SANTA ANA ? An Orange County court has authorized an arrest warrant for a once-powerful sports agent, who represented, among others, football Hall of Famers Troy Aikman and Steve Young.
According to court documents, Leigh Steinberg, one of the most powerful agents in pro sports in the 1990s, owes the Irvine Co. $1.4 million for unpaid rent, which it has not been able to collect.
Sports agent Leigh Steinberg is seen at a Super Bowl-related event in Dallas this past February.
FILE PHOTO: CHRISTOPHER BLUMENSHINE, GETTY IMAGES
ADVERTISEMENT
The Irvine Co. was awarded the amount in its civil suit against Steinberg for breach of lease, court documents say.
Superior Court Commissioner Jane Myers last week authorized the warrant for failure to appear. The warrant only becomes effective upon payment of fees and when other procedural steps are taken.
Steinberg said in a telephone interview Thursday afternoon he was surprised by the development and is seeking a new court date.
"This is the biggest nonstory," he said. "Why people would be interested, I am not sure."
Steinberg said he is struggling financially and is rebuilding his business but is hardly in hiding. He is not difficult to reach, has a public website (steinbergsports.com) and thousands of friends on Facebook and followers on Twitter, Steinberg said.
"I give speeches every week, and I go to the office every week," he said.
The man who was the inspiration for Tom Cruise's character in the movie "Jerry McGuire" said he was surprised by the interest in him.
"Oh, my God ... I don't think I should replace (in the news) the death of Kim Jong Il and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq and the question of whether the payroll tax should be extended," Steinberg said.
Irvine Co. attorney Brooke Brandt declined to comment on the case Thursday, citing pending litigation.
"While in the public eye, (Steinberg) can host a grand Super Bowl party, at apparent great expense, yet process servers cannot seem to make direct contact with him," Brandt says in court documents. "He appears to have a phalanx of security protection around him that prevents servers from gaining access to him unless he allows it."
Steinberg said he found the statement "hilarious."
"You can walk right into my office" in Irvine, he said.
A 1994 Orange County Register story on Steinberg reported that since becoming a sports agent in 1975, he had been featured by everyone from "60 Minutes" and the "Today Show" to "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," which featured his 1985 wedding and profiled him again in 1992.
"Young football players dream of someday being Steinberg clients like Troy Aikman or and Steve Young. Steinberg believes their middle-aged fathers dream about being Steinberg," the story said.
"I sign a lot of autographs. I've got my own card," he told the Register.
According to Brandt's declaration, Steinberg "lives the lavish life of a famous sports agent throwing lavish Super Bowl Parties for 25 years, this past one in Dallas where tickets sold for upwards of $3,500 a ticket for an excess of 2,500 guests."
"My lifestyle has never been lavish," said Steinberg, who now lives in Laguna Niguel. "I live a modest lifestyle."
Among other things, the Super Bowl party ? paid for by sponsors, he said ? has raised funds for wounded warriors, autism research, and sent a water machine from Miami to Haiti.
Unlike a conjured up sports agent image, he does not have three pinky rings or slicked-back hair, Steinberg said.
"I look like an unmade bed," he said.
He took a year and a half off and wrote a book on youth parenting and values and is working to market his autobiography, Steinberg said.
The 62-year-old told the Associated Press that he's behind on the rent but maintained the missed court hearing was a mix up.
His lawyer had told him a court hearing scheduled for last week was postponed, Steinberg said. "I don't just consciously no-show on a court hearing," he said.
Steinberg, 62, had been a "loyal tenant" of the Irvine Co. at Fashion Island in Newport Beach for two decades, he said.
But in 2009, the rent became so expensive that he needed to move to a more affordable location. He later learned that rent issues weren't settled with the Irvine Co.
"Newport Beach is filled with people who have been up and down," Steinberg said.
"Since when in this country do you put people in jail for having debt?'' the AP quoted him as saying.
"The point is, I had some financial struggles, which I regret. And I am working hard right now to pay the debts I owe.''
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Contact the writer: 714-834-3773 or vjolly@ocregister.com
Source: http://www.ocregister.com/news/steinberg-332726-court-sports.html
edmund fitzgerald vincent brown vincent brown willow smith tom bradley tom bradley penn state riot
কোন মন্তব্য নেই:
একটি মন্তব্য পোস্ট করুন