Gerlach, Douglas 1963-

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GERLACH, Douglas 1963-

PERSONAL: Born 1963, in Columbus, OH; son of Eldon Chloral and Judith Ann (Benadum) Gerlach; children: one. Education: Bennington College, B.A., 1985.

ADDRESSES: Home—615 Main St., No. 325, Stroudsburg, PA. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Financial writer, Internet developer, and financial consultant. National Association of Investors Corporation, cocreator and senior editor of Web site, 1995, then consulting editor; Investorama.com (Web site), New York, NY, founder and editor-in-chief, 1995-2001; First Albany Corporation, New York, Internet business analyst, 1997-98; Armchair Millionaire.com (Web site), senior editor, 1998. Has appeared on television and radio programs, including CNN-FN's Digital Jam, Extra Help Channel's In the Money, and ZDTV's The Money Machine; host, Worth Online's Conference Call.

MEMBER: National Writers Union, Computer Press Association, Pioneer On-Line Investment Club (president, 1994), American Association of Individual Investors (life member), National Association of Investors Corporation (member of board of computer group, 1995—), Mensa.

AWARDS, HONORS: Distinguished Service Award, National Association of Investors Corporation's Investment Education Institute, 1996.

WRITINGS:

Investor's Web Guide: Tools and Strategies for Building Your Portfolio (with CD-ROM), Lycos Press (Emeryville, CA), 1997.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Online Investing, Alpha Books (Indianapolis, IN), 1998, 2nd edition, Que (Indianapolis, IN), 2000.

(With Tom McFeat and James Gravelle) The Complete Idiot's Guide to Online Investing for Canadians, Prentice-Hall Canada (Scarborough, Ontario, Canada), 1999.

(With Lewis Schiff) The Armchair Millionaire: Build and Protect an Extraordinary Portfolio, Even on an Ordinary Income, by Following One Commonsense Investing Strategy, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 2001.

(With Angele McQuade) Investment Clubs for Dummies, Hungry Minds (New York, NY), 2002.

Contributor to magazines and periodicals, including Wall Street Journal, ComputerWorld, HomePC, Barron's, and New York. Consulting editor, Mutual Funds (magazine), 2000—.

SIDELIGHTS: Douglas Gerlach began his career with the goal of educating the general public on investing and making financial advice and planning available to the layman. After founding Investorama.com, one of the first financial Web sites, in 1995, Gerlach cocreated the Web site for the National Association of Investors Corporation (NAIC), a nonprofit organization that teaches individuals how to become strategic long-term investors. He went on to become active in that organization, serving as consulting editor and serving on the NAIC computer group's board of directors, and received the association's Distinguished Service Award for his accomplishments in bringing investment education online.

In addition to his Internet contributions, Gerlach has brought his know-how to print as well. His first book, Investor's Web Guide: Tools and Strategies for Building Your Portfolio, was described by a Library Journal reviewer as "more than just get-rich-quick schemes." The book was soon followed by The Complete Idiot's Guide to Online Investing, a beginner's investment guide that was also published in a Canadian edition before being revised in 2000. A reviewer for Business Week called this book "best suited for beginners to both the Web and investing."

Gerlach's The Armchair Millionaire: Build and Protect an Extraordinary Portfolio, Even on an Ordinary Income, by Following One Commonsense Investing Strategy is a guide based on the philosophy of his Web site with the same name. The author dubs this program the "Get-Rich-Slowly-but-Surely" plan, which encompasses five steps: lower your taxes, pay yourself first, invest automatically, build a smart portfolio, and start today. The "mix of anecdotes, homespun advice and investment strategies will be familiar to those who frequent" Gerlach's ArmchairMillionaire.com Web site, maintained a reviewer for Publishers Weekly, but "uninitiated readers … will have to suffer through what is essentially an extensive ad campaign for the Web site to glean the book's practical benefits." Gerlach's Investment Clubs for Dummies, published in 2002, is designed to educate readers about the legal, financial, and organizational aspects of starting and maintaining an investment club.

Gerlach left the Web site that started it all, Investorama.com, in 2001 to serve as a financial services consultant. In addition to writing about online investing, he planned to continue to "develop innovative ways to reach and educate financial consumers on the Internet."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Business Week, May 24, 1999, review of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Online Investing.

Library Journal, July, 1997, review of Investor's Web Guide: Tools and Strategies for Building Your Portfolio, p. 120.

Money Digest, June, 2001, review of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Online Investing for Canadians, p. 15.

Publishers Weekly, March 12, 2001, review of The Armchair Millionaire: Build and Protect an Extraordinary Portfolio, Even on an Ordinary Income, by Following One Commonsense Investing Strategy, p. 75.