Martha Martha Martha.Photo: Getty Images
MEDIA
• Executives in charge of working out Martha Stewart’s new magazine concept for older women, M, are “working against the idea that Martha is a basket and frills person.” But at a photo shoot, Martha got rather in the way. “Martha wanted to wash and blow-dry the chickens before the photo shoot.” [WWD]
• Former Hearst CEO Frank Bennack is taking over the reins again after Victor Ganzi’s sudden departure. People are speculating he’ll sit on the Hearst throne for a while as the company takes its time finding a replacement for Ganzi. [NYP]
• Vladimir Nabokov’s son Dmitri appoints superagent Andrew “the Jackal” Wylie to represent his father’s estate. [NYO]
FINANCE
• Now that Matthew Tannin and Ralph Cioffi have been arrested, what former Bear Stearns executives could be next in line? Former CEO James Cayne, who told investors the bank had no liquidity issues just days before it went bankrupt, “could be in deep trouble,” says professor of law at New York University’s School of Law. [NYS]
• Meanwhile, Vikram Pandit is sweating: Citigroup surprised investors with the news that the firm expects “substantial” write- downs — on top of the $42 billion already lost in the past year. [NYP]
• Matthew Piper, the rogue trader who lost $120 million of Morgan Stanley’s money, has a dachshund called Valerie. He also has terrible taste in hats. [London Times via DealBreaker]
REAL ESTATE
• The city’s Rent Guidelines Board approved its highest rent increase in years — 4.5 percent for one-year leases and 8.5 percent for two-year leases — and New Yorkers are not happy about it. [NYT]
• The FBI has slapped around 400 individuals and nineteen companies with criminal charges as part of its “Operation Malicious Mortgage” sweep. [WSJ]
• Two years and $2 million later, the Macon branch of the Brooklyn Public Library has reopened. [NYT]
LAW
• Does Craigslist need to post an ad for a lawyer? After its legal tussle with eBay this spring, some think so. [Law.com]
• Defunct Manhattan firm Goldston & Schwab was awarded 2 percent of Bandwidth Technology Corporation’s stock based on a retainer agreement that was signed during the dot-com boom. [Law.com]
• The mortgage-market crisis could be good for federal prosecutors in Brooklyn’s Eastern District, which is seeking to up the number of white-collar cases they’re handling. [WSJ]
