Those days, everyone was an iconoclast at Forbes. The magazine was full of characters — and it started from the top. There was Malcolm Forbes, the owner, larger than life, who seduced corporate chieftains into parting with their advertising dollars over luxurious lunches at the Forbes town house at tony 60, Fifth Avenue in New York. His partner in crime was Jim Michaels, the irascible, brilliant editor who produced the best business magazine without ever meeting chief executives (Michaels believed journalists shouldn’t socialise with their subjects; he was incorruptible). The two were perfect together — and made the magazine what it was. They were ably supported by staffers hired in their own image. Many were eccentric, but Michaels harnessed their energy and edginess expertly. A colleague reminded us last week of advice that was given to him when he joined the magazine: “If you want to get along at Forbes, it helps to come from a dysfunctional family.”

In the magazine business, Forbes was like Hindustan Lever. Its reporters made their careers in the magazine; many had been there for over two decades, and it was almost impossible to poach a Forbes reporter. But the few who left were much sought after. Norman Pearlstine became the editor-in-chief of Time magazine, Ed Finn became the chief at Barrons, Allan Sloan became a star at CNN before the joined Fortune magazine, Gretchen Morgenson joined the New York Times and won them their first Pulitzer for financial reporting in a decade, Mark Clifford became editor of The South China Morning Post. The world of business journalism is filled with former Forbes reporters — and they carry Michaels’ high standards of journalism and the art of writing the pithy one-pager with them. Jim Michaels maintained his connections with India, and in the last decade, visited often, with his family. His son adopted two girls from India. Michaels was amazed — and pleased — at the changes in India. He was always gracious to me when we met, and I think, maybe, pleased that his ‘charge’ was reporting the India story as he may have. No award, however prestigious, was ever as good as a word of praise from Michaels.

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