Margin calls of the Living Dead. By PETER LAURIA Posted: 4:00 am October 19, 2008 Media mogul Sumner Redstone, caught in the vise-like grip of the credit crunch, may be forced to sell his prized Viacom Inc., home of MTV, Nickelodeon and Paramount Studios. A sale of Viacom, or any piece of the company, would be a tremendous setback to the 85-year-old Redstone, as he has spent the better part of his professional life pulling together the crown jewel of his investment portfolio. Sources close to Redstone and Viacom say the executive's current cash situation is so dire that selling Viacom or CBS - which he also controls - is now a real possibility. Redstone used shares in the companies as collateral for loans used to back expansion plans for his privately-held National Amusements, Inc. movie theater chain. As the price of Viacom and CBS shares dipped, the banks are demanding cash to back the loans. "Sumner needs more money," said one source with knowledge of the situation. A second source described the situation as grim enough that the sale of pieces of CBS - like some radio stations, or the publisher Simon & Schuster - or some of the Viacom properties would not be enough to cure the cash shortfall. http://www.nypost.com/seven/10192008/business/sumner_redfaced_134256.htm
I think that's bullshit, and exactly what jefferson was talking about. As long as he continues to perform, that is make payments, they shouldn't be allowed to request additional funds.
These guys using stock as currency is bullcrap. A stock is not money. The creditors can't wait around for the garbage to trade at 50 cents. Call the old farts bluff