AL DUNLAP WAS A GUY WHO DID WELL BY INVESTORS — UNTIL HE STARTED TO BELIEVE HIS OWN HYPE: CHAINSAW MASSACRED

Yes, I admit it. There was something I liked about “Chainsaw Al” Dunlap. No, it wasn’t his heartless attitude toward workers, one that put that whole Marx-Lenin thing into some sort of understandable context. And no, it wasn’t his bluster, because that was a giant act to fuel book sales — which this guy really did care about.

Nah, what I liked about Al Dunlap is that he made you money. He made a fortune for us at Scott Paper Co. Inc., so we tended to give him the benefit of the doubt at Sunbeam Corp.

For a year, Sunbeam worked great for us. It was a truly “up” stock. I believed all that gibberish about new products and line extensions, and as a discount shopper from way back, I knew Sunbeam needed a lot of improvement.

Chainsaw seemed like the right man for the job. Al’s straightforward manner and his forthrightness about the typical corporate management also made the Sunbeam story stand out in sharp contrast to most dry, boring stories we look into here.

But a few months ago, Sunbeam set out on a roadshow to explain its new acquisitions, that flurry of brand names that he purchased instead of selling the company. As part of the tour he came to our office.

Now, something you must understand about the way we work at Cramer Berkowitz: I am the childlike enthusiast, willing to study the tape, study companies and get fired up every day about new ideas. I long for a guy like Al because most of the people I meet in the biz are pretty boring and bland. Al made my job easier.

Jeff Berkowitz, my partner, is the tough adult, the antienthusiast who keeps me in check. Jeff doesn’t care about anything but the numbers. He could care less about personality. So, when Al came in here and started his song and dance about how he was going to remake Sunbeam, I was beaming and laughing and thinking, wow, what an original guy.

But Jeff sat glumly, and kept waiting for the bluster to end. After Al’s pitch had gone on long enough, Jeff spoke up.

“How are the numbers?” Jeff wanted to know.

Al went right on over that question to talk about how most execs were potted plants.

“Yes, but how are the numbers?” Jeff persisted.

Al glared, and then started talking about how Mr. Coffee was a great brand name.

“And the numbers?” Jeff asked.

“the numbers,” Al said.

Jeff said OK.

The meeting went on a little bit more, there was some handshaking and some backslapping, and they left.

As soon as Al left, Jeff said to me, “We don’t the numbers here. We live by the numbers.”

And we sold every share by 9: 42 a.m.

James J. Cramer is manager of the New York-based hedge fund Cramer Berkowitz & Co. and co-chairman and daily columnist of TheStreet.com, an online news service (www. thestreet.com) that first published this article. Mr. Cramer’s writings are not to be construed as a solicitation for business and under no circumstances does the information in them represent a recommendation to buy or sell stocks or derivatives.