Leibovitz Sued Over $24M Loan

(NEWSER) - Photographer to the stars Annie Leibovitz is in a widely reported financial pickle, but it really comes as no surprise to those close to her, New York reports. Leibovitz is now engaged in baroque legal wrangling over her catalog, but her troubles started earlier. Insiders say a suspected “contract for life” with Vanity Fair and a $250,000 day rate are hogwash, and that she has simply lived above her means for quite some time. “She wanted her life to be like a magazine spread,” an associate says. More»

Photog gets reprieve, but property, rights to work still at risk

(NEWSER) - Annie Leibovitz has won an extension of her outstanding $24 million debt to Arts Capital Group, the New York Times reports. The celebrity photographer bought back the rights to her homes and intellectual property—both collateral in the loan—for an undisclosed sum as part of the restructured deal. But she could still lose them if she doesn't keep up with payments on the renegotiated loan. More»

He sues for $300,000, adding to her troubles

(NEWSER) - An Italian photographer is suing famed celebrity shutterbug Annie Leibovitz for $300,000, claiming she stole two of his photos, the New York Daily News reports. Paolo Pizzetti says Leibovitz’s associates hired him to scout locations in Italy for a limited-edition calendar Leibovitz was putting together for Lavazza coffee. He sent them images of the locations, but then was told the shoot had been moved to New York. More»

Photog owes fee for $40M loan: company

(NEWSER) - An investment firm that claims it saved celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz from financial ruin is now suing her for failure to pay the company $800,000 in service and finder fees. Brunswick Capital Partners wasn't paid after finding a private equity group to advance a $40 million loan to bail out the strapped Vanity Fair photog, according to court documents filed in Manhattan. Leibovitz, 60, nearly lost all of her art and the rest of her holdings last year after violating the terms of a $24 million loan, reports Reuters . More»