CNBC Anchor Gives Plug; Gross Gets Laughs; Hoss on Way

Brian Sullivan is no relation, but he must have a great mind—because the co-anchor of CNBC’s daily Power Lunch program and the Insider think alike. This column was the first voice in the media to note that last year’s split between Bill Gross and Pimco made Newport Center all the more important in the world of finance. That other Sullivan came to Orange County last week and declared that the presence of Pimco and the Janus office Gross now mans—along with DoubleLine and TCW, both based in L.A.—make Southern California the center of the bond industry. He even gave the region partial credit on Larry Fink, the boss of N.Y.-based BlackRock who counts Gross as a fellow UCLA grad … The remarks were part of a Hall-of-Fame-quality panel Janus hosted for select investment advisers at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel. The gathering came amid last week’s flight from bonds, but that didn’t stop Gross from turning in a star performance as he bantered with Sullivan; Nobel Laureate Myron Scholes of the Black-Scholes Model; Enrique Chang, who serves as chief investment officer of equities and asset allocation for Denver-based Janus; and Carmel Wellso, director of research at the firm … Gross got the biggest laugh of the day with a riposte to Wellso after she told the crowd that demographics can sometimes help investors find less obvious “pockets of strength.” A company that specializes in geriatric drugs might be attractive, for example, because “one-third of you will have dementia after the age of 85,” she said. “Thanks for the 85,” quipped the 71-year-old Gross … Anyone else notice UCI Chancellor Howard Gillman, who wants to make game-changing hires for UCI’s faculty, having lunch with hedge funder/card counter/professor/grandfather Ed Thorp at Bistango last week? Might Gillman be doing some early recruiting in hopes of landing Thorp’s grandchildren? All three of the Goul triplets are headed from Sage Hill School to MIT, where they’ll follow in the footsteps of their grandfather, who figured out how to beat Vegas with card counting while a member of the faculty at the Cambridge campus, and eventually wrapped up his academic career at UCI … Follow along on this one, which starts with a link to Sage Hill. The Newport Coast school’s president, Gordon McNeill, and his wife, Anne Marie, took their family to Africa as part of the Me to We program, which matches volunteers with folks in need worldwide. Then there’s Vicki Booth, a trustee at Sage Hill who also serves as chair of the board of governors at the Orange County Community Foundation. Booth was instrumental in helping OCCF President Shelley Hoss wrangle through the challenges that come with making a commitment to taking a hiatus. The McNeills offered some perspective, too, and now Hoss and her son, Sean, are set for a Me to We trip to Africa as part of her upcoming unplugging … Anne Marie McNeill, Booth and Hoss all were at the home of Julia and George Argyros a few weeks back when the couple pledged $1 million to help their daughter, Stephanie, follow in their philanthropic footsteps. Stephanie has taken on the role of co-chair of the Southern California chapter of We Day, which aims to bring child-empowerment and edification to 1,000 schools throughout Southern California. The Toronto-based organization counts Me to We as one of its programs, and McNeill and Hoss both got the chance to meet founder Craig Kielburger during the kickoff event at the Argyros home on Harbor Island.