Hsu’s Next
Keep me moving
Over fifty
Keep me groovin'
Just a hippie gypsy
Come on move now
Movin'
Keep me movin' yeahKeep me movin', movin', movin', yeah
Movin' yeah
Mobile, mobile, mobile, mobile….I don't care about pollution
I'm an air-conditioned gypsy
That's my solution
Watch the police and the taxman miss me!
I'm mobile!
Mobile, mobile, mobile, yeah
(P. Townshend, Going Mobile, Who's Next, 1971)
The article from the Wall Street Journal on Norman Hsu has come out from behind the pay wall and can be read in its enitrity courtesy of Real Clear Politics. It looks very much like the investment firm of Source Financing Investors will be trying very hard to get some of the money Norman Hsu got from them back.
Source Financing's arrangement with Mr. Hsu's company, according to court documents and investor accounts, echoes an older matter that came to light in recent weeks. In 1991, California officials charged Mr. Hsu with grand theft for failing to repay investors for money he raised to import latex gloves from China.
"Norman Hsu has an extraordinary ability to deceive," says Seth Rosenberg of Clayman & Rosenberg, a lawyer representing Mr. Rosenman.
Mr. Rosenman and a partner, Yau Cheng, wrote a joint letter on Monday to alert their fund's investors. "Last week, our attorneys met with representatives of the Manhattan District Attorney's office to inform them of the situation," they wrote. The district attorney is investigating, the letter says. A spokesman for the district attorney did not respond to a request for comment.
Mr. Hsu's lawyers had no immediate comment to the allegations by Source Financing.
Two Bankruptcies
Where Mr. Hsu got his money has been a burning question in recent weeks. He financed a web of political donations and a lavish lifestyle, despite two bankruptcies and a felony record. Telling acquaintances he was an apparel executive, he set up multiple companies, sometimes giving early investors profits, they say, so they would bring in friends. In some cases, investors in his businesses say they were so eager to please Mr. Hsu that they donated to political candidates alongside him.
It somehow just seemed fitting to use a bit of a song by The Who to start this off, since Joel Rosenman was one of the folks who helped really put the Who over the top in popularity in the United States.
He and a friend with a big trust fund, John Roberts, decided to pitch a situation comedy about a hapless duo who hatched a new business plan every week. Looking for material, they placed an ad in The Wall Street Journal and New York Times that said: "Young Men With Unlimited Capital looking for interesting, legitimate, investment opportunities and business propositions."
The responses — thousands of them — inspired them to become venture capitalists instead of screenwriters, according to a book by Messrs. Rosenman and Roberts, "Young Men With Unlimited Capital."
One of the ideas was for a three-day concert. Together with two others, the pair raised money, produced and organized Woodstock in 1969.
Well, old Norman may not be going mobile for a while. But I'll bet there are some politicians scurrying like heck.
By David M, Thursday, 13 September , 2007 @ 11:21 am
Trackbacked by The Thunder Run - Web Reconnaissance for 09/13/2007
A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day…so check back often.