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Wednesday, December 19, 2012
California Substitute Teacher Inherits ?Loner? Cousin?s $7.4M Gold Coin Fortune
Credit: AP
CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) ? ?Walter Samaszko Jr. was a loner whose death went largely unnoticed. That all changed when a crew sent to clean out his house found a fortune stashed away in the garage of his modest ranch-style home.
There were ammunition boxes stuffed with thousands of gold coins, from Austria, Mexico and the United States. There was enough gold to fill up two wheelbarrows ? more than $7.4 million worth.
?There was every kind of coin you could think of,? said Alan Glover, the Carson City clerk and the public administrator of the estate who borrowed a neighbor?s wheelbarrow to haul the treasure out.
City officials searched through records to find an heir: a substitute teacher in the San Francisco Bay Area who a judge declared Tuesday was Samaszko?s lone surviving first cousin.
The decision means Arlene Magdanz of San Rafael, Calif., is a millionaire. She didn?t attend the hearing and, so far, has not said anything publicly about her newfound fortune.
Officials were able to track her down using a funeral bulletin at Samaszko?s home that led to his father?s service in Chicago in the early 1960s, and then newspaper clippings that listed survivors.
When a lawyer told her that her 69-year-old cousin?s estate was valued in the millions, officials said, she was surprised, just like everyone else, including his neighbors on their quiet street.
No one seemed to know him at all, even though he had lived in the house since the 1960s. His mother lived with him until her death in 1992. When he died, the house was generally well kept.
?I don?t think I saw him in the year I was out here,? said Curtis Hastings, who dropped mail into a slot in Samaszko?s garage. A woman who lived just two doors down said she didn?t know him.
Samaszko?s body was found in June after neighbors called authorities, though it was not clear what prompted them to do so. He had been dead of heart problems for at least a month, according to the coroner.
Officials don?t know what he did for a living. They also don?t know how he earned the money that was used to buy the gold.
There were meticulous records of the purchases, since at least 1964, leading Glover to suspect that the gold coins may have been mainly bought over the years by Samaszko?s mother.
His bank account stood at $1,200. He had a money market and mutual fund with a combined value of more than $165,000 when it was closed. His three-bedroom, 1,200-square-foot house was sold for $112,000.
?He was not a coin collector,? Glover said. ?He was a gold investor.?
While the coins themselves were ?nothing spectacular,? Glover said, there were a lot of them ? thousands, some wrapped up neatly in foil or plastic cases, others loose in bags.
There were more than 2,900 Austrian coins, many from 1915; 4,500 from Mexico; 500 from Britain; 300 U.S. gold pieces, some dating to 1880; and more than 100 U.S. gold pieces as old as the 1890s. They were stored mostly in 2-foot-by-2-foot-by-2.5-foot ammo boxes stacked on top of each other.
The variety of coins impressed Howard Herz, the appraiser of the fortune for the estate who has seen a lot as curator of gambling collections at Harvey?s Resort at Lake Tahoe from 1960-93.
?It was an extraordinarily well calculated investment in gold,? Herz said.
Besides his house, Samaszko?s other belongings have fetched very little: A bike sold for $2, a saw for $10.70 and a wrench for $15. (A 1968 Ford Mustang California Special will soon be auctioned, appraised at $17,000).
The real money will come when the gold is sold. A lucrative investment in the last few years as the economy remained stuck in a slump, gold is worth about $1,700 an ounce, up from about $400 a decade ago.
Meanwhile, Magdanz has left her apartment to stay in a secret location due to an avalanche of requests from the news media for interviews, Glover said.
?She was so frazzled and so harassed,? he said.
?
Featured image via AFP/Getty
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Why Apple Maps needs Foursquare's 50 million venues
The Verge writes, Apple needs good location data, and fast, in order to repair the damage from its botched Maps service. So it wasn?t surprising to read reports that the iPhone maker is considering a partnership with location-based social network Foursquare, which happens to be sitting on a homegrown database of 50 million venues in 220 countries. Foursquare initially gained notoriety as a service for ostentatious oversharers eager to broadcast their fun-packed Saturday nights. However, the service has been building a sophisticated venue database from scratch that could go a long way toward filling in the?
Continue reading Why Apple Maps needs Foursquare's 50 million venues at The Verge
Source: http://technewstube.com/theverge/144907/why-apple-maps-needs-foursquares-50-million-venues/
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Japan's exports fall, but by less than expected
LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Japan's exports fell in November from their year-earlier levels, the Finance Ministry reported Wednesday, with the trade deficit widening from the previous month. November exports fell 4.1%, less than the 5.2% drop expected in a Dow Jones Newswires survey of economists and the 5.4% decrease tipped in a Reuters poll. Imports rose 0.8%, meanwhile, sending the trade deficit for the month to 953.4 billion yen ($11.4 billion), widening from October's Y549 billion trade gap. The deficit was the widest since January's record-wide deficit. Shipments to China tumbled 14.5%, continuing their fall amid a territorial dispute between the two nations that has led some Chinese to boycott Japanese goods. Exports to the U.S. rose 5.3%, while those to the European Union dropped 19.9%.
Source: http://feeds.marketwatch.com/~r/marketwatch/marketpulse/~3/oDA4pHsLYok/story.aspx
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Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Chinese Filmmaker Blasts Local Movie Censors, Calls For System ...
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Campaign for IOC president takes shape, quietly
FILE - In this Dec. 4, 2012 file photo, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Jacques Rogge waits for the opening of the IOC executive board meeting, in Lausanne, Switzerland. Rogge, the Belgian surgeon who has led the Olympic body since 2001, steps down at the end of his term in September 2013. Although no one speaks openly yet about replacing him, the list of potential contenders is an open secret in IOC circles. (AP Photo/Keystone, Jean-Christophe Bott, File)
FILE - In this Dec. 4, 2012 file photo, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Jacques Rogge waits for the opening of the IOC executive board meeting, in Lausanne, Switzerland. Rogge, the Belgian surgeon who has led the Olympic body since 2001, steps down at the end of his term in September 2013. Although no one speaks openly yet about replacing him, the list of potential contenders is an open secret in IOC circles. (AP Photo/Keystone, Jean-Christophe Bott, File)
FILE - In this July 1, 2005 file photo, IOC President Jacques Rogge, left, shakes hands with Singapore's IOC delegate Ng Ser Miang upon his arrival at Singapore's Changi Airport VIP Terminal. Rogge, the Belgian surgeon who has led the Olympic body since 2001, steps down at the end of his term in September 2013. Although no one speaks openly yet about replacing him, the list of potential contenders is an open secret in IOC circles. With the election nine months away, the campaign is forging ahead behind the scenes without fanfare, policy platforms, debates - or any declared candidates for that matter. (AP Photo/Ed Wray, File)
FILE - In this July 21, 2012 file photo, International Olympic Committee (IOC) Vice-President Thomas Bach attends a meeting of the IOC Executive Board at a hotel in London, prior to the 2012 Summer Olympics. Jacques Rogge, the Belgian surgeon who has led the Olympic body since 2001, steps down at the end of his term in September 2013. Although no one speaks openly yet about replacing him, the list of potential contenders is an open secret in IOC circles. With the election nine months away, the campaign is forging ahead behind the scenes without fanfare, policy platforms, debates - or any declared candidates for that matter. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)
FILE - In this May 24, 2012 file photo, International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board member Richard Carrion speaks with the media about an agreement between the IOC and the United States Olympic Committee at the SportAccord conference in Quebec city, Canada. Jacques Rogge, the Belgian surgeon who has led the Olympic body since 2001, steps down at the end of his term in September 2013. Although no one speaks openly yet about replacing him, the list of potential contenders is an open secret in IOC circles. With the election nine months away, the campaign is forging ahead behind the scenes without fanfare, policy platforms, debates - or any declared candidates for that matter. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Francis Vachon, File)
LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) ? Thomas Bach strides through the hotel lobby between meetings with a phone pressed to his ear. Over in one corner of the foyer sits Richard Carrion, deep in discussion with a fellow member. A few tables away, Ng Ser Miang chats with a colleague over a cup of tea.
All in the same room, three leading contenders all quietly engaged in the so-far unofficial campaign for perhaps the most powerful job in world sports: president of the International Olympic Committee.
Just don't say out loud that that the race is on.
With the election nine months away, the campaign to succeed Jacques Rogge is forging ahead behind the scenes without fanfare, policy platforms, debates ? or any declared candidates for that matter.
Rogge, the Belgian surgeon who has led the Olympic body since 2001, steps down at the end of his term in September 2013. Although no one yet speaks openly about replacing him, the list of potential contenders is an open secret in IOC circles.
Some members are still sounding out their chances, while a few others look certain to run.
The deadline for declaration of candidacies is not until June, three months before the vote in Buenos Aires on Sept. 10. Candidates are likely to wait until closer to the date before announcing their intentions, thereby avoiding the impression of being too hasty or undercutting the outgoing president.
"It's little by little coming out in the open," Gerhard Heiberg, a senior IOC member from Norway who is not in the running, told The Associated Press. "It's still too early, but people are preparing for what's going to happen. I think that's good. It's an open field with many possible candidates and that's what we want."
Heading the prospective field are Bach, Carrion and Ng. All three were in Lausanne recently for IOC meetings, and they were hard to miss. While Bach and Ng are vice presidents who sit on the ruling executive board, Carrion is no longer a board member and must make an extra effort from outside the inner circle.
All three also made the trip to Israel for the 70th birthday celebrations of IOC member Alex Gilady earlier this month.
Bach, a German lawyer and former Olympic fencer, shapes up as the favorite. He ticks several boxes: He's from Europe, the dominant bloc in the IOC. Of the IOC's eight presidents since 1894, only one ? Avery Brundage of the United States ? came from outside Europe.
The 58-year-old Bach has been on the executive board ? as a regular member or vice president ? since 1996. He's a former Olympic athlete, having won the team foil gold medal at the 1976 Montreal Games. As chairman of the IOC juridical commission, he leads most of the investigations into doping cases. He's president of the German Olympic Sports Confederation.
Carrion, chairman of Puerto Rico's largest bank, Banco Popular de Puerto Rico, has made his mark as a money man. Head of the IOC's finance and audit commissions, he led the negotiations that secured the record $4.38 billion deal with NBC for U.S. TV rights through 2020. Carrion, 60, also oversees the IOC's financial reserves, which have grown to more than $550 million from $105 million in 2001.
If Carrion has a drawback, it's that he doesn't have a strong sporting background like Bach.
Ng, a 63-year-old member from Singapore, is seen as the candidate from Asia, a continent with growing influence on the world stage. Ng is best known for having led the organizing committee for the inaugural Youth Olympics ? Rogge's pet project ? in Singapore in 2010. Whether he can marshal the full backing of Asian members remains key to his chances.
British bookmakers are even listing odds on the race ? with Bach the even-money favorite with Ladbrokes, followed by Carrion at 2-1 and Ng at 6-4.
There are a handful of others in the frame.
Nawal El Moutawakel, the Moroccan who won a gold medal in the women's 400-meter hurdles at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, confirmed recently that she was thinking about a possible run. She was elevated to the IOC vice presidency in July and holds a high-profile position as head of the coordination commission for the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Another woman, longtime U.S. member and former IOC vice president Anita DeFrantz, is a possible candidate. The former rower, who chairs the women and sports commission, ran for IOC president in 2001, but was eliminated in the first round. DeFrantz has failed in several attempts to return to the executive board since then.
Two Swiss members, Rene Fasel and Denis Oswald, are also weighing their options. Fasel is president of the International Ice Hockey Federation and led the IOC oversight panel for the 2010 Vancouver Games. Oswald, the former longtime head of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations, chaired the IOC commissions for the 2004 Athens and 2012 London Games.
"There are a few colleagues who are trying to convince me to run," Oswald told The Associated Press. "I haven't decided yet. I will have to assess the situation and my chances. I will make a decision in a few months, probably."
In the end, a field of four or five candidates would seem likely.
"Nobody is talking openly and declaring any firm intention but it's always pretty much the same names floating around," Oswald said. "I have the feeling that more than one (are) in the situation where they don't know yet and still wait to see how it develops and talk with some people."
Rogge was elected to an initial eight-year term and was re-elected unopposed to a final four-year mandate in 2009. The succession battle is developing as the 70-year-old Rogge, coming off recent hip replacement surgery, looks his age ? a far cry from the sturdy and youthful man who took over 12 years go.
Members believe the election campaign should not overshadow the remainder of his presidency.
"Jacques Rogge is still the president and should not be disturbed by candidates going out openly at this stage," Heiberg said. "I hope the longer it takes before that starts, the better. The closer we get to the day for the voting, the better."
Holding off before declaring a candidacy can have strategic advantages. Once members become official candidates, they are covered by tight ethics rules that restrict election campaigning.
Under rules drawn up the ethics commission, candidates must limit their travel to promote their campaign. So, until then, members can still benefit from traveling to meetings or conferences where they can approach colleagues and privately discuss the election.
The ethics code also prohibits candidates from using social media to promote themselves and bars them from organizing any public meetings or taking part in any debate. The intention is to "prevent any excesses" and conduct the campaign with "dignity and moderation."
"In a way I think it's not a political election," Oswald said. "It shouldn't be at least. We know each other pretty well. I don't think we need to have a campaign the American way. The president who is able to have the best financial support is the one who is going to be able to win pretty much. It's good that we don't have something similar."
Rogge, meanwhile, has pledged to remain neutral in the race. The idea of grooming a successor or endorsing a candidate has never been an issue.
"It's certainly our president's attitude in general not to show any preference," Oswald said. "We have to respect that. I'm pretty sure he won't give any instruction or show any specific support to anyone."
For now, the instruction is simple: Shhhh! The campaign has yet to begin.
___
Follow Stephen Wilson on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stevewilsonap
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Robert Downey Jr. Iron Man 3 Interview
The genre of superhero movies is about to get a lot more interesting, with Iron Man 3?leading the charge. After Marvel set a high watermark with this past summer?s The Avengers, the stakes have never been higher. How fitting, then, that the franchise that got the studio?s movie universe started should be trusted to keep the momentum rolling.
It may be an odd time to change directors, but Jon Favreau has made way for writer/director Shane Black (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang), and the first full Iron Man 3 trailer proved the decision might very well have been a good one. Leading man Robert Downey Jr. recently opened up on just how impressed he already is with Black?s direction, along with the performances being turned in by his fellow cast members.
Speaking during the The?Cinefamily?telethon (via?CBM), Downey Jr. spoke to Black?s screenwriting history as paving the way for buddy cop/action films to be taken seriously, but he?s no stranger to the Iron Man series either. Apparently. it was Black who Favreau and Downey Jr. went to when problems arose on the set of the first film:
?I adore him. I?ve been a fan of Shane Black since I saw ?Lethal Weapon.? When we were doing the first Iron Man, Jon Favreau and I used to call up Shane Black. We had two lifeline calls; one was to J.J. Abrams, which was about the third act. And for the other call, we went to Shane?s house.
?For instance, in the ?Iron Man? scene where Tony Stark comes back from captivity and calls a press conference, and then asked everybody to sit down, the speech Stark gives all came from Shane Black. So to get him to do ?Iron Man 3,? it has just been this awesome experience and one of my favorite working experiences. ?Iron Man 3? is going to be a very, very bold genre film, from the storytelling.?
The extended footage in the Japanese version of the IM3 trailer led us to draw a few new conclusions, particularly about Pepper being kidnapped, and the staggering destruction of Stark?s coastal mansion taking place in the first act of the film, not at its climax. Those assumptions are clearly reinforced by Downey Jr.?s description of a shocking plot and missing missus.
When people think of Downey Jr. and Black, their past collaboration on Kiss Kiss Bang Bang?must be brought up. One of the actor?s most underrated performances and Black?s directorial debut, the unconventional detective story was overflowing with quirk. That same unique approach applied to the superhero formula won?t just offer something new, but for the man sporting the armor, promises big things for Stark?s saga going forward:
?Shane Black really knows the superhero genre, but I think the main thing is that he?s always looking at complexities within complexities [and so on]. And he always likes it when a film kind of stops for a reason you can?t understand, and then picks up and goes in a direction you?ve never imagined. Usually when you have a straight-forward narrative, if at act 1, 2 or 3, ?There?s Tony, Tony?s in trouble, where?s Pepper, Tony wins.? By the time we were doing the 2nd one, I was like ?where?s Pepper.? Shane is just a genius!?
Aside from the individual plot details and story beats, it seems Black?s previous claims that he wasn?t necessarily trying to outdo the scope of The Avengers, but that Iron Man 3 was all ?about trying to get as much into this as we can? were more than just lip service.
With a return to Tony Stark?s roots, buddy cop comedy between Tony and Rhodey, and now rumors of an introduction to Wasp, Black?s got his hands full.
As a testament to how much fans will get out of Iron Man 3, Downey didn?t even mention those plot lines in his praise for the cast. Sir Ben Kingsley won?t shock anyone by swinging for the fences, but it?s former-director Jon Favreau?s turn as Happy Hogan that is most impressing the leading man:
?Happy has an amazing arc in this movie. In fact, probably the best two bits of acting in the movie, so far from what I can tell?which sucks because I?m in every frame, are Favreau as Happy Hogan?I can?t give away much, but it?s ridiculous. And also Sir Ben Kingsley. Kingsley is amazing. And a lot of that had to do with the way that Shane crafted the role for Sir Ben. I think that people are going to be not [totally] surprised, but they?re going to be just reinvested in what a brilliant actor Kingsley is.?
There?s been no shortage of praise for Sir Ben Kingsley?s role as the Mandarin, with Marvel head Kevin Feige claiming he received more overwhelming praise from the crew than any other actor in Marvel?s ?Phase One.? And if the story driving the film as a whole is as strong as it seems, then Marvel?s first dose of ?Phase Two? has the talent and direction needed for a strong start.
How do you feel about Shane Black?s apparent changes to the typical superhero formula? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Iron Man 3?is directed by Shane Black, based on a screenplay he co-wrote with Drew Pearce. It stars Robert Downey Jr., Ben Kingsley, Don Cheadle, Gwyneth Paltrow, Guy Pearce,?Jon Favreau, Rebecca Hall, William Sadler, James Badge Dale, Xueqi Wang and the voice of Paul Bettany.
Iron Man 3?releases May 3rd, 2013,?Thor: The Dark World?on November 8th, 2013,?Captain America: The Winter Soldier?on April 4th, 2014,?Guardians of the Galaxy?on?August 1st, 2014,?The Avengers 2?on May 1st, 2015 and?Ant-Man?on November 6th, 2015.
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Follow me on Twitter @andrew_dyce.
Source: Cinefamily [via CBM]
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Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1926504/news/1926504/
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