The room was jam-packed even more than usual for the final instalment of the 2008 Grano Speaker's Series in Toronto last week. And there were a few more luminaries than usual. Liberal party deputy leader Michael Ignatieff was there to introduce the speaker, U.S. political uber-insider David Gergen, a former Harvard colleague. And Joshka Fischer, former foreign minister of Germany, attended as a guest of former foreign affairs minister Bill Graham. Onex CEO Gerry Schwartz arrived late and couldn't find an empty chair. He stood looking around until an extra seat was hurriedly squeezed in beside former First Marathon Securities honcho Lawrence Bloomberg. When he rose to speak, Mr. Gergen acknowledged the little spectacle: "Where but at the Grano series?" he said.
