Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar Posted September 2, 2007 Lucky dog inherits $12m fortune New York hotelier and real estate billionaire Leona Helmsley has left $12m (£5.97m) to her pet dog, Trouble. The pampered pooch received the largest bequest from Mrs Helmsley's will. The will also says that when Trouble dies, she is to be buried alongside Mrs Helmsley, who died last week, and her late husband in their mausoleum. But some human members of Mrs Helmsley's family fared less well, with two of her four grandchildren cut out of the will entirely . Mrs Helmsley, who died last week, was dubbed the "Queen of Mean" by the US media, and was known for her tough approach to business. She and her late husband, Harry, built a company which managed some of New York's most prestigious addresses, including the Empire State Building, as well as hotels across the country. The money for Trouble's upkeep was left in the hands of her brother, Alvin Rosenthal, who himself inherited $10m. Two grandchildren, David and Walter Panzirer, were left $5m each on condition that they visit their father's grave at least once a year. Their father, Mrs Helmsley's son Jay Panzirer, died in 1982. But grandchildren Craig and Meegan Panzirer received nothing - "for reasons which are known to them", according to Mrs Helmsley's will. Mrs Helmsley left her chauffeur $100,000. She also set aside $3m for the upkeep of her and her husband's final resting place. Proceeds from the sale of Mrs Helmsley's residences and belongings will go to a charitable trust. Beenbeensii Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rudy-Diiriye Posted September 2, 2007 thats what i call a hot dog!!lol... i am sure alot of koreans are salivating when they hear that! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar Posted September 2, 2007 Imagine those two grandchildren, who were deliberately la qadiye. How would they fair and feel? When a dog is more valued -- literally -- than you, then waxba kuuma harin. They should take a lesson from here that they probably should have been a more loyal and friendly, which the dog probably was to its owner. ---------------- Super-rich furry animals: Four-legged legacies (and other pet payouts) When the New York socialite Leona Helmsley left much of her fortune to her poodle rather than her grandchildren, she was following in a long – if odd – tradition. Rob Sharp discovers some notable beneficiaries The US property billionaire Leona Helmsley was not known as New York's "queen of mean" for nothing. With her devilish reputation as a ball-crusher, she epitomised 1980s greed and indifference to the feelings of the "little people". But she did care about at least one living creature apart from herself: when her will was published this week, it was revealed that she had left more than $12m (£6m) to her white Maltese dog "Trouble". Like her mistress, the rich b!tch has a reputation for tearing strips off people. But was this bizarre gesture quite as abnormal as it seems? Not necessarily. There have, over the years, been surprisingly many examples of legacies to non-human beneficiaries, and a whole pack of domesticated animals have been on the receiving end of gargantuan endowments. For jealous humans, this provokes the question: what on earth do they spend it on? For obvious reasons, it is impossible to ask the pets themselves. But the evidence does suggest they have no difficulty spending the stuff. The most notorious heir of the dog variety is a German Shepherd called Gunther IV. Pictured on his website sitting proudly with a bevy of leathered up hero-worshippers the canine is reportedly worth $180m. He inherited the money from his father, the imaginatively-named Gunther III, who was given $60m when German countess Karlotta Libenstein died in 1992. According to one of a spate of websites that have sprung up in homage to the moneyed mutt, "Gunther does not have owners. He has trustees." The dog is now thought to "live a jet-setter's existence". He jumped into the public eye when the BBC reported in 2000 that he had rustled up $7.5m to buy Madonna's Florida villa; the dog even threw down dibs for the master bedroom. Ever ravenous for doggy bling, on 11 November 2001, Gunther appeared at an auction in northern Italy where through his "associates" – an obscure euro-pop rock band called The Burgundians (who have released only one single which is not available in stores) – he successfully bid three million lira (£1,050) for a truffle. It has to be said that some have denounced Gunther as a hoax, or possibly performance art, but the dignified, enigmatic canine picture on the opposite page looks real enough to us. There are, in any case, many other examples. Another pet with a notorious – and huge – windfall is Kalu the chimpanzee, who stands to inherit a fortune worth £40m. The animal was rescued from a tree in South Africa by owner Patricia O'Neill. Then, while her husband Frank, an Australian swimmer, was competing in the Sydney Olympics in 2000, she changed her will so that Kalu would inherit her estate near Cape Town. "I couldn't bear the thought of what might happen to her after I died," she said. Her husband, however, was less affectionate, saying that he had hated the monkey ever since he caught it smoking his cigarettes and drinking his booze. Then there is the poodle Toby Rimes, a descendant of a dog that inherited £15m from New York owner Ella Wendel. There is Tinker, an eight-year-old moggy from North London, who came into £450,000 when Margaret Layne, an elderly lady who found him as a stray, left him a three-bedroom house in Harrow – along with a £100,000 trust fund when she died in 2002. And there are Eileen, Hamish, Paris, Tuffnel, Boon and Coco, the cats of Beryl Reid, the actress, who died in 1996. She left her £900,000 cottage on the Thames to her friend Paul Strike, asking him to look after them. Big Tibby, a 52-year-old tortoise, can enjoy his dotage in style after his millionaire owner Donald Moss, director of a family-owned mattress company in Stockport, left him £50,000. An African parrot called Csoki was reportedly left £50,000 by London millionairess Victoria Brown. Fluffy, a ginger tomcat, inherited £30,000 from his owner Mary Burton, a church organist from Great Paxton, Cambridgeshire, who left her estate to the Wood Green Animal Shelter in Hertfordshire provided that staff take good care of her pet. Her will decreed he, "should have a home in the sun and be provided with a diet of fresh pilchards, steamed cod, tail ends, no bones, best lean roast beef and vegetables and only milk no water." Why do people make such legacies? Essentially, because their animals occupy a pre-eminent part in their owners' lives. The RSPCA's David Grant said: "Pets can be an important companion to older people. Our research reveals the over-60s rate them as a more important part of their lives than their friends." The most important motive is usually to make sure that the pet in question is looked after, and a crucial point in such wills is the identity of the person who will administer the legacy on the animal's behalf. Thus Helmsley's Trouble will be cared for by Leona's brother Alvin Rosenthal (who was left $10m). The will also calls for Trouble to be entombed alongside Helmsley and her husband Harry Helmsley, who died in 1997, in their $1.4m mausoleum, for which Helmsley set aside $3m for upkeep including annual cleanings. "I have not made any provisions in this will for my grandson Craig Panzirer or my granddaughter Meegan Panzirer for reasons which are known to them," Helmsley wrote. A spokesman for Helmsley declined to comment. According to the RSPCA, some owners don't give sufficient thought to the question of how their pets will live after they have gone. Of the 90,000 pet owners who die in the UK each year 70,000 do not make arrangements for their pets. RSPCA spokeswoman Nicky Richardson said: "We encourage people if they care about animals to give generously to us to improve the lives of animals. What's of primary importance is to make sure that there is someone there to look after their animal." Most Brits admit they would not be happy to take on an animal if a friend or relative died. Furthermore, many do not consider the possibility that their pets might outlive them. While cats generally live up to 16 years old, Macaws can live for 80 years and a tortoise that died last year was thought to be 250 years old. Meanwhile, it is clear that a well-placed legacy can do wonders. A labrador cross called Jasper , for example, was abandoned and left to die at Battersea Dogs Home and was about to be put to sleep when he caught the eye of Ramsden Brewery heiress Diana Myburgh. He had barely settled in his new home when his new owner died, in 1995, at the age of 74, leaving him and another dog, Jason, £25,000 each. He has lived in the lap of luxury ever since, on a 500 hectare estate, and is thought to have inherited around £25,000. He eats nothing but sirloin steak, Dover sole and fresh mussels and wears a diamond collar. Ridiculous? Perhaps. Yet after his earlier sufferings it seems mean to begrudge him his good fortune. The Independent Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chimera Posted September 2, 2007 But grandchildren Craig and Meegan Panzirer received nothing - "for reasons which are known to them", according to Mrs Helmsley's will. What could these two have done that was so ''bad that they turned this lady so bitter of hate that she took this grudge with her to the grave? killed the dog's twin? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar Posted September 2, 2007 She was not called "Queen of Mean" by American tabloids for no reason even before hear death. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jacaylbaro Posted September 2, 2007 Meesha aydii ay taajir ka noqotay baan fadhiyaa ,,,,, tolaaay oo tolaaaaayy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Som@li Posted September 2, 2007 who will keep the dog? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chubacka Posted September 2, 2007 ^^^ Prob her brother, who even though he got $10 million, still got less than the dog! Those that were left out of the will we obviously quite dim, I mean, if you had a billionaire grandma, how hard would it be to be VERY nice to her? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Khayr Posted September 2, 2007 Salams, The way you die and those who are with you during your death and at your death are sure signs of who and what you are. Asking that your dog be buried next to you and that your grave be given $3 million in 'up keep' treatment.... I just get a picture of her burning in hell and in agnoy in her grave...walahu yalim! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar Posted September 5, 2007 Gunther the Dog Gunther IV, a totally atypical German Shepherd well known as the "millionaire Dog", has been a controversial media event since 1993. He is the beneficiary of a multi-million dollar trust which owns, among other assets, Madonna's ex-Miami mansion. Gunther IV was chosen and appointed as the beneficiary of the trust because he was the best and most efficient example among a new type of "Joyful Dogs" a group of German Shepherds prepared and trained for specific purposes. In collaboration with expert breeders and trainers of German Sheperds, a scientific method was formulated in order to select a group of dogs not inclined towards obedience or aggressiveness. Rather, the selection sought dogs which were spontaneously looking for joy and amusement and an increased tendency for sexual activity. Gunther IV has become a symbol of those dogs and is jokingly referred to as the "Material Dog." He certainly is not the classic police dog or guardian in that he does not exhibit the classic symbols of defense, aggressiveness, protectionism or order. Rin Tin Tin, Lassie and Rex's style are all very far from Gunther's. In fact, Gunther does not have owners. He has trustees. Thus, Gunther and the other dogs of the group's whole life and training are oriented towards the achievement of joy, pleasure, amusement and improvement of their sexual activity. Recall that Gunther and the other dogs were originally chosen because of their spontaneous inclination towards these types of behavior. Another element which the experts believe is necessary in order to raise the quality of a dog's life is for the dog to live without a specific "owner." Rather, the animal should live together with young euphoric people. These youngsters should be as dynamic, joyful and clever as possible. The experts contend that the company of young, joyful and sexually very active people operates to increase the drive, mood, alertness and other cerebral processes of the dog which in turn generates its happiness and, ultimately, better psychological health [ ]. Additionally, the company of these youngsters "pleases" the dog and brings him to fulfillment. From Gunther's own, dedicated site. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nephissa Posted September 5, 2007 Dad dhaaxee yaa eey kaa dhigo aa qabaneeso! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar Posted September 5, 2007 Gunther IV at a board meeting, supposedly discussing his "investments, trusts" and "portfolios." Gunther at an exclusive resort, with the hired "young, sexually active, euphoric" workers. ------------- The absurdities bini'aadenka qaarkood ku dhacaan -- well, then again, mar horaa ka quursaday if anything that will ever surprise me again. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites