Friedman - Artikel und Diskussionen

    Michael Jackson Coughs Up $$$ in Taxes on Neverland


    Thursday, February 07, 2008
    By Roger Friedman


    Michael Jackson, who may or may not wave at the Grammy audience on Sunday night, paid some taxes last week.


    According to records in Santa Barbara County, Jackson finally satisfied a state tax lien on his all-but-abandoned Neverland Valley Ranch in Los Olivos, Calif. The total, according to the assessor’s office, came to just over $600,000, including penalties and fees.


    The payment doesn’t cover the $23 million for which Jackson is still in default on loans he’s taken against Neverland. Fortress Investments is now two weeks past its foreclosure deadline, which means it could start proceedings against Jackson at any time.


    Jackson, sources say, may have arranged for a time extension through his former (and maybe current) pal, Ron Burkle.


    Meanwhile, a Jackson appearance at the Grammys this Sunday remains a question mark. The former King of Pop simply is not prepared to perform in any way, but he may be acknowledged in some form for the 25th anniversary of "Thriller."


    If he comes to the show, odds are Jackson will stop afterward at the private celebration for Motown founder Berry Gordy, who’s being honored by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences as an "industry icon."


    [url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,329266,00.html]FOXNews.com - Michael Jackson Coughs Up $$$ in Taxes on Neverland - Celebrity Gossip | Entertainment News | Arts And Entertainment[/url]

    Neues von Roger Friedman:


    'Idol,' Beatles Can't Help Jackson


    The big news that the Beatles are coming to "American Idol" will not do anything to help Michael Jackson’s bid to save his Neverland Ranch.


    "Idol" producer Nigel Lythgoe announced this week that "Idol" had finally gotten the right to use songs written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney on "American Idol." He said that when the show pares down to 12 contestants, there will be a "Beatle" night.


    All that means is that the contestants will sing a dozen Beatle songs. Sony/ATV Music Publishing will get paid for their performances, just like another publisher of any other songs. Jackson will get a few dollars from the episode, as a 50 percent owner of the publisher.


    But the "Idol" show has absolutely nothing to do with Jackson’s financial dilemma at Neverland. He still needs to come up with $24.5 million by 1 p.m. on March 19, or the public auction of the property will proceed as planned.


    I did get a laugh on Thursday when CNN.com tried to jump into the fray. There actually was a quote from an unnamed source saying Jackson’s refinancing was in place, and that Neverland would be saved.


    Do these schnooks read legal papers? There’s a notice of default and a notice of trustees’ sale on Neverland. Jackson’s people have had four months to come up with the money.


    Much of the blame can be laid at the feet of now-former manager and publicist Raymone Bain. Her reign with Jackson has to have been the single worst of all the various managers who’ve come and gone.


    During the time Bain controlled Jackson’s world, he was sued several times, had to settle all the lawsuits for millions, alienated fans and business associates. She couldn’t have done more damage.


    Can Michael Jackson Find 11th-Hour Help?


    The planned public auction of Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch doesn’t necessarily get him off the hook. Even if someone turns up on March 19 with $24.5 million, Jackson still has a big problem: taxes.


    According to experts, Jackson could be very much on the hook with the Internal Revenue Service for around $5 million in capital gains taxes. In other words: His home would be gone, but he’d still be significantly in debt.


    The reason for this is: Jackson bought Neverland for between $12 million and $14 million back in 1988. If it sells for the full amount owed, $24.5 million, there’s a conceivable difference of $10 million.


    According to California law, Jackson would then be taxed on that money as if he’d sold the property and it was income. According to a California state-sponsored Web site, Franchise Tax Board Homepage, Jackson would be liable for this money. A ballpark figure could be as much as $5 million.


    To add insult to injury, the Neverland auction, as it stands, will take place on the steps of the Santa Barbara County courthouse. The auctioneer likely will be a representative from Financial Title Company of San Francisco.


    Bidders will have to come with cashier’s checks for the amount they want to offer. Once the bidding begins, Fortress Investments -- the original lender and beneficiary of the bid — can’t stop it. Someone will win Neverland.


    The good news is that once a bid is accepted, Jackson is no longer the debtor. If Fortress accepts a lower bid than $24.5 million, Jackson is not liable for the balance. The debt is cleared.


    But think what a circus this outdoor auction will be like, and what embarrassment it adds up to. Jackson could easily have avoided this, too.


    Meanwhile, don’t believe spin from the Jackson camp reported on less successful cable operations.


    We reported a couple of weeks ago that Jackson had paid off a $600,000 bill to the California State Franchise Board having to do with a company called Select Staffing. That had nothing to do with the foreclosure. Jackson owed that money to the state regardless. And there’s a big difference between the tax amount and what it would take to save Neverland from auction.


    If Jackson’s people have dug up new financing in the 11th hour, that’s great news. But it’s important to remember that Neverland has been in default since Oct. 19. Jackson had 90 days to fix the problem and didn’t.


    When that grace period ran out on Jan. 19, Fortress Investments gave Jackson another month’s extension, more or less. That brings us to the current dilemma.


    One way out for Jackson was to accept an offer I reported here exclusively two weeks ago. AEG Live guaranteed him $10 million for 10 shows at its Millennium Dome in London, with a potential of $30 million for a total of 30 shows. All Jackson would have to do was perform "Thriller" from beginning to end, as well as about a half-dozen other hits as encores.


    If he signed that contract, he could use it for collateral — maybe. But it’s unclear whether that deal still exists.


    Michael Jackson Evicted; ‘Thriller’ Flops


    So many people ask me, "What’s wrong with Michael Jackson? How did he get into this terrible situation?" His beloved home, the 2,900-acre Neverland Ranch, is about to be auctioned off in public, with all his possessions in it, on March 19 outside the Santa Barbara County Courthouse.


    And, no, this is one foreclosure the federal government is not going to bail out.


    Not only that: after a big debut week for the 25th anniversary edition of "Thriller" with 166,000 copies sold. But in its second week, the updated "Thriller" dropped 65 percent and sold just 55,000 copies, according to hitsdailydouble.com.


    The bigger question is: What happened to all those Michael Jackson fans? Where are the legions of devoted fanatics who write to me, who consider themselves Jackson’s best friends? Where are they?


    The fact is, if Jackson can’t sell more than 200,000 copies of a special edition "Thriller" in two weeks, he’s not going to be selling so many concert tickets after all.


    And that may be an essential part of the equation as Jackson’s lawyer, Peter Lopez, makes a last-ditch attempt to refinance the $24.5 million loan needed to keep Neverland. Jackson is already leveraged to the hilt. He has assets on paper, but he doesn’t work. He doesn’t tour, and he’s not releasing records. Why would anyone in this economy lend him any more money?


    One of Jackson’s biggest problems is that he won’t return to remunerative work. I told you two weeks ago that he recently was offered a great gig: 10 shows minimum, 30 max, at $1 million apiece to perform the "Thriller" album at London’s Millennium Dome. It was a solid offer from AEG Live. But he wouldn’t do it.


    He also wouldn’t appear at the Grammys. He also refused to pitch in on "Thriller" publicity — most of it was done by producer Quincy Jones. It seems no one has ever told Jackson the old adage that 99 percent of life is just about showing up.


    Working isn’t always fun, but it can be done. Say what you will about Michael’s sister, Janet, but she keeps going, making money. She’s made three albums in four years, tours constantly and knows how to play the game. Unlike Michael, Janet understands that she’s not entitled to anything. She goes out and gets what she wants and needs. Maybe Michael should take a lesson from his little sister.


    Still a little unclear is what’s left in the Neverland main house. Now that the foreclosure is in place, Jackson may not have access to a lot of his possessions. If the property is auctioned "as is," the new owner may find himself with a treasure trove of highly collectible artifacts.


    [url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,334371,00.html]FOXNews.com - Will Ferrell's Big Bomb - Celebrity Gossip | Entertainment News | Arts And Entertainment[/url]

    Roger Roger....wieder viel wahres, aber Spot an der falschen Stelle. Thriller 25 2 Wochen auf Platz 1 der Weltcharts sagt ja alles. Nix Flop...uralt und trotzdem verkaufsschlager. Dann: Auf einmal hat er wieder 50% Anteile an den Rechten?

    Jackson's Last-Ditch Attempt


    By Roger Friedman


    Michael Jackson is making one last-ditch, 11th-hour attempt to save his Neverland Ranch in Los Olivos, Calif., from being sold at auction. Jackson has to find someone to come in with $24.5 million in cash and pay off the main lien holder, Fortress Investments, or watch his fabled property sell to strangers.


    Believe it or not, there may be a person or institution crazy enough to do this, despite Jackson’s $350 million debt to HSBC and Barclays, as well as his poor history of keeping up mortgage payments for his parents’ home in Encino.


    On Friday, a California escrow company sent out a memo to other, smaller lien holders on the property.


    I have the memo. This is what it says:


    “I have been asked to open escrow by the investor willing to loan Michael Jackson funds. My understanding [is that] this process has occurred a couple of times and I’m sorry for the inconvenience this may cause. Time is of the essence [since] the property goes to trustee sale March 11, 2008.”


    The note is correct. I’ve told you that previously during the 90-day grace period, Jackson’s people have sent similar “Release of Lien” notices to the holders, only to find no lender at the other end. What’s interesting now is that according to the demand, both Neverland and Encino (known as “Hayvenhurst”) are cross collateralized.


    So the countdown begins to next Tuesday, the 11th, and then the auction eight days later. Stay tuned.


    [url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,334513,00.html]FOXNews.com - 'Semi-Pro': Will Ferrell's Big Bomb - Celebrity Gossip | Entertainment News | Arts And Entertainment[/url]

    Michael Jackson's Neverland Falls Prey to Chaos


    Wednesday, March 12, 2008
    By Roger Friedman


    Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch may temporarily be out of financial peril on Wednesday. But there’s been a mini-financial soap opera running in the background, one which Michael probably knows nothing about, and it’s a doozy.


    Sources tell me that for the last several months, Jackson’s former manager and press person Raymone Bain has been spearheading a drive to refinance Neverland without actually bothering to tell Jackson or his legal representatives.


    Indeed, she and a group of financial advisers she organized may have been doing it long after Jackson dismissed her as his manager.


    The result is that a rock-solid investment group in Los Angeles has been taught the lesson that no good deed goes unpunished.


    According to the story, a Los Angeles investor named Jason Cestero was located by a financial group called Genesis Group, run by Kevin Kinsey. Kinsey, I am told, sent Cestero letters identifying himself as lead adviser to MJJ Neverland Ranch Finance Restruct Project. Kinsey, this source says, told Cestero that he was brought on board by Bain, Jackson’s then-manager.


    In correspondence and in conference calls with Kinsey and Cestero, Bain represented herself and her PR assistant Aidean King as a firm called North Star.


    Based on the letters, e-mails and calls that then began, Cestero and wealthy East Coast investors planned for the refinancing of Neverland.


    By last month, based on back-and-forth e-mails and telephone conversations, Cestero — acting on good faith — placed $46 million in escrow with the goal of refinancing the Neverland lien held by Fortress Investments in New York and getting Jackson out of trouble.


    But then things started to sound strange to Cestero, sources tell me. The escrow company received a notice from Genesis indicating that $4.6 million of the Cestero money would go to it once escrow on the property closed.


    At that point, sources say, Cestero began asking to speak with Jackson directly. When that didn’t happen, Cestero’s suspicions — which already had been brewing — blossomed. He demanded an answer. I’m told that at that point a rep for Bain contacted Cestero saying, suddenly, the deal was off.


    Simultaneously: In New York and other parts of Los Angeles, Jackson’s legal representatives knew nothing about these transactions. They had no idea that such a large amount of money was in escrow or that Cestero and his investor existed.


    What they did know was that Neverland was in danger of being auctioned off in public on March 19 on the steps of the Santa Barbara County Courthouse.


    Similarly, unbeknownst to Cestero, Fortress was agreeing, albeit reluctantly, to renegotiate Jackson’s Neverland loan, charge him a hefty fee and extend the default arrangement for one year. The plan was for Fortress to avoid the public embarrassment of evicting Jackson from his home, and in broad daylight.


    Ironically, while both sides proceeded, it’s more than likely Jackson also knew nothing of the $46 million placed in escrow for him, or anything of the Cestero deal.


    Wednesday morning, sources tell me, Jackson’s people feel they may have a deal in place with Fortress. At the same time, Cestero — who did not return calls — is left holding a $46 million bag. He and his investor will get their money back, but not the time, aggravation or fees from dealing with Bain’s people.


    Still, a major question lingers: the request for the $4.6 million from Genesis. I’m told Cestero was informed that was for fees for Kinsey, Bain, King and even possibly Michael’s brother, Randy, who was mentioned as being part of the deal to refinance Neverland.


    "They were supposedly people who expected to be paid something for putting the financing into motion," a source says.


    More to come on this issue…


    Meantime…


    So is Neverland saved? It’s still a bit foggy. But there is some good news on the horizon. The "Thriller 25" album has sold better than anyone imagined. A month later, the revamped package is holding its own in the top 10. Last week, "Thriller 25" was one of the few CDs that actually increased its sales, by 20 percent. It sold almost 50,000 copies. In this economy, with the record biz dead, that’s quite an accomplishment.


    At a total 300,000-plus, "Thriller 25" is heading for gold certification with the RIAA. That would be quite an accomplishment for a CD that’s been reissued several times. It also might be a sign of how bad things are in the marketplace. Good music is being drunk like water in the desert!


    [url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,336991,00.html]FOXNews.com - Michael Jackson's Neverland Falls Prey to Chaos - Celebrity Gossip | Entertainment News | Arts And Entertainment[/url]

    Also irgendwann platzt mir echt der Kragen...irgendwann krieg ick ma nen richtigen Ausraster wegen diesem ganzen Dreck...dann flieg ich da persönlich rüber, scheiß egal was dit kostet, und trete jedem einzelnen Idioten von Bain bis Randy mit Pööömps in den Arsch....dit is so ein unglaublicher Scheiß! WIE kann die losrennen und einen Kredit in Michaels Namen über 46Mio klar machen ohne ihm davon auch nur ein sterbenswörtchen zu sagen!?!?!? Ich meine, das sind nicht mal 100.000Dollar hier oder da...Sie handelt völlig eigenmächtig mit seinem Namen und besorgt sich die Knete. In diesem Fall tat sie es für Michael! Allerdings überlegen wir uns mal, sie wäre nur halb so blöde wie sie ist und würde sowas für sich machen und mit den guten 50Mio einfach abdampfen...wer zahlt? Michael Jackson! Ich will nicht wissen wie oft das sooo gelaufen ist...das is das perfekte Bsp! Wirklich! Und die Leute hören Michael Jackson und machen erstmal ohne irgendwas zu prüfen..ich meine wenn dieser Investor ein Arsch ist, klagt er auf Abnahme des Kredits bzw zumindest auf die Erstattung des Zins-Ausfalls, was dann locker mal wieder 5-6Mio Dollar sind die Michael zum Fenster rausgeschmissen hat. Es ist wirklich zum in die Luft gehen!!!! Diese zum himmelschreiende Inkompetenz macht mich mittlerweile soooowas von aggressiv und dabei könnte es mir Scheiß egal sein...aber DAS mit ansehen zu müssen, über Jahre und ihn immer wieder ausbaden zu sehen, geht mir irgendwann dermassen gegen den Strich...ich aaah...ich....ick sach jetzt nüscht mehr. Ruhe*

    Zitat von Screamlouder

    Also irgendwann platzt mir echt der Kragen...irgendwann krieg ick ma nen richtigen Ausraster wegen diesem ganzen Dreck...dann flieg ich da persönlich rüber, scheiß egal was dit kostet, und trete jedem einzelnen Idioten von Bain bis Randy mit Pööömps in den Arsch....dit is so ein unglaublicher Scheiß! WIE kann die losrennen und einen Kredit in Michaels Namen über 46Mio klar machen ohne ihm davon auch nur ein sterbenswörtchen zu sagen!?!?!? Ich meine, das sind nicht mal 100.000Dollar hier oder da...Sie handelt völlig eigenmächtig mit seinem Namen und besorgt sich die Knete. In diesem Fall tat sie es für Michael! Allerdings überlegen wir uns mal, sie wäre nur halb so blöde wie sie ist und würde sowas für sich machen und mit den guten 50Mio einfach abdampfen...wer zahlt? Michael Jackson! Ich will nicht wissen wie oft das sooo gelaufen ist...das is das perfekte Bsp! Wirklich! Und die Leute hören Michael Jackson und machen erstmal ohne irgendwas zu prüfen..ich meine wenn dieser Investor ein Arsch ist, klagt er auf Abnahme des Kredits bzw zumindest auf die Erstattung des Zins-Ausfalls, was dann locker mal wieder 5-6Mio Dollar sind die Michael zum Fenster rausgeschmissen hat. Es ist wirklich zum in die Luft gehen!!!! Diese zum himmelschreiende Inkompetenz macht mich mittlerweile soooowas von aggressiv und dabei könnte es mir Scheiß egal sein...aber DAS mit ansehen zu müssen, über Jahre und ihn immer wieder ausbaden zu sehen, geht mir irgendwann dermassen gegen den Strich...ich aaah...ich....ick sach jetzt nüscht mehr. Ruhe*


    isch libbe disch :hotkiss:top;D


    btw...wer weiss, ob sie nicht schon wat beiseite geschafft hat...is ja nun auch ein paar jahre im team... :cool


    öhm....soll ick dir meine pöööömps leihen?
    15cm absatz mit stahl ;D:kicher

    Jo, unser Mike gibt sich immer mit den falschen Leuten ab seit Dileo wech ist. Lasst uns doch mal ne Petition an Frank Dileo schreiben. So schlimm kann der gar nicht gewesen sein, um das wett zu machen, was andere (Bain und Konsorten) hier an Geld in falsche Bahnen gefiltert haben.


    Ein Mann, der als Musiker die größten kommerziellen Erfolge überhaupt erzielt hat, steht nun mit Schulden da und muss ansehen, wie NL weggepfändet wird....Wer hätte das jemals gedacht??????


    Ich wünschte Mike hätte etwas mehr Geschäftsahnung. Aber seine Talente sind wohl sehr einseitig. Dafür aber überdimensional gut in der Einseitigkeit :)

    Schon 2005 wurde vor Gericht offengelegt, dass Mike leichtfertig Vollmachten an korrupte Leute erteilt hat



    Dass er Martin Bashir keine Vorlagen erteilt hat und sich von dem verarscht hat lassen, zeigt doch wie unglaublich naiv Mike wirklich ist


    Er ist in diesen Belangen eben immer Kind geblieben...


    So sehe ich das auch. Schade ist es trotzdem, dass er da Scheinbar nichts draus lernt. Die Welt ist hart und jeder von uns muss sehen, wie er sein Leben managed, so auch der liebe Mike.....

    Zitat von Speed_Demon

    Jo, unser Mike gibt sich immer mit den falschen Leuten ab seit Dileo wech ist. Lasst uns doch mal ne Petition an Frank Dileo schreiben. So schlimm kann der gar nicht gewesen sein, um das wett zu machen, was andere (Bain und Konsorten) hier an Geld in falsche Bahnen gefiltert haben.


    Ein Mann, der als Musiker die größten kommerziellen Erfolge überhaupt erzielt hat, steht nun mit Schulden da und muss ansehen, wie NL weggepfändet wird....Wer hätte das jemals gedacht??????


    Ich wünschte Mike hätte etwas mehr Geschäftsahnung. Aber seine Talente sind wohl sehr einseitig. Dafür aber überdimensional gut in der Einseitigkeit :)


    Aber Speedy, ich glaube nicht, dass Michael kein guter Geschäftsmann ist. Man hat schon so oft von den verschiedensten Stellen gehört, dass er ein wahnsinnig guter Businessman sein soll... Wenn er die Geschäfte selbst in die Hand nehmen würde, würde auch so einiges anders ablaufen.
    Ich denke er ist einfach unglaublich naiv. Ich muss mich nur wundern, warum er nicht aus den Fehlern gelernt hat. Er verliert einfach nicht den Glauben an die Menschheit!

    [CENTER][SIGPIC][/SIGPIC][/CENTER][CENTER]"Mein Herz...mein Verstand...sind gebrochen. Ich liebte Michael mit meiner ganzen Seele und ich kann mir kein Leben ohne ihn vorstellen. Ich glaube nicht, dass jemand wusste, wie sehr wir einander liebten. Oh Gott, ich werde ihn so vermissen!" Elizabeth Taylor[/CENTER]

    Neverland Scam: A 'Thriller'


    Thursday, March 13, 2008
    By Roger Friedman


    Yesterday I told you that Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch and its $23 million lien are part of a weird sequence of events. This included a California investor putting $46 million into escrow for Neverland, thinking he was dealing with Jackson’s representatives.


    He wasn’t. And the investor just narrowly avoided being bilked for close to $5 million.


    How did this all start? It turns out the investor’s rep, Jason Cestaro, got involved based on information sent to him right from the office of Jackson’s former manager, Raymone Bain, in February.


    Cestaro, sources say, asked for and received crucial personal financial information about Jackson in order to make the decision to loan him so much money.


    Cestaro, I’ve now learned, depended on a letter he was shown on February 13, 2008 on stationery that simply read at the top: Michael J. Jackson. It was signed by Diane Simmons Williams, a certified public accountant who was not only the wife of ex-District of Columbia mayor Anthony Williams, but billed herself as a “Financial Consultant” to Jackson.


    What Cestaro didn’t know is Williams also an employee of Raymone Bain, which is how she had access to sensitive information about Jackson.


    The notarized letter was presented to Cestaro by Kevin D. Kinsey, a Los Angeles finance rep, as evidence of Jackson’s income. It was addressed “To whom it may concern” and outlined Jackson’s income as almost $30 million a year including $5 million royalties from “Sony’s Records” and $11 million from Jackson’s stake in Sony/ATV Music Publishing. Jackson’s other income, Williams stated in the letter, included between $3 to $4 million from BMI (airplays) royalties and $10-11 million generated by Jackson’s MiJac Publishing, a separate entity.


    Castero was thrilled to learn all this, I’m told, but concerned that the letter was old. It was dated July 11, 2007. He called Williams, whose phone number was at the bottom of the letter, asking for an updated version. She balked, and recommended he speak to one of Bain’s assistants, who put him off to another.


    Nevertheless, Castero deposited the $46 million in escrow as act of good faith.


    Castero would not learn until afterwards that Williams’ letter misrepresented Jackson’s finances: she’d omitted all that Sony income plus the MiJac, was being paid but not to Jackson. It was going directly to paying off more than $330 million in loans secured by the publishing. Jackson had no access to it as actual cash, which was implied.


    Several phone calls and emails to Williams yesterday went unreturned to this column, including two to the office of her husband former mayor Anthony Williams.


    In the meantime, despite instances from everyone involved, Neverland is still scheduled to be auctioned on March 19th in Santa Barbara, California. The Notice of Trustee’s Sale, first posted on the county’s Web site by Fortress Investments on February 25th, remains active.


    [url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,337389,00.html]FOXNews.com - Neverland Scam: A 'Thriller' - Celebrity Gossip | Entertainment News | Arts And Entertainment[/url]

    Zitat

    Nevertheless, Castero deposited the $46 million in escrow as act of good faith.


    Castero would not learn until afterwards that Williams’ letter misrepresented Jackson’s finances: she’d omitted all that Sony income plus the MiJac, was being paid but not to Jackson. It was going directly to paying off more than $330 million in loans secured by the publishing.


    ey wie kann man das als finanzmensch nicht wissen, wenn man das als jeder dummdepp weiss ,weils mehr als einmal durch die presse ging und nur weil man mir rosarote zahlen vorlegt, erkundige ich mich doch genauestens, wenn ich vorhab soviel cash rauszuhauen oder ,und das ist ja nun mal mehr als aktenkundig, oh man...
    jetzt sollte ja klar werden was frau bain wollte oder?...

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