It seems as though celebrities don't always get a free ride in life.Today in a Florida federal court, Wesley Snipes and his attorneys rested their case, without calling a single witness. His attorney, Daniel Meachum, said, "We chose not to call witnesses because there was no need to. The government prosecutors have put on a case that simply does not come close to meeting the standard of its burden of proof."
Snipes and two co-defendants are currently on trial in for allegedly failing to file his 2000 federal taxes, for demanding $11 million in tax refunds on taxes he’d already paid, and bouncing checks to the U.S. Treasury. Snipes’ attorneys say he is the victim of unscrupulous accountants and sincerely believed he didn’t have to pay taxes.
Earlier in the trial Wesley sent a document to the IRS that said:
He chastised the IRS and prosecutors, saying their position toward him was “simply false, fraudulent and misrepresenting.” The document also warned the government’s “illegal collection action” would result in “significant personal liability” for those involved. “Warning - pursuit of such a high profile target will open the door for your increased collateral risk,” Snipes wrote. “I certainly don’t believe this is in your best interest and can be avoided.”
… Among other things, the letter claimed the IRS deceives people to “terrorize, enslave, rape or pillage” taxpayers.
Oct 17th 2007 3:15PM
Dionne Warwick has been dodging a $2.6 million tax bill that's been outstanding for over ten years, according to Franchise Tax Board records just posted online for everyone to see (and first reported by AP), which puts her at number 17 on the listing of the 250 worst offenders.
Comedian Sinbad, still owes California $2.1 million.
But without doubt, the oddest listing is for the Juice (O.J.), who supposedly hasn't had any income on which he would have to pay -- and yet he still owes over $1.4 million in taxes?
1993 – Willie Nelson
WILLIE NELSON and the Internal Revenue Service seem to be in harmony, finally. After a year of negotiations, they have reached an agreement on the payment of about $16 million owed the Government by the singer. Under the agreement, which was made final at a meeting in Austin, Tex., yesterday, the singer will pay about $9 million.
Sally Sassen, a public affairs officer for the Austin district of the I.R.S., said the singer would pay $1 million within 90 days, $1.4 million in increments of $233,000 every six months, and $3 million more within five years. In addition, he will turn over the proceeds from sales of "Who'll Buy My Memories?: The I.R.S. Tapes" (Columbia Records), an album he made in 1991 from unpublished music seized by the I.R.S.
He will also give the agency any proceeds he may win in a lawsuit against his former accounting firm, Price Waterhouse, in which he charges that the firm gave him poor advice. Mr. Nelson's financial woes began in the early 1980's, when he invested heavily in tax shelters. The I.R.S. disallowed the claims and seized his bank accounts and his property, including the Pedernales Country Club, west of Austin. Evelyn Shriver, his spokeswoman in Nashville, said Mr. Nelson had already paid $3.6 million of the $9 million.
Mr. Nelson's lawyer, Larry Goldfein, told The Associated Press yesterday: "He feels very happy with the result. Willie could have opted to go into a bankruptcy proceeding and have his tax debt discharged. He never wanted to do that. He wanted to pay what he could."
1960 – Bud Abbot (one of my favorite celebrities of all time - Lou Costello)
Bud Abbott: the man everyone forgot!
(originally published in Screen Stories, June 1960)
The straight-man member of the famous Abbott and Costello team, who once earned millions as one of show businesses’ most popular comedy teams, has fallen upon lean, unhappy days. He’s broke and virtually friendless.
Gone is the fortune and his assets, since he's had to fork over a half-million dollars to the Federal Government in the last few years, for disallowed expenses on his personal income taxes. The era of rich living, custom-made suits and thirty dollar shirts is gone.
His former happy-go-lucky partner, chubby Lou, who was ten years his junior, died of a heart attack last year.
Bud has sold everything he owned, including a $125,000 ranch at Ojai, California, to make up the back-tax bite. He still owes between $70,000 and $80,000, and has no idea where he will get it.
Abbott who made his last picture with his partner Lou about six years ago, said Costello has similar tax difficulties before he died; but he was able to pay off his obligations and still have something left, because he owned their filmed TV series.
Bud, his wife and children still live in their large, five bedroom, ranch-style home, but it has been up for sale for two years. His asking price was recently lowered to $65,000. When it's sold, all the money will go to the government. Once a four-and-one-half-acre estate, it has now been cut to one acre, with houses going up on the other acreage to help pay Bud's debt.
Abbott's story is one of the unhappiest of onetime famous stars who hit it big and lost it all. He climbed with partner Costello from New York's bawdy Minsky burlesque to the big time. The pair - a straight man and a baggy-pants comic - joined forces in 1937 and were a hit. In 1940, they headed for Hollywood where they signed their first Universal Pictures movie contract.
In nine of the following twelve years, they finished among the top ten money-making stars at the nation's box offices. Each was making a half-million dollars a year from films, vaudeville and personal appearances, TV and radio. By 1953, their peak, they were earning a fantastic $1,750.00 a year between them.
Sixty-four years old, Bud's tax troubles began when the government undertook a seven-year tax audit of his books a couple years back.
Abbott made his last professional appearance with Lou Costello in 1957, in an engagement at the Sahara Hotel in Las Vegas. Shortly afterwards, they broke up their long-time partner-ship at Lou's request. They has been having arguments over money matters.
Abbott has found that in fickle forgetful Hollywood if you aren't on top, many good-time friends desert you.
Bud said acidly, "They liked me so long as the liquor flowed at my house, but I haven't seen any of them around lately."
A staunch bulwark through his tribulations has been Bud's pleasant wife Betty, to whom he has been married for almost forty-two years. They were married on September 17, 1918, after an acquaintance of only six hours. They met during a yacht trip on the Potomac, during which Abbott saved Betty's girl friend from drowning. Shortly afterwards, they went to a marriage bureau to apply for a wedding license.
Among the assets which Bud had to dispose of were the twenty feature films that Lou Costello and he made for Universal. They owned a piece of each of them - in some instances, twenty-five percent; in others, fifty percent. Bud sold his rights for $100,000. He stated, "I never saw the check." Today he believes the rights would be worth $1,000,000.
How about a settlement? Bud answered: "The Government wouldn't make a settlement. Why? Because I'm an American. Why should they make a deal with me when they have everything I own as securities?
"They settled with Charlie Chaplin - sure - because he was out of the country. He's not even a citizen. But when they can get a hand on an American's securities, they won't even talk about settlement.
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