Posted on 06/08/2005 10:03:27 AM PDT by BurbankKarl
To escape at least $270 million in debt amassed in support of his unusual lifestyle, should Mr. Jackson sell his stake in a coveted music-publishing catalog?
The answer has not come easily. Mr. Jackson is surrounded by an ever-changing cast of characters, making it difficult to determine who, if anyone, is in charge of his business affairs. One camp has urged Mr. Jackson to sell some of his holding to avert financial disaster. Another group -- which includes supermarket billionaire Ron Burkle -- says such drastic action is unnecessary. More recently, the Rev. Jesse Jackson has emerged as an outspoken advocate for the singer and has personally interceded on his behalf with bank officials.
Meanwhile, according to a person close to the singer, Mr. Jackson's cash reserves ran so low earlier this year that he worried about paying his electric bill.
After two months of backstage maneuvering, Mr. Jackson is, as usual, in an odd spot. The financial fate of the former King of Pop now rests in the hands of a New York-based investment firm that invests in distressed debt. Last month, Fortress Investment Group LLC bought Mr. Jackson's loans outstanding from their holder, Bank of America Corp.
The singer shells out more than $1.5 million a month in overhead costs, according to a person familiar with his finances. At the Neverland ranch in California -- named for the fantasy world in J. M. Barrie's "Peter Pan" -- Mr. Jackson spends thousands of dollars to maintain his menagerie of zoo animals, according to documents filed in a lawsuit unrelated to the criminal case and the current financial mess.
Mr. Jackson's financial affairs tumbled into disarray in early April when Bank of America notified him that he was in default on part of the loans.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
Well, when your records start to suck, you have poor management skills, and have to pay out millions monthly to pay off the parents of your child victims, you tend to go broke.
the fact that his advising "cast of characters" is always changing ought to be some sort of a signal - either nobody good will come anywhere near him, or maybe they're seeing something they can't live with, or he is too mercurical to maintain.
Jessie Jackson threatened Bank of America with his usual blackmail techniques to keep them from foreclosing on Michael Jackson's loan portfolio. He missed a $300,000 payment on a $271 million loan.
Not that I would know anything about that from dealing with my mother, oooohhhhh noooooooo......
Including me, thank you.
Well put BTW.
The biggest problem (from a financial perspective) is that he never really understood the whole concept of taking in more than he was spending. And there are many 'stars' who fall for the same trap. It really doesn't matter if you rake in 700 million IF you are spending 700,000,001 . You'll be one dollar in debt. Crude analogy (particularly when you consider that the more money one has, or the more debt, the greater flexibility with lenders one acquires .....just ask Donald trump), but it illustrates the case. The dude is basically spending more than he is raking (or raked) in, and that will surely bleed him dry if he doesn't watch out. The ironic thing is he may be forced to sell his catalogue, particularly the Beatles one, and while that would give him a serious cash inflow it would also remove a sustainable income source.
If you owe the bank $1,000,000 - the bank owns you.
If you owe the bank $100,000,000 - you own the bank.
What makes me sick is that if he went on TV and told the world how good he really was and that he needed them to each send him a $20 bill he would have enough to pay off the bank in 30 days.
I hope his pointed little nose falls off.................
It's always bad when Jesse Jackson gets involved in your finances. The question is, What will Jesse stand to get out of this? And he calls himself a Reverand. What a crook.
Of course. He`s been telling the public he is a danger for years, conciously or subconciously. Besides "Neverland" look at the name of his albums and songs; "Off the wall" "Bad" "Thriller" "Dangerous" "Blood on the dance floor" "Scream" "In the closet"... If he was so "loving and innocent" like he keeps claiming he is, then why are his albums always centered around being dangerous and being bad?
Funny, the press didnt show this guy on the news last night...perhaps it offended the news director and two staff writers.
It's good to see Jackson going to bat for a white guy, for once.
Ouch!
A lineup of the Yellow Journalists...
It won't be long before poor Michael is reduced to the necessity of standing near the playground with a bag of Tootsie Pops.
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