Punic Wars

Munger quoted Oscar Wilde, cited author W. Somerset Maugham's views on romantic relationships and likened the U.S. response to the credit crunch of 2008 to the strategy employed by ancient Rome in wars that left Carthage destroyed. The bailouts under former President Bush and then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson helped the U.S. recovery, he said.

"I feel good about the way the Romans handled the Punic Wars, and I feel good about the way Paulson, and both political parties and George W. Bush handled the great recession," Munger said.

Munger, a lawyer who gave up his practice after meeting Buffett in 1959, promised the "Morning with Charlie" to former shareholders of Wesco Financial Corp. Berkshire, which had owned 80 percent of Pasadena-based Wesco since 1983, increased its stake to 100 percent this year and removed the company from the stock exchange. Munger was Wesco's chairman and chief executive officer and presided over the unit's annual meetings.

Member Of 'Cult'

"I'm delighted to count myself in as a member in your cult," a questioner said.

Attendees, who lined up behind microphones at the Pasadena Convention Center, thanked Munger for his time, and some said their lives had been improved by the billionaire's musings on topics ranging from investment planning to filial relations. Munger was asked to give pointers for wealthy parents and recounted a conversation he once had with a successful friend.

"I just think it's too damn bad that you got too rich and you can't provide hardships for your children," Munger said he told the person. "I gave him the same advice I gave myself, 'Lose graciously.'"

Wesco investors were offered cash or Berkshire stock for their holdings in a transaction completed last month. Elizabeth Caspers Peters, a former Wesco director and an ally of Buffett and Munger in the 1970s when the men were building a stake in the firm, said in an interview that the deal made her a Berkshire shareholder for the first time. She didn't need stock in Buffett's company as long as she had Wesco shares, she said.

Berkshire's Surge