It took a bit of hunting, but, finally, a decent obituary for Sir John Templeton, from The Economist.
Warren Buffett has the star power, but Templeton was arguably an equally skilled investor. Like Buffett, Templeton got his early training in securities analysis from Benjamin Graham.
When I was getting my MBA, my investments textbook listed four investors whose outstanding long-term track records were probably not due to chance: Warren Buffett, George Soros, Peter Lynch, and John Templeton.
Of that group, only Templeton had any use for social investors. He wrote in the late 80s that social investment funds "ought to be encouraged," and reportedly never owned a tobacco stock.
For those who believe one must behave dishonestly or unethically to achieve superior investment returns, the career Sir John Templeton stands as a provocative counter-example. For more information on Templeton in his prime, see John Train's excellent profile in The Money Masters.
