Posts Tagged ‘ Bronfman ’

Seagram’s Sisters Lawsuit Makes Start-up Funding Look Easy

March 26th, 2010. By AbiK

pssst…looking for some start-up funding? I may have your angel. The Seagram’s sisters—aka, Clare and Sara Bronfman. Yes, the daughters of mega mogul Edgar Bronfman, Sr. They’ve already plowed millions (we’re talking close to $100M) into an investment scheme of self-made self-help wannabe whiz, Keith Raniere—and lost them. Where was that psychic they were talking to? So maybe they’ll be looking for a new opp—esp. now that word on the street is that daddy Bronfman is a bit pissed.

Clare and Sara apparently got a bit “taken in” by Raniere and his NXIVM group-awareness seminar company. So much so that their daddy refers to it as a “cult”. Here’s what Clare Bronfman has to say about Raniere on her—rather low-budget-looking considering she could afford a web guy—website:

Keith Raniere – Keith is my teacher and my best friend. My life is so profoundly different from when I first met him words can’t describe my gratitude. The depth of his caring for the individual people, with whom he works, as well as humanity collectively, is remarkable to me. His dedication to helping people experience more joy in their lives through self discovery and understanding has been an incredible gift to so many of us. Through his ongoing commitment to live an ethical existence, dedicated to doing what is right for all of humanity, he continues to inspire me.

So what’s NXIVM? —if helps if you can first pronounce it, which the NY Post kindly shares as NEX-EEUM. NXIVM was founded by Nancy Salzman who seems to have a hefty CV though you’d be hard-pressed to actually find her credentials—i.e., the ones that include abbreviations like “B.A.”, “M.S.”, “PhD”, Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Bronfman, Edgar Bronfman Sr, Keith Raniere, Nancy Salzman, NXIVM, Seagram's
Posted in Consumer Fraud, Emerging Issues, Financial, lawsuits, Securities, Totally Tortelicious | 6 Comments »

Blimpie’s, Seagram’s and the IKEA Kitchen: Tortelicious Goes Foodie

March 4th, 2010. By LucyC

Welcome to Totally Tortelicious—a review of some of the more bizarre lawsuits making news. Goodness knows there’s no shortage of them.  

C’mon, You Call that Stacked?

So here’s a skill-testing question—when is not enough simply too much? 

The answer—when you’re not getting what you paid for. At least that’s how a couple of folks from Illinois see it, so they’re suing Blimpie.

Yes, Blimpie is being sued for fraud over its Super Stacked subs. The rub? The sandwiches don’t contain the amount of meat they’re supposed to. The suit is based on nutritional information, apparently. Here’s the math: a regular 12 inch Blimpie Best has 50 grams of protein, but a 12 inch “Super Stacked,” which is advertised to have double the meat, has only 73 grams of protein—that’s if you only count the meat.

If you count the cheese (the kind you eat), there’s 10 grams of protein (based on a double serving) but, I guess that’s just not the same if you’re a meat lover. 

It’s the first time I’ve heard of a super stacked failing to satisfy… 

Puhlease…That Kitchen is so Off-the-Rack. It appears that, contrary to real estate’s golden rule #1, not all kitchen renovations can add value to your property, and in some cases may even land you in court. Last week a “wealthy Icelandic couple” was sued for installing an “ugly kitchen” in their up-market rental apartment at the Gramercy Park Hotel in Manhattan. Guess what—it was an Ikea kitchen…oops. Time to cringe: they even have how-to-install vid’s on youtube—ouch!

I was under the impression that ‘ugly’ and ‘attractive’ and all esoteric values in between were strictly a matter of individual taste—beauty is in the eye and all that. But no, apparently not.

At least not according to the kitchen Nazis—or would they be design Nazis? The lawsuit reportedly claims the kitchen was unsuitable for such a luxurious home. What does that mean? Laminate was used instead of stone? MDF instead of Mahogany? $30k instead of $150K?

I guess the courts will have to define “unsuitable for such a luxurious home,” unless of course the ad men for Ikea can beat them to it…my money is on the ad men. 

Ok…Who’s been Slingin’ back the Seagram’s with the Psychic? And continuing on in the ‘spirit’ of the bizarre…The heiresses to the Seagram liquor fortune, Clare and Sara Bronfman, filed suit against their former financial planner recently, over allegations that she divulged their personal financial information and other confidential information to lawyers and media outlets, as a retaliatory act. Thing is, the financial planner apparently obtained most of the information from a psychic.

The obvious question is, how competent was this financial planner if she had to go to a psychic to find out what was going on with her clients? Or, who’s been blabbing about their finances to the psychic in the first place? Hell, I’m all for psychics, but seriously, is this one that good? I’m thinking all these folks have consumed a little too much of the house kool-aid.

Tags: Blimpie, Bronfman, Gramercy Park Hotel, IKEA, Seagram, Tortelicious
Posted in Totally Tortelicious | No Comments »