BOOK ENTRY ONLY! is a gathering storm that may be frightening to stock certificate aficionados. What a loss it would be for investors and collectors alike to have those beautifully engraved stock and bond certificates go the way of gold and silver coins, the green-back dollar, education, and manners. The intricate and beautiful art of engraving stock certificates is, thankfully, a tradition still alive and well today. However, this colorful and historical financial tradition is being threatened by the popular notion of a cashless society.
One of the worlds finest engravers, The American Banknote Co., has been delighting shareholders since the early 1800s. Most of us are well aware of the older, collectible "works of art" produced by ABNC, but may not be aware of the many modern gems available on today's stock exchanges. Here are just a few which may be of interest.
PLANET HOLLYWOOD - Owns & franchises very successful restaurants featuring real memorabilia from classic movies. The certificate sports a dazzling multicolor view of their restaurant plus the facsimile signatures of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Demi Moore, Bruce Willis and Sylvester Stallone.
FLORIDA PANTHERS - NEIL Hockey club. Also owns, Hyatt Regency, Pier 66 Resort & Marina, Radisson Bahia Mar Resort & Yachting Center in South Florida. This flashy and colorful certificate is dominated by the Panthers logo. It comes with the facsimile signature of Wayne Heunzinga of Blockbuster Video and Republic Industries fame, but whom most Cleveland Indians fans wi11 remember as the present owner of the Florida Marlins.
PIXAR - Very successful digital movie studio producing computer animated feature films with 3-D appearance. Biggest hit, Toy Story, was created and produced by Pixar and distributed by Walt Disney. More to come! The certificate shows off, in color, your favorite littl e toy people: Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and others. The certificate is signed by the Chairman of the Board, the legendary Steve Jobs.
SCHEID VINEYARDS - Major producer of varietal grapes with 5,000 acres of vineyards in California's Monterey & San Benito Counties. Primarily chardonnay, merlot, cabernet sauvignon and gewurztraminer vines are planted. The certificate boasts a full page screened view of a rolling California wine country planted with grape vines. These colorful and eye-pleasing shares are signed by Heidi & Alfred Scheid.
MATTEL - World's largest toy maker, best known for Barbie, Fisher Price pre-school and Disney related toys. This years acquisition of Tyco Toys added Matchbox cars, trucks and Sesame Street toys. The very colorful certificate depicts children playing with toys, including Hot Wheels and Barbie. Also shown is the red corporate logo and El Segundo, California headquarters.
ROCKWELL INTERNATIONAL - If you're thinking Space Shuttle and B-1 Bomber, think again. This is not your father's Rockwell International! After spinning off its aerospace and defense business recently, Rockwell in now an avionics, communications, and semiconductor company with $12 billion in sales. Your next modem may be a Rockwell. The certificate is ornately engraved.
HEXCEL - Manufactures honeycomb, advanced composites and resins for aerospace, industrial and defense markets. Ciba-Geigy owns 49.8% of Hexel, which used to be a division of Hercules Inc. The unusual design of the certificate reflects the structural integrity and honeycombed nature of their products. This is a clever, attractive and unusual design.
ORBITAL SCIENCES - This space technology company produces small satellites, launch vehicles, and ground support equipment. It has been responsible for 17 successful Pegasus launch missions to date among its many other projects. The fanciful and colorful certificate boasts a view from outer-space, complete with planets, stars and nebula.
As an investor and scriptpholist you may be pleasantly surprised and delighted to see the certificates in your own portfolio. Most brokerage firms do not charge for the registration and delivery of your stock since the Transfer Agent, usually a bank, works for and is paid by the publicly held corporation. Of course, if you choose to do this, keep them in a safe place.
Interestingly, if most stockholders would register and hold their own investments rather than keeping them in street name, the "book-entry-only" movement would become just another bureaucratic bad dream. Let's hope we wake up!