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. 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 . :I But she was here, trying to fix these media platforms.. . The Redstones operated more like a wolf pack, Ms. McGrath said. We support credit card, debit card and PayPal payments. 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CBS and Viacom were a single entity, after all, until Sumner Redstone separated them 12 years ago after he realized they operated in very different businesses. [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. Sumner Redstone, who built National Amusements into a media empire, died Tuesday at 97. In a prelude to the difficulties to come, the father and daughter had a disagreement over the worth of the company behind Mortal Kombat, a video game that pits opponents against each other in anything-goes combat. Shari Redstone, in blue, and other VicaomCBS executives applauded the opening bell at Nasdaq Dec. 5, 2019, in celebration of the company's merger. A political committee authorized by a candidate to accept contributions or make expenditures on behalf of that candidate. CBS first offered Viacom shareholders an exchange ratio of .55 a CBS share for each Viacom sharean offer worth around $11 billion today. cookies One insider says Redstone thinks Fox News, whose top shows are hosted by Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham, has gone crazy in the Trump era as it also grapples with the sexual harassment-tainted legacy of network founder Roger Ailes. 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. 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. 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. 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. According to insiders, Redstone could rebrand one of the existing Viacom channels and presumably would insulate CBS News from the new offering. [43], list of the 100 most influential people in the world, list of the World's 100 Most Powerful Women, International Union of Operating Engineers, National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, "Former Redstone Son-in-Law Quits Theater Chain", "Inside the Battle for Sumner Redstone's $40 Billion Media Empire", "Shari Redstone: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know", "Shari Redstone: The 100 Most Influential People of 2020", "The World's 100 Most Powerful Women 2022", "List of Private Companies Worldwide, Letter - Businessweek", "Shari Redstone Says U.S. Has Too Many Cinemas, 'Thousands' Should Close - Bloomberg", "Foxboro, MA: National Amusements Debuts New Upscale Cinema Concept at Patriot Place - The BigScreen Cinema Guide", "4/30/2002, The Bridge: Cinema De Lux - Almanac, Vol. Shari, daughter of ailing 94-year-old empire builder Sumner Redstone, insists that Viacom and CBS must merge, an idea that once would have held great appeal for Moonves assuming he would be in . [32], Redstone married and divorced Rabbi Ira A. Korff,[33] and they had three children:[1][34], Her ex-husband was president and director of National Amusements until two years after they divorced. Advertisement Sumner Redstone handed a media empire to his daughter, Shari, who now controls its fate. I am so proud to be his daughter and I will miss him always.. The argument for the deal seems to be beside the point. Dan Rather is obviously an important person. In 2020, Redstone was named on Time's list of the 100 most influential people in the world,[8] and in 2022, to Forbes' list of the World's 100 Most Powerful Women.[9]. If my father wants me to drop dead he doesnt need to do anything else, she wrote in an e-mail to her three children, among others. 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. (One argument for the merger is that it would make CBS more global and would allow it to leverage Paramount, the movie studio, though these benefits would likely be outweighed by the drag of Viacom's cable channels.) . What you missed at CinemaCon 2023. Its awesome. Redstone, as board chair, joins an elite group of women. Ms. McGrath pointed to Ms. Redstones skill in assembling allies under pressure, adding, She was actually incredibly effective at pulling together a coalition of very smart people who were willing to challenge Sumner, who were basically betting their careers that shed be able to come out on top. Alex Ben Block. Shari Redstone won a round in her fight with . This includes serving as Chair of the Board of Directors of Paramount Global as well as Chair, CEO, and President of National Amusements, a world leader in the motion picture exhibition industry. The case, brought to [], Master, Boston University; Bachelor of Arts/Science, Tufts University. The structure of the empire built by Mr. Redstone is complex but Ms. Redstone is at the top. But in an e-mail to her children, she wrote that she would not sign the releases against the whores who will be grieving his loss . A month later, Sumner Redstone had his other former companion, Manuela Herzer, escorted from his Beverly Park mansion. Ad Choices. 48, No. endobj She is the non-executive chairwoman of Paramount Global and the president of National Amusements; she was previously the vice-chairwoman of CBS Corporation and Viacom. Lawyers and bankers have been hired. 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,. While the aging lion took his meals through a feeding tube in his Beverly Park mansion, Ms. Redstone battled Manuela Herzer, his former lover and live-in caretaker, for control of his daily care. Shari Ellin Redstone (born April 14, 1954) is an American media executive. It must be remembered that I gave my children their stock; and it is I, with little or no contribution on their part, who built these great media companies with the help of the boards of both companies. He continued in his interview with Forbes: If she insists on trying to succeed me, theres no question the boards will do what I ask them. All three are involved with National Amusements. (A judge eventually ruled in favor of Redstone.). You make it possible. The two-year period in which the transaction was reported. The two men who act as co-chief operating officers of Viacom, Leslie Moonves and Thomas Freston, also favor Democrats. Viacom asked for an exchange ratio of .68, which would value Viacom at around $14 billion. degree in 1978 and her LL.M. This Redstone plan for a new TV service also would have a streaming component. Sources familiar with the pending merger of CBS and Viacom have said that majority owner Shari Redstone is eyeing a possible channel dedicated to conservative news, a move that could mean a . If she refused, he wrote, he would not allow her or her children to attend his funeral or in any way be involved in his burial arrangements. So far, Shari's 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 CBS's other. With the messy Succession-like storyline laid to rest with her father, Shari Redstone still has to prove she can keep the familys $3 billion fortune intact. This spring, independent members of CBS and Viacoms boards began discussing a merger. Shari Redstone Political Contributions in 2016. By Todd Williamson/Invision/AP/REX/Shutterstock. Shari Redstone is a media executive with wide-ranging experience in the entertainment industry and related ventures. {xO$S]%&7g>r=g8` No Writers Guild Deal Today, AMPTP Claims. Those were largely symbolic moves, since his stake in the companies gave him firm command. By Lisa Johnson Mandell. $35. But in the early 2000s, a time when National Amusements was in peril, Ms. Redstone objected to her fathers penchant for plowing money into the company; and she was not thrilled when he installed her on the Midway board in 2004. Only 7% of the largest U.S. companies in Standard & Poors top index have a woman as a board chair, according to Fenwick & West, a Mountain View, Calif., law firm. In the article, they both gushed about the gifts and money they had been given. 2-,$#*+6 SHaFsK!~/kvL)JB+_0a$~Sx{PKYw&> Kimberlee, 38, is a lawyer. On March 21, another large CBS shareholder wrote in a widely circulated, anonymous letter that coming to the rescue of a weakly positioned, poorly executing, over-levered Viacom is not CBSs burden. The sentiment among CBS shareholders seems best summed up by Todd Juenger, the media analyst at AllianceBernstein, who wrote recently, that the defining question for investors is if CBS were an independent entity, not controlled by the Redstones, would it be pursuing a bid for Viacom? If you believe, like we do, Juenger wrote, the answer to that question is absolutely not, then how hard do you want to work to try and convince yourself this is good for CBS shareholders?. Please switch to another browser like Chrome, Firefox, or Edge for a better experience. 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. What seems to be driving Shari Redstone is familial score-settling, a quest for victory over her father, who never wanted her to have a role in either Viacom or CBS. Changes needed to be made to the Stephens lifestyle in order to make things manageable Because of [her husbands condition], and all of the different things we were dealing with, I really needed an opportunity [for change], Stephens said to me in an interview via videoconference in early December. Vin Diesel goes off script. I was never a great proponent of the split of the two companies, I think the path each company took could have been different under different leadership and this is why a combination should be explored now, she said at the November 2016 DealBook conference. Check if your Shari obtained her 20 percent interest in National Amusements through a 2002 divorce agreement with Sumners first wife and her mother, Phyllis. Before that, she was the vice-chairperson of Viacom and CBS Corporation. 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. Media observers wonder whether Redstone will position ViacomCBS Inc. for a sale or if she will tighten her grip. The Wide Shot brings you news, analysis and insights on everything from streaming wars to production and what it all means for the future. [15] Documents have been made public which verify that, as part of a settlement from Sumner's first divorce, all of Sumner's stock is in irrevocable trusts that will be left to his grandchildren. . Their strong working relationship ensures that Redstone no longer will be the subject of boardroom resistance. Sumner Redstone built his empire from a small regional chain of movie theaters. xMHa$T&R+SeL b}wg-E"u.VDNC:DuE^";cT03y| URcE4`vztLUF\)s:k-iYj6|vP4*wd>,y4!7CN-lCTS3q";-E#+c> v=S79@`mvUl5`P=Gj)kP*}6 ~^/~.~a2 In a statement on Wednesday, Ms. Redstone said, Through it all, we shared a great love for one another and he was a wonderful father, grandfather and great-grandfather. She was the lone dissenting vote on the five-member National Amusements board of directors. Herzers lawsuit plunged National Amusements and Viacom into turmoil. If you do nothing, you will be auto-enrolled in our premium digital monthly subscription plan and retain complete access for 65 per month. [28], On August 13, 2019, the Associated Press reported that Shari Redstone had become the chair of the board for the reuniting of CBS and Viacom as ViacomCBS, today known as Paramount Global. Shari Headley. Vanity Fair may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. In this particular case, because of the personalities involved and the issue, its like the elephant in the tent, he said.