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Thứ Năm, 29 tháng 1, 2015
Legendary Singer Sly Stone Awarded $5 Million After Royalties Stolen For Years
A jury found that the former frontman of Sly and the Family Stone was cheated out of his earnings for years as he suffered from drug addiction.
A Los Angeles jury has awarded legendary funk singer Sly Stone $5 million in damages after ruling his former business managers cheated him out of royalties for several years.
Denis Balibouse / Reuters
"It's a good day for Sly, it's a good day for entertainers in general," his lawyer Nicholas Hornberger told the Associated Press. "This was an important verdict for people that are artists, entertainers, music composers, etc."
The complaint alleged that Goldstein and the other defendants became involved in Stone's business dealings in the late 1980s, when the singer was addicted to cocaine and had few career prospects.
Goldstein, through his company, began giving Stone loans, which the singer used to support his drug habit according to the complaint.
In 1989, Goldstein, Glenn Stone and another attorney came to Sly Stone and told him that they had procured a record deal for him.
However, they said the deal hinged on Sly Stone signing a shareholder's agreement with them to control all of his personal and professional interests through Even St. Productions. He would receive a portion of the royalties from his music.
Stone agreed. Over the next 20 years, the complaint alleged, the defendants stole all of Stone's royalty earnings.
They told Stone he was not earning any royalties because of IRS problems and Stone believed them, according to the complaint.
Attorneys for the defendants argued that they helped obtain millions of dollars in royalties for Stone and helped him deal with the IRS, the AP reported. Stone also promised to record comeback records and never did, they argued.
Even Street Productions Ltd. Filed for bankruptcy last year, records show.
Stone, 71, gained fame as the frontman in the band, which has several Top 40 hits such as "Everyday People" and "Dance to the Music."
As of 2011, he was living in a van parked on the streets of Los Angeles, the New York Post reported.
Justin Bieber Doesn't Know Where His Penis Is
You’re not going to lose it, Justin.
For the last few weeks Justin Bieber's Calvin Klein ads have been the talk of the town.
Specifically, people are obsessed with Bieber's bulge.
Courtesy of Calvin Klein
But there's no one more obsessed with his penis than Bieber himself.
Because he's always worried that he won't be able to find it.
Getty Images Jason Oxenham
Like that time he was in Paris and needed to make sure he hadn't left it at baggage claim.
CHP/FAMEFLYNET PICTURES
When he had an itch, but also needed to double-check.
Premiere/FAMEFLYNET PICTURES
Kenny G Might Have Invented The Frappuccino
Kenny G: Grammy award winner, popular jazz icon, and Starbucks drink mastermind.
Arguably the world's most popular modern saxophonist, Grammy winner, hair icon, and toilet paper sellout Kenny G might also be the creator of the world's most popular calorie-packed brain freeze.
Arista Records
Kenny G's history with the company goes back over 20 years, when his uncle reportedly became "the very first guy that gave [chairman and CEO] Howard Schultz money to get Starbucks growing."
"My uncle called me and said, 'I know you been selling some CDs, meet this guy Howard Schultz, give him some money for this company Starbucks. You’re gonna like Howard,'" Kenny G told Bloomberg. His lack of coffee knowledge didn't deter him: "I thought, 'I don’t know what he’s really talking about when it comes to coffee, but this is a winner.'"
Arista / Via youtube.com
As an investor, Kenny made his opinion known. The self-proclaimed “sweet guy” let his tastes dictate his suggestions. "At the beginning, Starbucks didn’t have anything but coffee,” he explained, harkening back to a time most of us would find unimaginable.
"... There was another company, Coffee Bean, that had something called 'blended' that was a sweet drink, and people were lined up around the block. And I would always call Howard and say, 'Howard, there's this thing that they do there that's like a milkshake or whatever.' And so I think that part of the reason that they did Frappuccino was people like me giving them that kind of feedback. So I'd like to think that I was partially responsible for that."
Bloomberg / Via bloomberg.com
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