American financier and Presidential advisor Bernard Baruch became a millionaire before his thirtieth birthday, via his rise through the Wall Street ranks. As head of the War Industries Board during World War I, Baruch played a pivotal role in the course of the US economy. Although he was offered the post of Treasury Secretary by Franklin Roosevelt, he declined in favor of remaining an unofficial advisor, a role he continued through the presidency of John Kennedy. Bibliography: Grant, James. Bernard M. Baruch: The Adventures of a Wall Street Legend. New York : Simon and Schuster, 1983. Schwarz, Jordan A.; [frontpiece by Barry Moser]. The speculator, Bernard M. Baruch in Washington, 1917-1965. Chapel Hill : University of North Carolina Press, c1981. Baruch, Bernard M.. 1870-1965. Baruch: My Own Story. New York : Holt, [1957]