How Could This Happen to Annie Leibovitz?

[kshapero]

What a read? http://nymag.com/fashion/09/fall/58346/
She kind of did it to herself.

[-doomed-]

Surely her days at Rolling Stone working with the likes of Hunter Thompson set her on this course, Thompson also worked hard to piss away most if not all of his money. It would appear that artistic talent ,be it writing ,photography ,and other genres , the greats always travel to the top and crash out in a ball of fire in the valley that only years of self destruction can bring. Shes still alive though so shes one upped Thompson who checked out early.

[Chris101]

Originally Posted by -doomed-

... Shes still alive though so shes one upped Thompson who checked out early.

Well that was hst's doing as well.

[-doomed-]

Yeah I know , he said hed do it if his health got too out of hand basically and had been threatening it since 1974. Im fascinated by his books and they way he lived his life , his suicide was inevitable

[Al Kaplan]

"Walk softly and carry a big stick." She made too much noise.

[parsec1]

Originally Posted by Al Kaplan

"Walk softly and carry a big stick." She made too much noise.

Quite right.

[reala_fan]

Frank Lloyd Wright, like our Annie, loved to live far beyond his means.

He ordered six Grand Piano's for his Hillside School and a local music company delivered them. While enjoying one of them one evening someone mentioned to Frank that "he had never paid for the piano's..."

His reaction was "don't bother me with minor details, they sound lovely, don't they?"

Frank was bailed out from foreclosure of his own home, Taliesin, multiple times by his rich clientele.

So I am indeed, a bit surprised that none of Annie's Clientele came around with an offer of help.

Times have changed since Frank's day, I suppose....

[BillBingham2]

So many "RICH" folks from the 80's and 90's have hit the same wall. When the flow slows down they don't. Hitting the wall hard is what a lot of less "Rich" folks have done of late too. Aren't there lots of stories of composers who did similar years back when chamber music was the rage?

B2 (;->

[35mmdelux]

Many rich people fall from great heights once they start believing they're invincible.

To rich people $24 Million is but chump change. Just goes to show how poorly her affairs were managed.

My advice to Annie -- Take responsibility. Cut your losses. Declare chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Give me a call when you're ready to do business.

[Al Kaplan]

She's welcome to use my darkroom anytime.

http://thepriceofsilver.blogspot.com

[BillBingham2]

Originally Posted by Al Kaplan

She's welcome to use my darkroom anytime.

http://thepriceofsilver.blogspot.com

Hide your paper store, I do not think she does her own printing.

B2 (;->

[ZeissFan]

Not wanting to sound too crude or too uncaring, but life's a bitch and then you die. Happens to the best of us (and those of us who are mediocre, too).

[Al Kaplan]

Bill, for ten grand a day I'll not only do her printing but she can crash on my couch.

[Turtle]

Wow... what a mess. I find it unbelievable that someone can get themselves into such a mess when they can afford to make sure accounts are sharp (and balanced). She coulda had it all.....

[Disaster_Area]

As much as I love and admire her work... I don't feel any sympathy for her. She could have been living any kind of life she wanted... have the means to just about anything and she's flushed it down the toilet. It wasn't about being able to afford good accountants... it seems like she flat out ignored almost every bit of good advice that went her way starting with doing Stones tour onwards.

For someone who even $30,000 would completely turn my life around, pay off all my school depts etc it's sickening to hear the kind of money she literally forgot in a phone booth. I know the arts community is having one big pity party for her, but the thing I feel the most sorry for is her work. If Getty or Arts Capital get ahold of it and can sell or lease the copywrites to whomever they want... you watch... next thing you'll see is a McDonalds billboard with naked prego Demi Moore with the caption "Big Mac will really fill your gut!"

I feel bad for anyone for anyone dealing with creditors and banks... but I don't feel sorry for her.

[Rick Waldroup]

I am not a huge fan of her work, but what I find distressing is the utter lack of compassion from so many here. We do not know the whole story, and from what I have read elsewhere, a lot of this falls into bad real estate deals and debt she took on with the passing of her partner.

Life is a bitch and then you die, the old saying goes, but I would never wish this unfortunate set of circumstances on anyone.

[Spleenrippa]

Originally Posted by Rick Waldroup

I am not a huge fan of her work, but what I find distressing is the utter lack of compassion from so many here. We do not know the whole story, and from what I have read elsewhere, a lot of this falls into bad real estate deals and debt she took on with the passing of her partner.

Life is a bitch and then you die, the old saying goes, but I would never wish this unfortunate set of circumstances on anyone.

Well, like you just said- we don't know the whole story. So, why should any of us feel one way or the other like the disregard from some folks or compassion from you.
I'll be a radical and say I don't give a sh*t what happens to her one way or the other. Hell, I'm only posting in this thread because I just got back from the bar and I'm half cut

[Ronald M]

Sounds to me she is like the federal government and Michael Jackson, just spend whatever you want, borrow for what more you need or want, and keep going. They all crash eventually.

What gets me mad is the government is taking me down with them.

[kshapero]

Originally Posted by Ronald M

Sounds to me she is like the federal government and Michael Jackson, just spend whatever you want, borrow for what more you need or want, and keep going. They all crash eventually.

What gets me mad is the government is taking me down with them.

Oh no, here I go again.....you got that right bro. Mellow, breathe thru the nose, calm.

[Chris101]

Rick, according to what I have read, as well as heard on NPR, Susan Sontag left her worldly goods to her children, not to Leibovitz. They never shared a home, and so she did not assume much of her debt either. What I suspect is that she is not money minded. Sontag probably did the bills (so to speak) and when she died, Leibovitz had no emotional nor financial rudder.

I have been in a similar situation. When I got divorced, I was suddenly doing my own budget, and I am bad at that. I was also the victim of a viscous lawsuit, which put me in an extreme bind. I've been poor ever since. But then I was never rich, so this not that different from before. She's not used to that, and so it's much more of a shock to her, I am sure. She will survive. And most likely bounce back (but that whole mortgaging your future work thing ... wow.)

I've never been fond of her style either. But I love her picture of John and Yoko. It would make a great Sleep Number Bed advertisement, doncha think?

[Rogier]

Sad story.
However how does she rake $24 million in debt in, did she represent the government?
Last year I saw her work and exhibition of her work here in San Francisco. And was disappointed. Frankly the famous shots she took of Bill Gates and Jack Nicholson were taken while they got plain bored during the shoot and she happened to take a snapshot of that moment...

[Tuolumne]

Originally Posted by Rogier

Sad story.
However how does she rake $24 million in debt in, did she represent the government?
Last year I saw her work and exhibition of her work here in San Francisco. And was disappointed. Frankly the famous shots she took of Bill Gates and Jack Nicholson were taken while they got plain bored during the shoot and she happened to take a snapshot of that moment...

From the article: Leibovitz once described her portraiture method as “get ’em somewhere where they’re bored ****less and there’s nothing to do except take pictures.”

LoL

/T

[thomasw_]

Originally Posted by kshapero

What a read? http://nymag.com/fashion/09/fall/58346/
She kind of did it to herself.

Kind of? Well, if it wasn't her...who else is responsible? I am surprised at some who claim I should have more pity for her. Such a comment fails to recognize a distinction between what it is worthy of sympathy and what is pathetic. Unless someone else is responsible, this situation falls into the latter category of responses. Why is that wrong?

[Paul T.]

A terrific article. I notice some of the comments describe it as mean-spirited, but I wouldn't agree.

In all the threads we've had over the last few years, I've defended her work, because there's always a natural temptation to denigrate those who are successful. But now I wonder if she, all along, knew her photography was not that profound; that she was a hack who used the smoke and mirrors of baroque productions (all on borrowed money) to obscure the lack of inspiration. I did go to the Vanity Fair portraits exhibition, and reflected at the time that even glossy photographers like Mario Testino and Herb Ritts had more life and insight in their work.

I sympathise with any single mother with kids to support; but it seems the kids were just another huge production.

I do hope she extricates herself from those sharks who have clamped their jaws around her. But I feel rather more sympathy for the photographers I've been speaking to this year, who've suddenly found their income from Getty has dropped by 50% or more (why?) and are struggling to make ends meet, without having wrecked their neighbours' homes.

[Turtle]

Paul T,

Quite. It might sound cruel, but when you have so much at your fingertips it generally takes an exceptionally large ego and large doses of foolishness to get into a mess like that one. Assuming she is not daft and she has people who would genuinely help her, one struggles not to surmise that ego triumphed over income.