Marks, co-founder of Oaktree Capital, authored 'The Most Important Thing' in 2011, distilling his investment wisdom into key principles.

Question 5

True or false: Howard Marks was a British drug smuggler who later became a bestselling author.

Accepted Answer

True. The other Howard Marks was a notorious cannabis smuggler; he wrote 'Mr. Nice' and became a counterculture icon after prison.

Question 6

True or false: Howard Marks’s net worth is estimated at over $2 billion from his distressed debt investing.

Accepted Answer

True. Forbes estimates his net worth around $2.2 billion, largely from Oaktree Capital’s success in distressed debt and high-yield bonds.

Question 7

True or false: Howard Marks is the only investor to have a trading card issued by the Wall Street Journal.

Accepted Answer

False. No such card exists. The WSJ has parodied investors, but Marks hasn't had an official trading card—this is a fabricated trivia item.

Question 8

True or false: Howard Marks predicted the 2008 financial crisis in a public memo six months before it hit.

Accepted Answer

False. He warned about excessive risk in 2007 memos but didn't precisely predict the crash timing. He is known for cycle awareness, not specific predictions.

Howard Marks Trivia Questions