How Could This Happen to Annie Leibovitz?

*monochrome* · 08-20-2009, 06:28 PM

Long article in New York Magazine fashion section about the tragic story of how Annie Liebovitz is about to lose the rights to her entire portfolio - her entire life's work - and all her homes.

She's $24,000,000 in debt (despite her astonishing career success) and can't make the payments.

How Could This Happen to Annie Liebovitz?

Read and learn - a very long article.

MRRiley · 08-20-2009, 06:58 PM

Same way it happened to the Beatles... Extremely bad management of professional and personal assets and debts. I don't imagine the current economy was any help either. Sorry to hear it's happening to Annie but I'm not surprised. There've been rumors about this possibility for a couple of years.

Mike

opfor · 08-23-2009, 10:15 AM

There was something in the news last month that she took out a very large loan before the recession hit with the aim of doing some large business project.
The recession hit and supposedly she hasn't been able to cover her loan payments or get her project moving.
Bad advice, bad judgement, bad luck?
Who knows, take your pick...

*MacGirl* · 08-23-2009, 10:48 AM

I can't imagine being so in the hole all the sudden that I would hock my life's work. Too bad she couldn't sell some of those homes to help herself out. Stories like these just reinforce my belief that to be one of the great's, you have to have an achilles heel, well not "always" but it does seem to happen often.

*Eaglerapids* · 08-23-2009, 12:19 PM

It's very sad, but from where I come from it's called "the chickens coming home to roost".

*ve2vfd* · 08-23-2009, 12:21 PM

We all know she is an amazing potographer, nobody said anything about her being able to manage money...

It's a shame, but many artists live way beyond their means and banks are only too glad to give them insane credit.

Pat

little laker · 08-23-2009, 01:23 PM

Originally Posted by MacGirl

Stories like these just reinforce my belief that to be one of the great's, you have to have an achilles heel

We all have an achilles heel. Hopefully we won't find it the hard way

K-9 · 08-23-2009, 04:01 PM

Wow, not even a quick sale of some limited edition prints could get her out of a $24 mil debt. Ouch.

*Ratmagiclady* · 08-24-2009, 08:18 AM

Well, part of the issue is that she... Invested in real estate, pretty directly. She bought a couple of townhouses in Manhattan somewhere, which she then was paying for big renovations on, then the renovators caused some structural problems in a neighboring also very-expensive bunch of townhouses, she ended up holding the bag for all that somehow, (I think this is where a lot of the big debt came in, and why it came due: banks generally wouldn't mind betting on posh NYC real estate going up in value, especially with a big name behind it all, yaknow? But now they want their money. )

I think she lost a lot in the Madoff-related stuff as well.

*reeftool* · 08-25-2009, 10:53 AM

Too bad. I hope she finds a way to pull through.

lithos · 08-25-2009, 11:17 AM

I suppose, in short: money does strange things to people.

But some of the stuff, like taking months to sign and deliver prints, just seems a bit lazy.

*Ratmagiclady* · 08-26-2009, 10:52 AM

Originally Posted by lithos

I suppose, in short: money does strange things to people.

But some of the stuff, like taking months to sign and deliver prints, just seems a bit lazy.

Well, among it all, things got really messy when her partner died, not to mention the usual traumas of losing someone. Not to bring up the gay marriage debate, but a lot of stuff was very likely tied up for lack of it, as well. Even with a whole lot of money involved, (or even especially because of it) a passing like that can become pretty darn complicated compared to what most take for granted.

Not to mention.... as someone who's not a celebrity follower, by all accounts I've heard, she was exceptionally-heartbroken. So 'lazy' wouldn't be the first word I choose.

lithos · 08-26-2009, 12:09 PM

Not to try to measure out heartbrokeness, but it's not like signing and getting an assistant to mail prints off is that taxing. Although that's probably wouldn't've cleared much.

But, losing your whole life's now and future copyright? God.

Nass · 09-06-2009, 09:50 AM

It gets worse!

creampuff · 09-06-2009, 06:20 PM

She gets no sympathy from me... and now with the latest charge of using another photographer's work, she is getting her just desserts.