Kirk Douglas, Leading Man On and Off Screen, In Life and Death

Silver screen icon Kirk Douglas passed away on February 5 at the age of 103. He left behind his wife of 65 years, Anne; three sons, Michael, Peter and Joel; several grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Douglas was as spectacularly charitable in death as he was in life, leaving most of his $80 million estate to charity.  


Born Issur Danielovitch, Douglas was one of seven children raised by impoverished immigrants from present-day Belarus. He grew up in Amsterdam, New York, a small town near Albany. His father Herschel was unable to find work at the town's mills because they did not hire Jews, and turned to making a living as the town “ragman,” collecting and selling junk. Despite these humble circumstances, Douglas recalled that his mother, Bryna, was generous: "Sometimes we didn't have enough to eat, but very often there would be a knock at the door and it would be a hobo wanting food, and my mother always gave them something,” he said in a 2015 interview. “My mother said to me, 'You must take care of other people.' That stayed with me."


He estimated that he had no less than 40 jobs before his film career took off, including washing dishes and delivering newspapers. He served in World War II as a communications officer of Patrol Craft 1139, and was injured in an accidental explosion. His later years were no walk in the park, either: in 2004 he lost his son Eric to an accidental drug overdose; suffered a debilitating stroke that impaired his speech; and was seriously injured in a helicopter crash.

 
Most of Douglas’ estate will now go to the Douglas Foundation, a non-profit that he and Anne established in 1964. It is one of the entertainment industry’s oldest and largest non-profits. Its website states of its founders: They wanted to give back – not only in thanks for their many blessings, but as a means of teaching their children and grandchildren the lessons they had learned. The Douglas Foundation’s principal goal is to help those who cannot otherwise help themselves. Anne still serves as the organization's managing trustee.

 
Among the foundation's beneficiaries are The Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles; a scholarship for underprivileged students at St. Lawrence University, Douglas’ alma mater;  the Kirk Douglas Care Pavilion, part of an Alzheimer’s facility that serves the entertainment industry; The Kirk Douglas Theater in Culver City, nurturing young talent; the Kirk and Anne Douglas Childhood Center; the Kirk Douglas High School that helps at-risk youth finish their education; and the Anne Douglas Center for Homeless Women, focused on assisting women dealing with addiction. In his later years he and Anne spearheaded a campaign to build 400 playgrounds in Los Angeles. Read more about the projects the foundation supports.

 
Although Douglas never won an Oscar for his many films, he did receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom Award, a Kennedy Center Honors Award, the Jefferson Award for Public Service, and the French Legion of Honor.


He reportedly left nothing to his son Michael, the actor/producer and the most well-known of his three sons. But that does not reflect a family rift: Michael is said to be worth $300 million, doesn't need the money, and he and his father had a loving relationship. We do not know what if anything he left to his two other sons, all of whom are involved in the movie business.

 
Anne Douglas recalls that in 2015, reflecting on the money he had amassed, her husband told her: I want to give it all away. And he has. A "leading man," in life and death.

James Brown's complicated life led to complicated estate problems

He was the Godfather of Soul, the Founding Father of Funk. James Brown had fortune, fame, frequent run-ins with the law, and a family life  more convoluted than most. So perhaps it's not surprising that the late entertainer's estate problems have been every bit as complicated and torturous as his life.

When Brown died he was married - maybe - to his back-up singer Tomi Rae Hynie. He had filed previously for annulment of the marriage, claiming Hynie was still married to another man when she tied the knot with Brown. However, Brown dropped the action when Hynie signed a form stating she would never claim to be his common-law wife. She also signed a prenuptial agreement waiving all rights to his estate. Brown had other marriages in his past, too, several of which produced the six children he recognized. 

Update Jan. 23, 2015: A South Carolina judge has ruled that Brown and Hynie were married at the time of Brown's death, making her his legal heir. However, that does not necessarily mean she will inherit any of the estate, since she waived her rights in a pre-nupital agreement.

Prior to marrying Tomi Rae and the birth of their son, James II, Brown executed a will. Signed on August 1, 2000, it earmarked the bulk of his estate -- estimates of its value vary from $5 million to nearly $90 million - to be placed in a trust to fund education for needy children. (Brown himself had not made it past seventh grade.) He left $2 million to his grandchildren, to be used for their education, and left his personal property to be divided among his six children. There was no mention of Tomi Rae. He appointed as his executors (called personal representatives in Florida) his attorney, his accountant, and a retired judge. Brown also left an audiotape explaining his wishes. 

Brown, a South Carolina resident, died in 2006 from congestive heart failure, and a flurry of lawsuits followed soon after. Tomi Rae claimed that she was James' widow, and that she and her son were entitled to some of the estate assets. Other children sued the estate for a bigger piece of the pie, claiming that the singer's judgment was hampered by drug use and that he had been unduly influenced by the executors, who were mismanaging funds. 

By 2008 the legal situation was so out of hand that South Carolina's Attorney General stepped in, saying it was his office's duty to protect charitable trusts like the one that Brown's estate plan sought to establish. The Attorney General formulated a plan to distribute the assets as follows: half to the charitable trust; one quarter to Hymie; and one quarter to Brown's children. A new executor was appointed, too.

The morass dragged on and in 2013 the Attorney General's plan was struck down by the South Carolina Supreme Court, ruling that the Attorney General had overstepped his legal authority, and that there was no evidence to support the conclusion that the will was anything but a true expression of Brown's wishes. The Attorney General's actions would "undermine any confidence citizens may have in their ability to do with their personal assets as they wish..." the court concluded. The court also questioned the ethics of the original three executors, but did not find that sufficient reason to invalidate the will.

So what did the Supreme Court decision resolve? To date, not much. More lawsuits are pending. The lower court has not yet complied with the State Supreme Court's ruling to appoint new executors. Several children want the Attorney General's prior plan reinstated. Even Brown's body is in limbo, temporarily located at a mausoleum on the property of one of his children. It had been his wish to be interred at his home on Beech Island in South Carolina, which his adult children want to turn into a tourist attraction. But until the estate is settled, Brown's body remains where it is. The estate is continuing to make money from the singer's music, but the only ones benefiting from the debacle are, you guessed it, the lawyers.

Although there is no way to make anyone's estate 100% lawsuit-proof, there are additional steps that Brown, given his unique situation, could have taken. Had he been my client, I would have advised him to revise his will after his marriage to Hynie and after the birth of his son. Mindful of his history of drug use, I would have counseled him to have his capacity confirmed by a mental health professional just before the execution of his will.

Thankfully, most of us lead lives far more conventional than Brown's. Most of us don't leave millions behind, either. Still, with today's divorces, remarriages and blended families, creating a sound estate plan that avoids legal challenges requires thoughtful planning. When it comes to matters involving family and money - in any amount - one must always be mindful of Murphy's Law, to wit, if anything can go wrong, it probably will. That is why it is essential for your estate plan to have every i dotted, every t crossed. Your estate plan must speak for you, unambiguously, when you can no longer speak for yourself.

Make sure your tax-deductible donations do the most good

Are you thinking about making gifts to a charity as the year comes to a close? Remember, not every "charity" is equally charitable. Even legitimate organizations differ widely in the percentage of dollars devoted to administrative costs and their stated causes. And some charities are just plain rip-offs (check out Charity Watch's "Hall of Shame.") 

If you are going to make a year-end contribution to a charity - out of the goodness of your heart or for tax purposes or both - you will want to know that your money is going where it does the most good. Today that is relatively easy to do if you have an internet connection. Check out these charity-rating sites:

Better Business Bureau

Charity Watch

Charity Navigator

Guide Star 

Happy holidays and happy giving.

Check on those charities

As we approach the end of the year, charitable giving ramps up. You may want to make a charitable contribution out of pure kindness, for the income tax and estate tax benefits, or maybe a bit of both. Whatever your reasons, legitimate charities can certainly use your help.

If you are planning on contributing to a charity before 2013 comes to a close, I urge you to make sure that your gift really goes to a good cause and a legitimate organization. CNN and the Center for Investigative Reporting recently conducted a study of America's worst charities - and there are plenty of them.  One of the major offenders was the Tennessee-based Cancer Fund of America. The name has a ring to it, but don't be fooled - a mere 1% of every dollar it collected went to benefit patients and families. The charity's founders, the Reynolds family, pocketed a hefty portion of the funds, with the biggest portion of the $110 million it collected over the past three-year period  - $75 million -- going to paid solicitors.  And by the way, Cancer Fund of America was not even the worst of the worst. The Florida-based Kids Wish Network took that "honor." See the list of America's worst charities.

I suggest keeping away from solicitors on the street or who come to your door. Those appeals may be bogus. Instead, contribute to your organization of choice via website or mail after you make sure that the website and mailing address are valid. Case in point: The police in Columbus, Ohio reported earlier this year that one Mr. Joseph Stewart had gone door to door, collecting thousands of dollars for the Wounded Warrior Project. That charity IS legitimate (website here) but Stewart certainly was not. He merely used the name of the organization to rip off well-intentioned and unsuspecting donors. 

Before giving to any charity, do your homework to make sure the charity is authentic. One good online tool is the comprehensive Charity Navigator. You can also find out if your donation is tax-deductible by using the Internal Revenue Service's new charity checking tool. 

I hope you will share this information with your friends and family. Your holidays will be happiest if you are confident that your good intentions and hard-earned dollars are going to those who truly deserve them. 

Estate Planning, Earth Day

I remember thousands gathering in parks across the nation on April 22, 1970 for the first Earth Day. We've made some progress in 40 years: air and water in America are cleaner and some species have been brought back from near-extinction. But the nuclear disaster in Japan, the Gulf oil spill and countless other issues remind us that much work remains.

Many of my clients strongly support environmental issues. That support dovetails nicely with their estate planning goals. For clients with substantial, highly appreciated assets, I sometimes recommend that they set up a Charitable Remainder Trust naming their favorite charity as the ultimate beneficiary. By putting highly appreciated assets in a Charitable Remainder Trust, the client gets an immediate income tax deduction, and avoids paying capital gains on the assets. This strategy also can reduce the size of the client's taxable estate and thus allow more tax-free money to pass to heirs. (The current federal estate tax exemption is $5 million. On Dec. 31, 2012, the exemption is scheduled to revert to its pre-2001 level of $1 million, unless Congress decides otherwise.)  Check out this page on wealth transfer strategies to see if a Charitable Remainder Trust has a place in your estate planning toolbox.