Moore Business Forms (acquired by R.R. Donnelley & Sons)

CHICAGO -- In a move that would satisfy R.R. Donnelley & Sons Co. s quest both for growth and for a new chief executive, the printing giant agreed to acquire Moore Wallace Inc. for $2.8 billion in stock. Moore Corporation Limited was built upon the design and manufacture of a simple counter salesbook. As the worlds largest maker of business forms throughout much of its history, Moore has continually redefined the business-forms industry, from the time its founder, Samuel J. Moore, launched the industry through the dominance of computers today. Samuel Moore emigrated to Canada from his native England as a young boy in 1861. He worked in the printing business throughout his teens; by his early 20s, he was the co-publisher of a Tory newsletter called The Grip. When Moore met John Carter, a local sales clerk, who described his idea for a salesbook using a piece of carbon paper to standardize sales slips and provide a record of transactions, Moore seized upon the idea, acquired rights t...