Time was, all you knew about your fund manager was the smiling photo that accompanied the bromides in your shareholder letter.

That gave way to a phalanx of star managers, many of whom seemed to spend more time on television than they did researching companies. Some spectacular flameouts — triggered first by the technology crash of 2000 and then the financial crisis of 2008 — put an end to that and dealt a serious blow to active management.