Press Releases

October 19, 1999
Former SEC Chairman Gives Talk October 27

Contact:
Jane Finalborgo
(516) 287 8313
Fax: (516) 283 4081

James Needham, former Chairman of the New York Stock Exchange and a former Member of the Securities and Exchange Commission, will speak on the subject of changes in the securities markets of the U.S. in the past 30 years on Wednesday, October 27 at Southampton College of Long Island University.

The Lecture, jointly sponsored by the College's Division of Professional Studies and Merrill Lynch, will begin at 10 a.m. in Duke Lecture Hall in Chancellors Hall. There is no charge for admission, and the public is invited to attend. Refreshments will be served.

Needham, now retired and living in Bridgehampton, served three years on the Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington, D.C. where he was known for his reputation for fairness and his knowledge of the stringent regulations being imposed on the industry. In 1972 he was appointed the first full-time Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the New York Stock Exchange. Under his leadership steps were taken to handle such serious problems as member-firm failures, conflicts over commission rates, and a vital need to forge policies that would operate successfully in a global marketplace. Needham led a campaign to stress the importance of the New York Exchange as the central marketplace nationally as well as internationally. President Reagan appointed Needham as U.S. ambassador to represent the country at the U.S. Exhibition of the International Exposition in Japan in 1985. He was a distinguished professor at St. John's University and a C.P.A.

For more information on the lecture, contact Professor Herbert Sherman, Director of the Division of Professional Studies at 516-287-8284.