John Thomas Financial Inc. is a brokerage house straight out of the movie Boiler Room, with brokers fueled by vending machines stocked with nothing but energy drinks and music from Rocky films blaring from speakers. Its founder, Anastasios “Tommy” Belesis, even had a role in the sequel to Wall Street.

Junior brokers cold-call prospects for up to 14 hours a day, working from a memorized script that they rehearse by screaming pitches across the room to each other before the opening bell, a former employee of the firm told BuzzFeed.

BuzzFeed obtained both that script, used by brokers of every level at the 200-employee firm, as well as another script known internally as the “Golden Pitchbook,” which is given only to a privileged few senior brokers at the firm. Considered a performance reward for top brokers, the “Golden Pitchbook” is handed down from their mentors at the firm who have also received the elusive tome, the source said.

“It’s secret, privileged information,” said the source. “Some people at the firm don’t even know about it.”

via Exclusive: Secrets From The Sexist Pitchbook Of One Of Wall Street’s More Notorious Firms.

How about a new project from Rick Ross? Clocking in at 18 tracks, Rick Ross just dropped his “The Black Bar Mitzvah” mixtape. Lots of guest features, including Diddy, Drake, Pharrell Williams, Lil’ Reese, Rockie Fresh, and 2 Chainz. Stream + download Rick Ross “The Black Bar Mitzvah” mixtape below.

via Rick Ross Drops ‘The Black Bar Mitzvah’ Mixtape – BroBible.com.

Somewhere deep in the bowels of the world’s Western central banks lie vaults holding gargantuan piles of physical gold bars… or at least that’s what they all claim. The gold bars are part of their respective foreign currency reserves, which include all the usual fiat currencies like the dollar, the pound, the yen and the euro.

via Do Western Central Banks Have Any Gold Left??? – Sprott Asset Management.

Twelve years ago, Nicolas Berggruen sold his apartment, which was filled with French antiques, on the 31st floor of the Pierre Hotel in Manhattan. He said he no longer wanted to be weighed down by physical possessions. He did the same with his Art Deco house on a private island near Miami. From that point on he would be homeless.

via Deep Thoughts With the Homeless Billionaire – Businessweek.

What is good news for Apple (AAPL.O) isn’t always great for its suppliers, as the deteriorating earnings quality at Murata Manufacturing (6981.OS) demonstrates quite clearly

via Apple’s Success Has a Sour Taste for Murata Mfg – Alpha Now.

We’ve written time and time again about investor traps—what are the latest murder holes, er, I mean, investment scams that clients should avoid. I just never thought investment advisers would be deemed one of them.

via The Newest Threat to Investors? RIAs… | Yield of Dreams.

Last week, Facebooks early investors and some directors became eligible to sell stock they own in the social networking company. Others will have similar rights in the coming months.

via Heres When The Rest of Facebook Insiders Can Sell Stock – US Business News – CNBC.

The official calendar is pretty quiet.  Earnings season is over.  Politicians are on vacation in the US and European leaders are just returning.

Beginning with the annual Kansas City Fed gathering at Jackson Hole and proceeding through a series of meetings in Europe, and the US political conventions, we will have a flurry of activity by key policymakers.  Calculated Risk has a nice, long-term calendar of these events.

Here are the questions that could have the biggest market effects:

via Weighing the Week Ahead: A Lull Before the Storm?.