Richard Lion Russell (July 22, 1924 – November 21, 2015) was an American writer on

finance Finance refers to monetary resources and to the study and Academic discipline, discipline of money, currency, assets and Liability (financial accounting), liabilities. As a subject of study, is a field of Business administration, Business Admin ...

Early life and family

Russell was born in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, the son of Hortense (née Lion) Russell, a novelist, and Henry Harold Russell, a civil engineer. His family was

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. Russell was educated at

Rutgers Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College and was aff ...

and received his BA at

NYU New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a non-denominational all-male institutio ...

. He flew as a combat bombardier on

B-25 The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Brigadier General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served ...

Mitchell bombers with the

12th Air Force The Twelfth Air Force (12 AF; Air Forces Southern, (AFSOUTH)) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Davis–Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. The command is the air component to U ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Career

Russell started his career in finance through a series of articles in ''Barrons'' newspaper. He published a book named ''The Dow Theory Today'' in 1958, summing up his view of the

Dow Theory The Dow theory on stock price movement is a form of technical analysis that includes some aspects of sector rotation. The theory was derived from 255 editorials in ''The Wall Street Journal'' written by Charles H. Dow (1851–1902), journalist, ...

. He began publishing a newsletter called the '' Dow Theory Letters'' in 1958. The ''Letters'' covered his views on the

stock market A stock market, equity market, or share market is the aggregation of buyers and sellers of stocks (also called shares), which represent ownership claims on businesses; these may include ''securities'' listed on a public stock exchange a ...

and the

precious metal Precious metals are rare, naturally occurring metallic chemical elements of high Value (economics), economic value. Precious metals, particularly the noble metals, are more corrosion resistant and less reactivity (chemistry), chemically reac ...

markets. In addition he frequently shared episodes in his life and thoughts about the world as he saw it, following the stock market since the 1950s. In 1969 Russell devised the Primary Trend Index, composed of eight market indicators that he never publicly divulged as his own secret recipe. When his index outperformed an 89-day moving average, it was time to buy. When it underperformed the 89-day moving average, a bear market was at hand. The Letters which were published every three weeks (www.dowtheoryletters.com), covered the US stock market, foreign markets, bonds, precious metals, commodities, and economics. During Russell's lifetime, the letters also contained comments and observations and his stock market philosophy. Russell wrote daily entries (Richard's Remarks) about 4 times a week on his website. Russell also produced chart books showing technical analysis and important events which occur each year.

Death and legacy

Russell died in

La Jolla La Jolla ( , ) is a hilly, seaside neighborhood in San Diego, California, occupying of curving coastline along the Pacific Ocean. The population reported in the 2010 census was 46,781. The climate is mild, with an average daily temperature o ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

on November 21, 2015. At the time of his death, Dow Theory Letters was the longest-running service continuously written by one person in the business. After Russell's passing, the letters continue market coverage by associated analysts. Russell has also been cited by Bob Prechter using the Elliott wave principle. Stock analyst Robert Prechter wrote in his 1997 book: “Russell has made many exceptional market calls. He recommended gold stocks in 1960, called the top of the great bull market in stocks in 1966 and announced the end of the great bear market in December 1974.”

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Richard Writers from New York (state) American finance and investment writers Jewish American military personnel 2015 deaths 1924 births Rutgers University alumni New York University alumni United States Air Force airmen United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II 21st-century American Jews