Katzenberg says Madoff losses dire for his philanthropy
This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.
Hollywood mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg says the losses on his personal investments with Bernie Madoff have done ‘extraordinary damage’ to his philanthropic efforts.
In an interview on CNBC today, the DreamWorks Animation SKG chief said it was a ‘disgrace’ that Madoff remained free pending the next phase of his case.
Madoff, 70, is accused of running a $50-billion Ponzi scheme, resulting in massive losses for individual and institutional investors worldwide, including a number of Hollywood figures.
From Bloomberg News:
‘The first time I heard the name Bernie Madoff was about three weeks ago when I found out that, you know, he had swindled all this money,’ Katzenberg said on CNBC. ‘This is extremely painful and humiliating for me,’ he said. ‘It has done extraordinary damage to my philanthropy.’
Katzenberg’s funds were invested with Madoff via the studio executive’s business manager, Gerald Breslauer, the Los Angeles Times has previously reported.
Katzenberg didn’t provide details about the scope of his loss. But two sources have told The Times that he lost at least $20 million with Madoff.
Bloomberg noted that the Marilyn & Jeffrey Katzenberg Foundation listed assets of $22.1 million as of 2007, according to a September tax filing. Contributions in 2007 totaled $455,333, Bloomberg said, citing the filing.
That Madoff remains free ‘I think is a disgrace,’ Katzenberg told CNBC. ‘And this guy is living in a $7-million apartment today walking free. There is something very, very wrong.’
Federal prosecutors are trying to persuade the judge handling the case that Madoff should be imprisoned pending trial.
Katzenberg, 58, serves on the boards of the Motion Picture and Television Fund, the Museum of the Moving Image, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, California Institute of the Arts and the Simon Wiesenthal Center. He also as been a major fundraiser for AIDS Project Los Angeles.
-- Tom Petruno