Lesser known facts about Charlie Munger, Warren Buffet’s second and accomplice

In 1959, Munger, then a lawyer in Southern California, and Buffett, managing an investment partnership in Omaha, first crossed paths at a dinner in Omaha. They quickly connected, maintaining contact through frequent calls and extensive letters, as detailed in Munger's book "Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger."

Sharing investment ideas and investing together in various companies during the '60s and '70s, Munger later joined Buffett at Berkshire Hathaway in 1978 as its vice chairman. Munger played a pivotal role in guiding Berkshire for over fifty years.

After an eight-year marriage, Munger lost all his possessions, including his South Pasadena home, to his ex-wife. Janet Lowe's revealing biography recounts Munger's move to less-than-desirable accommodations at Pasadena's University Club, driving a poorly repainted yellow Pontiac, which made him seem financially destitute.

When questioned by his daughter about the car's poor condition, Munger jokingly replied that it was to ward off ‘gold-diggers’.

Shortly following the divorce, Munger faced another ordeal when his 9-year-old son, Teddy, was diagnosed with leukaemia. Back then, survival rates for cancer were very low, and Munger had to cover all expenses as there was no health insurance.

Munger's friend, Rick Guerin, recounted Munger's heart-wrenching routine of visiting the hospital, holding his dying son, and then wandering the streets of Pasadena in tears. Tragically, Teddy passed away a year later in 1955.

After a traumatic cataract surgery left Charlie Munger in excruciating pain and resulted in the removal of one eye, he faced the potential of losing sight in his remaining eye due to a blood-filling condition.

Fearing the loss of vision, he resolved to learn Braille but, fortunately, his eye condition improved before fully embracing it, leaving Munger relieved yet prepared for whatever challenges lay ahead.