Tag Archives: Internal Revenue Service

HollywoodNews.com: Lindsay Lohan just can’t get things right these days as it is reported that her bank accounts have recently been seized by the IRS.
Lindsay reportedly owes over $200,000 to the IRS even though Charlie Sheen tried to help by paying $100,000 of her debt, states TMZ. Now, as she has already been given plenty of time to pay, she had her accounts seized so that the IRS can get their money.
Lindsay is allegedly panicking about her financial situation and trying to figure out how to make some money fast.
Do you think she’ll get it together?
Follow Hollywood News on Twitter for up-to-date news information.
Hollywood News, Hollywood Awards, Awards, Movies, News, Award News, Breaking News, Entertainment News, Movie News, Music News
Image by PR Photos

HollywoodNews.com: It seems that Charlie Sheen has it so together these days that he is actually helping out other troubled stars.
It is being rumored that Sheen recently gave Lindsay Lohan $100,000 to help her pay her debt to the IRS, states Hollyscoop. After the two worked together on ‘Scary Movie 5,’ he reportedly offered to help her pay some of her $233,904 debt to the IRS.
While she initially declined, he allegedly ended up sending her business manager a check anyway which was gladly accepted.
What do you think about this?
Follow Hollywood News on Twitter for up-to-date news information.
Hollywood News, Hollywood Awards, Awards, Movies, News, Award News, Breaking News, Entertainment News, Movie News, Music News
Image by PR Photos

I don’t know how she does it: it was only six years ago that Oprah Winfrey was touting new age nut Eckhart Tolle as the all time genius of the world. He was her spiritual mentor. Winfrey actually ran podcasts and internet classes with the guy who has since quietly vanished from the spotlight. Now, maybe because she’s in her own personal crisis with her OWN network, Oprah is pushing a new guru. (She still hawks Marianne Williamson.) This guy is named Michael Singer, author of a book called “The Untethered Soul.”
But Michael Singer is indeed better known in his hometown of Alachua, Florida as Mickey Singer. And in 2005 he was indicted in a massive government fraud case against his company Medical Manager Health Systems, which was an offshoot of WebMD. http://www.gainesville.com/article/20051216/LOCAL/212160339 Singer was accused with nine others of inflating Medical Manager Health Systems profits, and of conspiring to launder money.
Two years after the indictment, Singer donated $100,000 of new computer software to the Alachua Police Department. By the time the case was over in 2010, Singer settled with the government by paying a $2.5 million settlement. The government dropped all charges. Singer acknowledged that the accounting practices of his company were illegal but–according to the agreement hammered out between his powerful Washington DC lawyers from Baker Botts and local Florida prosecutors–didn’t know it was taking place at the time. http://tinyurl.com/c9u3y4m
Later, the people actually convicted by the government had their verdicts overturned based on a lapsed statute of limitations. http://www.gainesville.com/article/20100303/articles/3031013
Now Singer will appear on Oprah’s Sunday Soul show this weekend on OWN. After his long adventure with the government, Singer–who was an early software multi-millionaire in the medical systems field–became a guru. He started something called the Temple of the Universe outside of Gainesville, Florida. He has lots of followers, but I’m not sure you could call it an actual cult. Temple of the Universe is registered with the IRS as a religion and has non profit tax status. But they’ve filed no public papers about their finances. They don’t even come up on Charity Navigator. But Singer is selling books and CDs and conducting new age classes and lectures.
Odds are Oprah will not be asking him about all this other stuff on Sunday’s show.
To read more go to WWW>SHOWBIZ411.COM
(republished from earlier this week)

By Beck/Smith
HollywoodNews.com:There are about a dozen gifting suites handing out swag to Oscar nominees, presenters and other stars this week. Perhaps the most popular destination for prestige pampering — certainly one of the busiest — is the Roger Neal Style Hollywood Oscar Suite at the L’Ermitage Hotel in Beverly Hills.
As of yesterday (2/23), some 200 stars and 10 nominees had already visited the suite, including Wendi McLendon Covey, Oscar presenter and “Bridesmaids” star, with her friend, Oscar nominee for Best Screenplay honors for “Bridesmaids,” Annie Mumolo. We’re told they loved
their Raju Rasiah Beverly Hills rings, and their GM Collin SKincare Paris kit.
Richard Middleson, “The Artist’s” executive producer, came with his wife Katherine. She fell for a Shekar Rahate gown, saying she felt it was perfect to represent the movie. Shekar customized the dress just for her in 24 hours.
Oscar nominee Eimear O’Kane, (Live Action Short Film), found her jewelry and handbag for the Oscars at the suite from Timmy Woods.
Penelope Ann Miller from “The Artist” came away with a stay at Belleek Castle in Ireland, as well as a collection of Classified Cosmetics
Stars ranging from Rene Taylor to Lorenzo Lamas to Eric Roberts enjoyed their Bob Marley Coffee and Lorimar Winery wine.
The pampering offered to stars at the RNSH suites ranged from manicures to waxing, facials, “instant eye lifts” and massages.
The gifting suite practice, which took a hit a few years ago when the IRS decided to demand its share, is in full-swing again this awards year. All this giving out of designer clothing, luxury trips, expensive gadgets and myriad edible and drinkable goodies are a win-win for the stars and companies involved. The celebs get to load up on fabulous freebies, while product makers and designers get valuable celebrity endorsements at relatively low cost. It’s also standard to see a charity or eco-minded tie-in for the suites. In the case of RNSH, it’s The Andy Transplant Foundation.
To read more go to Beck/Smith Hollywood
Follow Hollywood News on Twitter for up-to-date news information.
Hollywood News, Hollywood Awards, Awards, Movies, News, Award News, Breaking News, Entertainment News, Movie News, Music News

HollywoodNews.com: Apparently Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne need to pay closer attention to their finances as it seems that they are in a little bit of tax trouble.
It is being reported that the couple owes about $1.7 million in back taxes, states Financial Planning. As a result of the money owed, the IRS has reportedly placed a lien on the couple’s Los Angeles home.
The money the Osbournes owe is from 2008 and 2009.
Sharon has reportedly addressed the matter on her Twitter page: “[C]an’t rely on anyone else. You have to be on top of your own business affairs. My fault—lesson learned.”
Do you think these two will get their money under control?
Follow Hollywood News on Twitter for up-to-date news information.
Hollywood News, Hollywood Awards, Awards, Movies, News, Award News, Breaking News, Entertainment News, Movie News, Music News
Image by PR Photos

By Sean O’Connell
Hollywoodnews.com: Dinner for Schmucks (**1/2 out of 4 stars)
Jay Roach’s “Dinner for Schmucks” starts strong. It even ends strong. It’s that saggy, aimless middle section that might leave an unsatisfied taste in your mouth.
The cringe comedy tears out of the gate riding a stream of consistent, uproarious laughs as it establishes its premise, which Roach lifted from Francis Veber’s French comedy “Le Diner de Cons,” which he admires. Paul Rudd plays Tim, a ladder-climbing financial analyst with a gorgeous girlfriend (Stephanie Szostak) and realistic dreams of graduating from his company’s sixth floor (where the minions grumble) to the seventh (where the elite rub elbows).
To get there, Tim must participate in his boss’s cruel game: Find a fool and bring him or her to dinner so the supposedly superior can chuckle at their misfortunes. Initially Tim balks, believing the practice to be, as he says, “messed up.” But the game changes once he runs, literally, into Barry (Steve Carell), a clueless dweeb with a passion for taxidermy — resulting in the film’s funniest running joke — but a lack of social aptitude or a verbal filter.
Carell’s presence usually enhances the comedic potential in a situation. Not so with “Schmucks.” The actor’s approach to Barry is so bizarre, so off-the-rails, it sufficiently separates Tim’s predicament from the tiny corner of reality it once occupied.
There is a dichotomy in “Schmucks” that bears exploring. Tim believes Barry is his ticket to a better life. Of course, the longer Tim lingers in Barry’s presence, the more destruction — both personal and physical — this senseless stranger creates.
And yet, as Barry throws out Tim’s back, scares off his girlfriend, invites a lingering stalker (Lucy Punch) into the mix, and tosses him to the IRS for an unfortunate audit, we find ourselves wondering if anyone — even someone who is supposed to be an idiot — would behave this way. Roach sets up a scene where Punch chases Carell around Rudd’s apartment. She’s obsessed with Tim, and wants to make him jealous by pretending to sexually spank Barry. Before long, she is throwing wine bottles at Barry’s head, shattering glass shelves and picture frames. Carell disrupts her amorous charge by playing dead, and Punch simply walks out. The scene works up a good deal of energy before going nowhere.
A number of scenes in “Schmucks” follow the same template, [...]

By Roger Friedman
HollywoodNews.com: Good news: Will Smith didn’t make any charitable donations to Scientology last year.
In the recent past, Smith’s private self-named charitable foundation had donated thousands of dollars to groups associated with Scientology.
So despite Will and wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s recent appearance at a Scientology lunch in Hollywood with celebrity disciples Tom Cruise and Jenna Elfman, the couple is not giving the cultish group tax free contributions any more.
last year the Smiths handed over $70,000 to Scientology groups. Will once equated the Christian bible with Scientology in an interview. That didn’t go over too well.
This time, instead, the Will Smith Foundation, in papers just filed with the IRS and Guidestar.org, turned its attention elsewhere. Smith gave away about $575,475 in 2009. Another place he could have contributed money but didn’t? His New Village Academy in Calabasas, California. There’s no entry for it. New Village, which has yet to file its own first Form 990 with the IRS, still advertises Scientology teaching on its curriculum list.
The Smiths did some interesting things with their money. A lot of it went to Christian ministries and teaching, including $12,800 to a group called Daughters of Power, in Beverly Hills. It’s an organization that does sort of Christian finishing for teenage girls.
Award News, Breaking News, Entertainment News, Movie News, Music News, Hollywood News
To read more go to Showbiz411.com.
Image by PR Photos.

By Kim Palacios
After reading Stephen Moyer’s comments comparing “True Blood” to “Twilight”, a compelling question arose: would a closer look at their characters prove his opinion to be true? Moyers’ interpretation respectfully praised “Twilight’s” appeal to a younger demographic while insisting that “True Blood” was more mature. Yet, a comparison of vampire attributes may reveal the “Twilight” vamps as more grown up:
“Twilight” vamps live in relative peace. Twilight Saga vampires, after centuries of existence, have formed an effective government structure (i.e., the Volturi). In “Twilight”, vampires may enjoy peace for as long as a small number of transparent rules are followed. Yet, the “True Blood” supernaturals have a government of cutthroat “politicians” constantly embroiled in the trappings of humans. Sex, drugs, war, money, and power are staples of “True Blood” vamp society, whereas in “Twilight” such trappings are rarities if they are seen at all.
“Twilight” vamps can’t easily be overpowered by humans or werewolves. The “True Blood” series opener showed humans capturing Bill so they could harvest his blood to sell as a drug. In the season three opener, Bill was kidnapped again—this time by werewolves. The “Twilight” vampires may find their match in other immortals, but would not be captured without a fight. They also cannot be overpowered in any way by humans.
“Twilight” vamps know how to dispose of bodies and aren’t afraid of the IRS. Season three of “True Blood” has exposed many weaknesses of its vampires, most noticeably a lack of savvy. Whereas human-feeding “Twilight” vamps are crafty enough to kill at will and elude police, more than one recent episode of “True Blood” has shown Jessica’s inability to hide evidence of a human she unintentionally killed. Also proof of the “Twilight” vamps’ maturity is their ability to handle money. Forbes Magazine named Carlisle Cullen the wealthiest fictional character of all time. Meanwhile, “True Blood’s” Queen is in trouble with IRS.
For up-to-the-minute entertainment news, follow @hollywoodnews on Twitter!
Questions? Tips? E-mail me! kpblog@hollywoodnews.com
Awards News, Breaking News, Entertainment News, Movie News, Hollywood News

And the “Hollywood Crackpot of the Month” is David Poland

On file at the Internal Revenue Service is a 2006 tax document submitted by the Broadcast Film Critics Association, a non-profit group that each year hosts the Critics Choice Awards on TV. Many of the country’s leading TV and radio critics are members.
In the IRS file, the BFCA lists a $27,600 interest-free loan to David Poland’s MCN (Movie City News). The date of the note is Jan. 21, 2005. [Click here to view the IRS documents]
Poland said MCN never received a loan from the broadcast critics. Joey Berlin, who heads the organization, said Poland paid back the money in full with two checks. There is no record in the subsequent year’s tax files that shows any money being repaid by Movie City News.
What’s going on?
Berlin said the “loan” may have been inaccurately reported on the IRS Form 990, which all nonprofits are required to submit each year. “What happened was, about five years ago we did the ‘Ten Best Fest,’” Berlin said. “We thought it would be a great idea to screen all the Critics Choice nominees for best picture 10 days leading up to the show. It worked out well, but we got a sense from the studios that they didn’t really love doing it.”
Berlin said the screenings were held at the Pacific Design Center. “In renting the theater, we had made arrangements with the PDC to do it again the next year,” he explained. Since Poland had his own screening series, Berlin said, the critics group decided to let him take over the theater for his own screenings the second year.
“We really didn’t give him any money,” Berlin said. “We let him assume the asset we had, the rent of the theater. We didn’t cut a check to him. He paid it back in two checks. I remember that was something we carried over (as a projected uncollected debt). I had it in the budget for 2006. It doesn’t appear after that. It took David a while to pay us back.”
HollywoodNews could find no specific reference in the 2007 IRS Form 990 showing that Movie City News repaid the nonprofit group. “David is David,” Berlin said, “but as far as I’m concerned he remains an honorable and trustworthy man.”
Poland told HollywoodNews neither he nor MCN received a loan from the broadcast film critics. “It never happened,” Poland said. “Movie [...]

BY ROBERT W. WELKOS
The Oscars aren’t far off and that means those opulent gifting suites at major hotels that shower celebrities with luxurious gift bags will be in full swing.
But Gavin B. Keilly believes these high-end gift bags worth up to $50,000 and bring out many high-profile entertainment and sports personalities shouldn’t be viewed as examples of celebrity greed gone wild.
That’s because Keilly is working with various philanthropies to bring attention to their charitable causes through these gifting lounges – and the effort, he said, is proving to be a “win-win-win-win” for the nonprofits, the celebrities, the companies’ products and his own company, GBK Productions.
“Many (celebrities) say, ‘I want to get involved (in a cause) but I just don’t know what cause or how to get involved,’” Keilly told HollywoodNews.com. “We are giving celebrities the opportunity to learn about these causes and to get involved.”
What do the charities get in return? Keilly said they get a chance to introduce themselves to the celebrity, pose for a photograph, and reaps the resulting public and media attention.
“Never in a million years could (a company) ask celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio to come and pose with your product and not pay the fee for their appearance,” Keilly said. “If you did pay their fee, it would probably be $100,000. In this situation, all they have to pay is their product to get a photo with the celebrity.”
GBK kicks back 20% of its profits to selected charities and also gives the nonprofits a presence at the gift lounge.
This Oscar season, GBK is hosting a gifting suite March 5-6 ahead of the March 7 Academy Awards at the W Hollywood Hotel.
Keilly said the gift bags will be worth about $30,000 and include a chance for the celebrity to stay at five-star resorts in Miami, Thailand, Portugal and Montana. One resort is The Betsy in Miami Beach. Another is the Six Senses spa and resort in Thailand. The gift bags also contain electronics, watches and jewelry, he added.
The Internal Revenue Service has warned celebrities that if they accept the luxury gift bags, they may be liable for taxes.
“The law states that a celebrity will be taxed on any gift they receive worth over $600 in value,” Keilly explained. “The advantage to gift lounges is that they are not receiving a gift bag, they are receiving individual gifts [...]