Ed McMahon, You Need a Kick in the Can!
Unless you’ve been in a cave for the last few months, you’ve heard the story of Ed McMahon and the impending foreclosure of his Beverly Hills home. Apparently McMahon, who is 85, somehow found himself virtually bankrupt, despite at one time proclaiming a net worth of $200 million. At the time, his spokesperson noted that a recent neck injury had prevented McMahon from getting a job and bringing home a paycheck, just like any other octogenarian.
Thankfully, McMahon did manage to land a new gig: He’s going to star in two viral videos for FreeCreditReport.com — the site whose commercials feature a trio of jingle-singing twentysomething slackers who don’t have a clue about their finances. According to this Associated Press story:
In the first video, McMahon — who once pitched the American Family Publishing sweepstakes — and a bodyguard are cruising through a neighborhood looking for sweepstakes winners to ask for some money back, but McMahon doesn’t actually go through with it. In the second spot, McMahon dons a new suit after undergoing a financial and emotional makeover.
“When I retired, I was famous,” McMahon raps in the video. “I had money and glory/I bought a house for 6 mill/I thought nothing could touch me/Until my credit went south, and debt started to crunch me/Next thing I know, instead of playing gin rummy, I was scrambling just to make ends meet/It wasn’t funny.”
After being joined by two scantily clad women, McMahon continues: “Got a bump from the media chumps, but that was temporary/Wife with bad credit was scary, so I got wise/I may have fallen, but I got back up/Now I’m back on the attack, like a ninja swinging nunchucks/I told the haters, ‘Go on, take a hike’/It’s my show now, and I can do what I like.”
McMahon’s compensation was not disclosed, but presumably it’s enough offset the indignity of capitalizing on one’s financial ineptitude. He told The AP that he hoped that his participation in the campaign would help others. Right.
Meanwhile, another source of income may be in the offing:
Last week, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled that McMahon’s lawsuit against Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and two physicians he claims failed to properly diagnose and repair his broken neck laid out adequate legal ground to pursue claims that include negligence, elder abuse, battery, fraud and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
The latest word on McMahon’s home is that it might be saved before its Oct. 2 auction date. The CEO of a company called Foreclosure Trackers claims it has worked out a loan-purchase plan with McMahon that it hopes its lender, Countrywide, will accept. In other words, a short sale. Good luck with that!
