Rich People Have Problems, Too

Even in a downtrodden economy, one would think that life would be good for T. Boone Pickens.

He's still richer than God and his book, "The First Billion Is the Hardest," remains a national best seller. The hundreds of millions he has donated to Oklahoma State athletics is finally paying dividends. The Cowboys are 7-0 and occupy the No. 7 spot in the first Bowl Championship Series standings.

But Pickens' recently acknowledged that his investments had lost $1 billion this year. That has forced Oklahoma State to hold up the building of an athletic village until Pickens' economic situation improves.

T. Boone is not alone. Joe Drape and Thayer Evans of the New York Times chronicle how the financial downturn has impacted some of the nation's biggest boosters to athletic departments.

But let it be known that you can't keep the Fat Cats down for long. Spokesman Jay Rosser says Pickens, who has given more than $700 million to a variety of causes the past five years, was looking "forward to having a party to celebrate giving away $1 billion."

Rosser adds: “Hopefully, the markets will improve soon and Boone can get back to the business of giving serious money. Boone likes making money, and he likes to give it away.”