Shari Redstone was in many ways an unwilling participant, dragged into the drama because her father's increasingly erratic and bizarre behavior threatened his family's fortune and legacy . Sumner Redstone built his empire from a small regional chain of movie theaters. |iuRH4h?Z&Su}Yc_c^ |[x=fC#yP6)Y3O3$z.7YUD6F(rx+Kq2*XWJ.M|2>=Fur2` Key Points. That's a market cap of $25.4 billion, less than this year's expected sales of $26 billion. Tragically, it is likely that no one will hear from Sumner ever again and that Shari will only give up this charade once [Sumner] passes away and she receives his 80 percent control of [National Amusements]or, on other words, only when she achieves, contrary to Sumners well-documented wishes, complete ownership and control over CBS and Viacom, the goal she has had in mind all along., 2023 Cond Nast. This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. As Fox and family insiders tell it, this could just be the beginning. [5] She currently serves as the non-executive chairwoman of Paramount Global (formerly known as ViacomCBS) and president of National Amusements, and is a former vice-chairman of CBS Corporation[6] and Viacom. Does the fate of a potential $14 billion Wall Street merger all come down to Shari Redstones feud with her father? << /ProcSet [ /PDF /Text ] /ColorSpace << /Cs1 7 0 R >> /Font << /F1.0 8 0 R All Rights Reserved. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS The rulingabbreviated a trial that had made headlines with thepersonaldetails it exposed and questions it posed for Redstones media empire. Two other members of the board, Joseph Califano and William Cohen, held cabinet posts under Democratic presidents. In both dayparts, ABC and NBC have been locked in a relatively tight battle for No. All rights reserved. But she was here, trying to fix these media platforms.. Shari Redstone was born in Washington, D.C. in April . She was the lead reporter for The Times coverage of the deadly Rust shooting on a New Mexico film set in 2021, work recognized by the Pulitzer Prize board as a finalist in breaking news. This spring, independent members of CBS and Viacoms boards began discussing a merger. Shari Redstone has spent much of this year trying to re-merge CBS and Viacom over the objections of CBS CEO Les Moonves, who has stepped down over accusations of sexual harassment. She has, after all, threatened to replace recalcitrant members of the CBS board with directors who support her. We support credit card, debit card and PayPal payments. Shari Redstone, Sumner's daughter who was estranged from her father for much of his life but reconciled with him in his final years, effectively took over his empire in 2016 after a long,. Name & Location: Employer/Occupation: Dollar Amount: Date: Primary/ General: Contibuted To: REDSTONE, SHARI E . Shari obtained her 20 percent interest in National Amusements through a 2002 divorce agreement with Sumners first wife and her mother, Phyllis. She noted that Hugh Hefner had a long working relationship with his daughter, Christie Hefner, who was chief executive of Playboy Enterprises for 20 years; and that Abigail Johnson took over Fidelity Investments in 2014, after her father, Edward Johnson III, ran the business for nearly four decades. You may also opt to downgrade to Standard Digital, a robust journalistic offering that fulfils many users needs. Herzer is seeking $100 million in compensatory damages as well as treble and punitive damages under RICO She was the lone dissenting vote on the five-member National Amusements board of directors. Shari Redstone - $93,300 in Political Contributions for 2012, Campaign Finance, Money, American politics, American political campaign contributions, presidential campaign contributions . That girlfriend, Sydney Holland, left in September 2015. n0%f|U9l 7?j`l7"tiNf]?uhgM Z4i[&LY_x He gave the maximum $2,000 to Mr. Kerrys presidential campaign and supported Vice President Gores 2000 presidential bid as well. Redstone has been president of National Amusements Inc. since 2000 and served as executive vice president of NAI from 1994 to 2000. Shari Redstone tried to nudge CBS to merge with Viacom, but CBS then-leader, Leslie Moonves, was worried that Viacom, which was grappling with a falling stock price and an exodus of viewers, would become a drag on CBS. A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. In this particular case, because of the personalities involved and the issue, its like the elephant in the tent, he said. May 20, 2019. All three are involved with National Amusements. Their main sticking point was one that plagues many family businesses: succession. In an email to that donor, Redstone was described as "a 501(c)4 political organization formed specifically to influence the election in NY-03," and the donor was told that should he decide to . Sumner owned 80 percent of National Amusements, the family's holding company that controls around 80 percent of the voting stock in both of the aforementioned media behemoths, and Shari owned the. In early 2018, Redstone again tried to get CBS to entertain the Viacom merger. Shari tried once before to effect a merger between Viacom and CBS, in 2016, but that effort went nowhere. In 2008, Mr. Redstone announced that his daughter would leave the boards of Viacom and CBS. [18] Redstone and her partners then sold Rising Star Media to Russian theater operator Cinema Park in 2011. Daring to challenge the bigwigs in front of him and their business model, including Shari Redstone and several of his Paramount Global bosses, the veteran stand-up comic gave the media some advice . Met Gala 2023 Red Carpet: See All the Fashion, Outfits & Looks, Get Him Out of Here: Donald Trump Tossed NBC Reporters Phones During Tirade Aboard Campaign Plane, How to Watch the 2023 Met Gala Live Stream. stream Soon shell be left with nothing but Judge Judy and The Peoples Court. Well save further comment for when the case is dismissed. A representative for Korff did not immediately respond to a request for comment.). Now Shari Redstone has been handed a large bag of rocks. Redstone herself has agitated for an even bolder streaming strategy through Paramount Plus, the company's flagship streaming service, according to company insiders. According to Herzers lawsuit, and the documents she has obtained as a result of filing it, the feuding between Shari and Sumner began in 2007 after Shari voted to block a $105 million charitable gift that Sumner wanted to make to hospitals in Massachusetts and California. In 1999, another board member, investor Jan Leschly, gave $350 to a former New Jersey governor, Christine Todd Whitman, for a Senate bid. Beneath the surface, they had a lot in common. Ad Choices. (Moonves has denied the allegations.) Shari Redstone faced down industry doubts and her father's public statements that he did not see her as capable of taking over the empire. Shari is now vice chairman of the boards of both CBS and Viacom and the president of National Amusements. Redstone sees an opening as the audience for TV news grows older and more conservative and Trump and some of his fans express disenchantment with ratings giant Fox News, which lost its top news. Any changes made can be done at any time and will become effective at the end of the trial period, allowing you to retain full access for 4 weeks, even if you downgrade or cancel. The future of Viacom and its film studio, Paramount, hinge on the battle between Shari Redstone and Philippe Dauman for control of Sumner Redstones trust, (Photo credit by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images) In a Los Angeles court today, a judge dismissed the lawsuit that challenged billionaire Sumner Redstone's mental capacity to make healthcare decisions. According to insiders, Redstone could rebrand one of the existing Viacom channels and presumably would insulate CBS News from the new offering. In a September 2014 e-mail to Tyler, Shari wrote about why she rejected the $1 billion offer: Why would I ever give [Sumner] his dying wish of peace when he never gave me any peace during my whole life. She wrote her daughter, in October 2014, after she had called her grandfather, I cant believe you keep calling him when he could not make it any clearer that all of us could drop dead and it would be the happiest day of his life. That same day, to all of her children, Shari wrote, It could be [sic] not be more clear that the only people in the entire world who your grandfather doesnt care about, and [in] fact is willing to hurt, damage, and destroy are the four of us., In a January 2015 letter, Sumner asked his daughter to sign releases agreeing that she would not sue either Herzer or Sydney Hollandanother live-in girlfriendafter his death. She finally won. Sumner and Shari E. Redstone in 2012. And they announced that Shari Redstone would become chairwoman of the new entity, ViacomCBS Inc., joining a small number of women overseeing a major U.S. company. Shari Redstone has no plans to launch a conservative news channel to compete with Fox News, reps for the billionaire media heiress said. there is nothing more to be said. - Age Shari Redstone net worth: Shari Redstone is an American media executive who has a net worth of $500 million. Ms. Redstone holds the remaining 20 percent of National Amusements through a separate trust. Herzer and her legion of lawyers have now brought the same fanciful claims in probate court (twice), California state court, New York state court, and federal district court [in California], Klieger recently told the New York Post. Given how far she has already come in reversing her fathers desire to keep her away from the oversight of CBS and Viacom, Shari may be willing to sacrifice that demand in order to get Moonvess support. (Sumner dumped Holland after stories I wrote in Vanity Fair revealed that, unbeknownst to him, she had been having a longtime affair with George Pilgrim, in Sedona, Arizona, and using Sumners private jet to fly back and forth from Los Angeles to see him, while at the same time living with Sumner.) Why Shari Redstone Has Edge Over Philippe Dauman In Battle For Viacom, Judge Dismisses Competency Case Against Sumner Redstone, Herzer Files New Suit Against Shari Redstone, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Limit the Use of My Sensitive Personal Information. or Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter. Shari Redstone is board chair. She successfully facilitated the 2019 $12 billion merger deal between CBS Corp. and Viacom Inc. She is the first woman to have such a large stake of a U.S. media business, controlling a $30 billion media empire. CBS CEO Les Moonves was one of the 11. Theyve never gone against my wishes. In June 2014, Shari acknowledged this ongoing antipathy. They also shared an iron will that helped Ms. Redstone to succeed her father as the leader of the family empire. 2023 Forbes Media LLC. NAI, a closely held company, operates cinemas in the United States, the United Kingdom and Latin America and is also the controlling . He just settled this one. The high-profile trial, expected to start Monday, was postponed a day, a development that the Judge called not unusual but has nevertheless prompted buzz about a last-minute settlement. As she cared for him in the mansion, he communicated through an iPad that was configured with three replies: yes, no and an unprintable term he used to express affection. Change the plan you will roll onto at any time during your trial by visiting the Settings & Account section. A member of the Company Town team for two decades, James specializes in covering television, corporate media and investigative projects. 1050 First Street, NE So when Dauman proposed selling Paramount to a Chinese company in early 2016, Shari Redstone dug in for a fight. How strong is Disneys 1st Amendment case against Ron DeSantis? Alex Ben Block. She halted a plan to sell the storied Melrose Avenue movie studio, Paramount Pictures, and now she has corrected what she long considered a mistake her fathers separation of CBS and Viacom in 2006. Other Democratic-leaning donors on the Viacom board include: two Boston attorneys, George Abrams and David Andelman; a Manhattan investor, Philippe Dauman; the chairman of Bear Stearns, Alan Greenberg; a law professor at Yeshiva University, William Schwartz, and the president of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Patricia Stonesifer. He communicates partly through an iPad programmed with his voice with, reportedly, three responses: yes, no, and fuck you. Shari Redstone is a media executive with wide-ranging experience in the entertainment industry and related ventures. Ms. Redstone has contributed to Senator Clinton and Mr. Kerry as well as the Democratic National Committee. EVER!! Viacom asked for an exchange ratio of .68, which would value Viacom at around $14 billion. [30] In January 2021, a Delaware judge said former CBS shareholders could sue Shari Redstone for pressuring the company to enter the merger,[31] and in 2022, Redstone and Viacom sued a group of insurers for refusing to cover legal bills incurred by the court battle. The Redstone family investment firm, National Amusements Inc., controls nearly 80% of CBS' and Viacom's voting shares. A rep for Kelly declined to comment. All Rights Reserved. Explore current and historic federal campaign finance data on the new fec.gov. The two-year period in which the transaction was reported. President Trump yet again berated 60 Minutes for its coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic. Theres substantial risk to a major business operation for which they have ultimate oversight and responsibility.. An attorney who conducts independent investigations like the one CBS ordered up yesterday said the board members have a duty to make sure the CBS brand is not tarnished, or not tarnished further. 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I am really excited to see these two great companies come together so that they can realize the incredible power of their combined assets, Redstone said in a statement Tuesday. A business professor at Columbia, Meyer Feldberg, said he doubted the Viacom board members would jeopardize the company to advance their own political views. The two often clashed over executive compensation and board member selection. Other. 2-,$#*+6 SHaFsK!~/kvL)JB+_0a$~Sx{PKYw&> Redstone plays her personal politics close to the vest but shortly after Trumps election shetoldTHR, Hes always been very good to me and a tremendous supporter of me personally.. Shari has been pretty adamant about this combination, said Daniel A. Lyons, a professor at Boston College Law School. The Wide Shot brings you news, analysis and insights on everything from streaming wars to production and what it all means for the future. A peek at this week's ForbesWomen newsletter, which every Thursday brings headlines about the world's most powerful women straight to your inbox. She sits on the local advisory board and executive committee for BUILD, a nonprofit organization that uses entrepreneurship to propel low income youth through high school and into college. Redstone practiced corporate law, estate planning and criminal law in the Boston area before joining National Amusements. (A judge eventually ruled in favor of Redstone.). {xO$S]%&7g>r=g8` A political committee that makes only independent expenditures and does not make contributions to candidates, parties or other political committees unless they are also independent expenditure committees. He invested in programming and made acquisitions to broaden Viacoms reach. But it was former Viacom Chief Executive Philippe Daumans plan to sell Paramount Pictures that bonded father and daughter. Keep abreast of significant corporate, financial and political developments around the world. Around Wall Street these days, there is consensus that Shari Redstone has been keen to sell or to merge what she is now calling Paramount Global, and what many think of as the ill-fated re-combination of CBS and Viacom. Over a 25-year period, he poured more than $500 million into Midway. Despite CBS News clout for the weekday broadcasts see Gayle Kings headline-generating March interview with disgraced musician R. Kelly the ratings for mainstays CBS This Morning and CBS Evening News lag behind the competition. Paramount chief Shari Redstone attended alongside Neeraj Khelmani, Gayle King, Norah O'Donnell, Tony Dokoupil and Nate Burleson. The Redstones operated more like a wolf pack, Ms. McGrath said. She's now ready to close . The political affiliations of Viacom's board and senior management, how Sumner Murray Redstone (born Sumner Murray Rothstein; May 27, 1923) is an American media magnate.He is the majority owner and Chairman of the Board of the National Amusements theater chain. . Shari Redstone - $5,400 in Political Contributions for 2016, Campaign Finance, Money, American politics, American political campaign contributions, presidential campaign contributions . In the midst of closing a merger between CBS and Viacom, Shari Redstone is quietly exploring a plan to launch a conservative TV outlet meant to square off with the Fox News Channel, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. commentary and analysis you can trust. As a recently released, unredacted complaint in a lawsuit against Shari makes clear, Sumner Redstone never wanted his daughter to be involved in the family businesses, twice tried to buy out her stock in the family holding company, National Amusements Inc., for around $1 billion. And Sumner himself has been completely shielded from his longtime friends and the public, who have not seen or heard from him. You make it possible. Simply log into Settings & Account and select "Cancel" on the right-hand side. Mr. Folta said the political contributions of board members were not unusual. 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Redstone has approached current and former Fox News personalities about such a plan, sources say, and she has spoken with former NBC News host Megyn Kelly. Its clear hes a major donor to the Democratic Party.. All rights reserved. Five years later, Midway filed for bankruptcy, leaving the headstrong mogul and his headstrong daughter with one less thing to fight about. [16], In 2010, Redstone and her partners purchased the theaters that they had built, and formed Rising Star Media,[17] of which she was chairman, and turned it into the country's top-grossing cinema chain. A source says the idea for that network was in the works before the Pluto acquisition. CBS trails far enough behind to be a relative afterthought. Its the story of a person who was mistreated by her father, said the source who recently noted Sumners physical condition, and has known the father and daughter for an extensive period of time. He contributed $2,000 to Mr. Kerry and has given nearly $30,000 to Democratic groups and candidates in the past six years. . Please try searching for a donor or recipient name. William D. Cohan. Shari Headley. Advertisements How old is Shari Redstone? Things got messier when Mr. Redstone took Ms. Herzer and Ms. Holland to court, accusing them of elder abuse, and the two women countered by suing Ms. Redstone, claiming she had turned her father against them. Premium Digital includes access to our premier business column, Lex, as well as 15 curated newsletters covering key business themes with original, in-depth reporting. As a journalism institution, CBS News boasts two of the most venerable titles in TV with 60 Minutes (regularly the most-watched news broadcast in all of TV, 12 million tuning in live to the most recent episode) and CBS Sunday Morning. and attorneys fees under ECPA, according to the filing. The Hollywood Reporter is a part of Penske Media Corporation. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer. So far, Sharis latest effort to force the merger of CBS and Viacomboth of which Sumner still controls through his voting shareshas cost the Redstone family some $600 million, and CBSs other shareholders another $6.5 billion, as the price of the networks stock has sunk from around $70 a share to around $50 as investors anticipate a deal. But in the early 2000s, a time when National Amusements was in peril, Ms. Redstone objected to her fathers penchant for plowing money into the company; and she was not thrilled when he installed her on the Midway board in 2004. Talks were ongoing but collapsed when CBS management feared that she was trying to remove Moonves allies on the board. Official websites use .gov . Women in entertainmentfrom ViacomCBS Inc. chairwoman Shari Redstone to singer Beyonc and morecomprise 14 spots on our 2019 list of the world's 100 most powerful women. In July 2007, Sumner faxed a letter to Forbes rejecting his daughters efforts to succeed him on the Viacom and CBS boards. In May 2019, Ms. Redstone made an appearance at a lavish fete at the Plaza hotel thrown by CBS to court business during its annual presentation to advertisers. As a condition of the September 2018 settlement, she agreed to not try to orchestrate a merger with Viacom for at least two years. But Redstone pre is increasingly out of the picture. xXMoFWLoE,-z`UVj Premium access for businesses and educational institutions. A former CBS-Viacom exec says Redstone has sat in on multiple meetings about the potential venture, though this person doesnt think Redstones idea arises from ideology. By Lisa Johnson Mandell. Kimberlee, 38, is a lawyer. Other nonlinear TV competitors include Breitbart News, The Daily Caller (co-founded by Tucker Carlson) and Salem Media Group, a publicly traded company that is considered the industry leader in talk radio, and Ben Shapiros Daily Wire. A period of estrangement between Shari Redstone and her combative father, Sumner Redstone, ended with a reconciliation before his death and the daughter taking over the family empire. Shari Redstone Chairman; ViacomCBS Shari E. Redstone joined the board of CBS in 2004. There's made-for-reality TV drama of Sumner Redstone romantic affairs to the behind-the-scenes politics of CBS and Viacom's boardrooms politics that as a consumer I realized affected all of us.. Tyler, 34 . Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We only need 124 gifts to meet our goal of adding 1,500 financial contributions by the end of April, support that helps keep Vox free year-round. Eleven of the 14 board members supported a proposal to issue a dividend that would dilute Shari Redstone's controlling stake in the broadcaster. Advertisement Sumner Redstone handed a media empire to his daughter, Shari, who now controls its fate. In the last three years, she has proved herself as a worthy successor to her 96-year-old father, known for his stubborn streak and ability to outlast opponents. [7] Through National Amusements, Redstone and her family are majority owners of CBS, Comedy Central, BET, Showtime Networks, Nickelodeon, MTV and the film studio Paramount Pictures. that brings together some of the most influential people in Hollywood to honor individuals who have made significant contributions to the entertainment industry and to society as a whole. The media heiress, who defeated a series of rivals to win control of ViacomCBS in 2019, found herself caught up in a stunning stock reversal that almost overnight has shaved about $670 million from her personal net worth. Father-daughter duos are rare in the upper echelons of corporate America, and combative ones even more so, said Rita McGrath, a professor at Columbia Business School and the head of its Women in Leadership program. Redstone, a lawyer by training, repeatedly declined to talk about many of the battles granular details, including her dealings with Les Moonves, with whom CBS is currently involved in arbitration. We need more women in leadership positions.. [21], On February 3, 2016, her father resigned as CBS executive chairman after questions arose about his mental competency. Then he gave up his board seats. ! and she noted that her father thinks the threat of not being allowed to go to his funeral will motivate me. In July 2015, after she met with her father in Los Angeles, she wrote Tyler that your grandfather says I will be chair over his dead body., Herzers lawsuit alleges that Shari had the nurses around her father spy on Herzer and turn Sumner against her, in an effort to eliminate her and Holland from his life.

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