To financial analysts and investors, it is the earnings per share figure or 'the number' which is the most important sign of a company's health and future prospects. To chief executives whose colossal bonus packages are increasingly linked to 'the number' it is even more important that it doesn't fall short. Not surprisingly the temptation to 'massage' this number by booking non-existent sales or hiding capital expenses proved too much for some, even though their deception amounted to theft on a massive scale from shareholders and their employees. Part detective story, part financial history, THE NUMBER gives an insider's account of the balance-sheet lies which have so tarnished the reputation of Corporate America, as well as a comprehensive overview of how Wall Street and Big Business lost their way during the long bull market that began in 1982.