No Sweat
Does a company that makes life uneasy for celebrities such as Elizabeth Taylor, Ed McMahon, Roseanne and Hugh Grant live in fear of being sued by them?
Apparently not, if documents recently filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission by American Media Inc. are any indication.
The company is the parent of such supermarket tabloids as the National Enquirer and the Star. Recent lawsuits include one claiming defamation filed against the Enquirer by actress Melissa Gilbert, over an article that described her as “deadbeat mother.” Another pending suit, against the Star, was filed by former “Tonight Show” sidekick Ed McMahon over an article--later retracted--that alleged he stumbled drunk off an airplane.
According to American Media’s recently filed 10-K document, it was a defendant in nine libel-based lawsuits on May 1.
The company says it doesn’t expect the suits to have a material effect on its operations. During the five fiscal years ended March 27, the company paid $2.5 million in legal fees (including reviews by lawyers before articles were published), libel insurance premiums and settlements.
American Media does note that, in some cases, plaintiffs are seeking damages greater than 10% of the company’s assets, but suggests that’s not a concern.
“Because the focus of the company’s publications on personality journalism often involves controversial celebrities or subjects, the risk of libel litigation arises in the ordinary course of the company’s business,” the documents say. “In addition, the company’s experience suggests that the claims for damages made in such lawsuits are heavily inflated, and, in any event, any reasonably foreseeable liability or settlement in excess of policy deductibles would be covered by insurance.”
Another Happy Seller
For months, former Gov. Jerry Brown found himself on the same boat with a lot of other California homeowners: unable to sell his home in a soft real estate market.
Brown, who first listed his home in San Francisco’s Pacific Heights section last fall for $1.4 million, earlier this year cut the price to $1,195,000.
According to San Francisco Chronicle columnist Herb Caen, Brown eventually found a buyer: San Francisco advertising executive Hal Riney, reportedly for a figure around Brown’s asking price.
Ironically, one of Riney’s best-known ad campaigns is a political one, albeit at the opposite end of Democrat Brown’s ideological spectrum. Riney was behind the “morning in America” commercials that ran during the 1984 reelection campaign for former President Ronald Reagan.
Biological Buy
The latest in environmental commerce is “Power Sphere,” a $39.95 model kit “inspired by” Biosphere 2, the experimental mini-world built in Arizona.
According to an ad in Biosphere magazine, the Power Sphere model is for all ages and “helps the user discover the secrets of the power of plants, light, water, soil, air and much more.”
The ad promises that it comes as part of a convenient kit and includes an easy-to-follow experiment booklet.
