P.T. Barnum earned recognition as "America's Greatest Showman" by refusing to overestimate the judgment of his customers. Scores of people came to see his "Fiji Mermaid" – which, in reality, consisted of the head and torso of a dead monkey attached to the body of a fish. He had a knack for turning lemons into lemonade. When his prize attraction, Jumbo the Elephant, was killed by a train, he stuffed the body and charged visitors to view the carcass. When his museum burned to the ground he erected a fence and charged visitors to see the ruins. Earlier, when crowds at his museum had become difficult to manage, he installed a sign that said "This Way to the Egress." When visitors followed the sign, hoping to see another attraction, they found themselves headed out the exit door.
Barnum was all about presentation. In a cynical mood he is said to have conceded that "there's a sucker born every minute."
Today, he might have been the first to recognize that there seems to be a promoter born every minute as well. In recent days, some of those promoters have been aggressively hawking Dark Dynamite, Inc.(OTCBB: DKDY), the born again penny stock that, in its latest incarnation, has been touting plans to profit from a theme park operating at the Qin E-Pang Palace in Mainland China. See, Dark Dynamite, Inc. - Time For the Gong Show. The viability of that plan remains a matter of conjecture. Investors have little information about the theme park, its operations and its revenues. Control of the Company recently was shifted to Shanxi Kai Da Lv You Gu Wen You Xian Gong Si, ("Kai Da"), the entity that operates the theme park. Although Dark Dynamite promised to provide audited financial statements for Kai Da, and pro form financial information for the merged entity, by mid December- 2005, that information has yet to appear in any public filings.
Instead, investors have been treated to a series of press releases extolling the prospects of the theme park. The first, issued on January 4, 2006, claimed that construction of a new highway would make it easier for tourists to visit the attraction and reduce travel time for local visitors. According to the Company, travel agencies are saying the theme park will become one of the main attractions in the area, and are projecting that an additional 10,000 people will visit the site each month.
The second press release disclosed that Dark Dynamite and GreenTree Financial Group, Inc. planned to organize a nightly cultural dinner show at the theme park featuring dancing and music from the Qin Dynasty, beginning in April 2006. The press release described GreenTree as a professional financial and consulting firm focusing on China. The Company said that it would receive $296,000 – presumably from GreenTree – to stage the program. The Company estimated that the dinner show would attract an additional 18,000 guests to the theme park each month – although it did not indicate the basis for that projection. The press release did not indicate how GreenTree would be compensated for its role – or who controlled GreenTree.
Presentation, as Barnum understood, is a key to sales – in this case, selling the public on the notion that Dark Dynamite is about to turn from failed designer of cutting-edge clothing to successful theme park operator. E-mails recommending Dark Dynamite, and extolling the prospects of its new tourist attraction have been circulating since around January 6, 2006, and investors have responded. Dark Dynamite shares, which were selling for 72 cents on December 20, 2005, reached $2.35 on January 9, 2006. Volume has been brisk – topping 237,000 on January 6th, nearing 550,000 on January 9th, and hovering around 450,000 on January 11th and 12th. Customers evidently were intrigued, even if they were not well-informed.
Press releases and promotions suggest a sexy future; financial details would add a dose of reality, for better or worse. If those figures are promising, the Company could gain wider, merited support. If they are not, investors might be inclined to look past the intriguing glitterand the pitch of the showmen. Who would come to see a mermaid if they knew it really had been cobbled together from a dead monkey and a rotting fish?
Egress, anybody?
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