William Shakespeare and Edward De Vere's Estates

No matter which side you take--William Shakespeare is "the" William Shakespeare or Edward De Vere is "the" William Shake-speare--it is of interest to look how their heirs inherited each of their estates.

The Stratfordian Shakespeare's Will

William Shakespeare of Stratford prepared a will before he died.

To his daughter Judith he willed:
- 100 pounds for a marriage portion and another 50 pounds if she renounced any claim to the Chapel Lane cottage.
- An additional 150 pounds if Judith lived another three years, but forbade her husband any claim to it unless he settled on her lands worth the 150 pounds.
- If Judith did not live another three years, the 150 pounds was to go to Shakespeare's granddaughter Elizabeth Hall.
- A silver bowl
To is sister, Joan Hart, he willed:
- 30 pounds
- Life estate with nominal rent in the Western of the two houses on Henley Street, which Shakespeare himself inherited from his father in 1601.
To Joan Hart's sons, his nephews, he willed:
-5 pounds to each of Joan's three sons.
To his granddaughter, Elizabeth Hall, he willed:
- All his silver plates, except the silver bowl left to Judith.
To the poor of Stratford he willed:
-10 pounds to the poor of Stratford.
To his friends he willed:
- His sword and various small bequests to local friends.
- Memorial ring to be bought for his lifelong friend Hamnet Sadler
- Memorial rings to be bought for John Hemynges, Richard Burbage, and Henry Cundell
To his wife, Anne, he willed:
- His "second best bed."
To his daughter, Susanna and Son-in-Law, John Hall, he willed
- "All the Rest of my Goods, Chattels, Leases, Plate, Jewels & Household stuff whatsoever after my debts and Legacies paid & my funeral expenses discarded."

Oxfordian Shake-speare's Estate

Edward De Vere was the 17th Earl of Oxford. He inherited the Oxford estate when his father died. Titled property usually was inherited by the oldest son in a nobleman's family. Edward De Vere had only one living son, Henry, from his second wife, Elizabeth.

Edward did sell some of his estate during his life, and established a trust fund for his three living daughters from his first wife, Anne. His three daughters, Elizabeth, Bridget, and Susan all married men of title as well.

The remaining estate went to his second wife, Elizabeth, and his son, Henry, who became the 18th Earl of Oxford.

What About Steve Jobs's Estate Planning?

Now that Steve Jobs has died there is speculation in the news regarding what place in technology ingenuity Apple, Inc. will play in the future. A less public issue of speculation is what will happen to Mr. Jobs's estate. Mr. Jobs during his life has been private regarding his philanthropy endeavors. Laurene Powell Jobs, Steve Jobs's widow, has very quietly been involving herself with education issues, women's issues, and other philanthropic causes. Two organizations founded by Ms. Powell Jobs are College Track and Emerson Collective. Both organizations strive to help individuals help themselves. Most likely, Ms. Powell Jobs will continue using Mr. Jobs's estate to further philanthropic causes important to both Ms. Powell Jobs and her deceased husband, Steve Jobs.

From our perspective as estate planners, the critical point is that Mr. Jobs seems to have done his estate planning right. We can say this because so little is being said (can be said) about it in the news. It seems everything has been done privately, confidentially, and competently. No news in estate planning is good news.

Here is an article with the Wall Street Journal touching on this issue.

Steve Jobs's Death

Steve Jobs passed away yesterday, Wednesday, October 5, 2011. We want to add our voice in expressing appreciation for what Mr. Jobs did in the field of computers. Our law business has greatly benefited by his products. Here is an article that mentions ten Apple computer products that helped change the world. The Wall Street Journal has a nice article as well. We wish his family well during this time of loss.

Michael Jackson's Estate Distributions

Michael Jackson's estate has made enough money since his death to pay off large amounts of debt due at his death and still distribute about 30M to his children and their mother. Unnamed charities have also begun receiving portions of the estate assets.

Here is a good article regarding this event.

Don't Leave Rover Out Of Your Estate Plan

Pet Trust Law: In recent years, laws have been passed allowing pet trusts to be created on behalf of family pets. The Utah Uniform Probate Code says, "A trust may be created to provide for the care of a pet or animal as provided in Section 75-2-1001." (Utah Probate Code 75-7-408)

An Extreme Example: An extreme example of a person creating a pet trust for their pet is Leona Helmsley, a billionaire, who created a pet trust for her dog, Trouble. Ms. Helmsley funded Trouble's pet trust with $12 million. The $12 million was subsequently reduced to $2 million.

Pet Trusts: A pet trust ensures your pet is taken care of if you are no longer able to do so. A pet trust enables you to name guardians of your pet, allows trustees to remove guardians if necessary, provides basic compensation for guardians, provides basic needs for your pet including health check ups, and provides for burial needs at the death of your pet. With the life expectancy of pets increasing, it is a good idea to consider a pet trust for your pet when you prepare your estate plan.

Fun Pet Websites:
dog guide
kidsites
best friends

Visit us here to learn more about pet trusts.

Who Did Julius Ceaser Adopt Posthumously as Dictated by His Last Will?

Augustus, first emperor of Rome.

Source: Wikipedia

Visit our sight here for information regarding wills

What Do You Do When You Inherit Poems?

In 1994, David Broza, an Israeli balladeer, performed once in a small concert with Townes Van Zandt, a Texan singer and songwriter. When Mr. Van Zandt died in 1997, he bequeathed his unpublished poems to Mr. Broza. An unexpected inheritance for Mr. Broza. Eight years after Mr. Van Zandt's death, Mr. Broza, in tribute to Mr. Van Zandt, turned the poems into songs. In 2010, Mr. Broza produced an album "Night Dawn: The Unpublished Poetry of Townes Van Zandt." A nice tribute and great music and lyrics. Check it out http://nightdawn.davidbroza.net/

And since we're on the subject of Michael Jackson . . .

Some site called Contactmusic.com is reporting that Jackson's father has confirmed that Michael was the biological father of Omer Bhatti, the boy that's been rumoured to be his fourth child. Joe Jackson noted the striking similarities saying "Yes I knew he had another son, yes I did. He looks like a Jackson, he acts like a Jackson, he can dance like a Jackson. This boy is a fantastic dancer as a matter of fact. I don't know (if he will be the future of the Jacksons). I can't say that yet until I see it happen."

Uh oh.

Here's a heads up!

Cremation Solutions sells urns" that look like the person whose ashes they hold.

"Now we can create a custom urn in the image of your loved one or favorite Celebrity."

via boing boing via Cynical-C

He Wasn't What She Thought He Was.

Gabrielle Mee, who died last year, left her multi-million dollar estate to the Legionaires of Christ which is located in Orange, Connecticut. She had given the Order a good deal of money before she died as well. She was a devout woman who took Holy Communion every day of her life since the age of 12. She lived at the order's center for consecrated women in Greenville, R.I. for at least a decade.


The family is challenging the will based on a sex scandal involving the order's founder, the Rev. Marcial Maciel Degollado. He was accused of molesting more than a dozen young boys, fathering an illegitimate child, and misappropriate funds.

In May 2006, Pope Benedict XVI disciplined Degollado, inviting him to "a reserved life of prayer and penitence"; no explanation was given to the public or to the Legionaries of Christ. Degollado died in 2008 at age 87.

Family members say they believe that if Mee knew of the sex scandal and Vatican investigation, she would not have made the order her beneficiary.

The court has given the family until their October court date to gather evidence, subpoena records, and depose witnesses.

Big H/T to Patrick Madrid

One of a kind - RIP

Michael Jackson 1958-2009

Hitler's Favorite Composer

Father leaves great grand daughter with a weighty historical legacy

From outsiders, always questions. From the insiders, always silence. If Katharina Wagner, the great-grand daughter of Richard Wagner, gets her way, it will be answers.

The 31- year-old stage director recently took over as co-director of the Beyreuth Festival, Richard Wagner's own opera house, after a long and fierce family battle. The Festival began 133 years ago to showcase Wagner's work.

Sculpture of Richard Wagner by Arno Brekker, Hitler's favorite sculpture.

There has been a long association of Wagner's name and works with racism and anti-semitism. Adolf Hitler was his a fan of the composer's music as well as his anti-Jewish views. Hitler thought that Wagner's opera's spoke to his vision of the future of the German nation. Wagner's influence on Nazism is still debated today. and saw in Wagner's operas an embodiment of his own vision of the German nation.

Now Katharina wants to access the history even though some members of her family are against it. She has asked independent investigators to delve into her family connection to the Nazi regime and to open up the private archives of her father Wolfgang Wagner.

Keeping Lenin in Lusrine Suits

The fund that cleans up the mummified Lenin every three years is out of money and can't afford to buy him the lustrine (silk) suit that he prefers.

More at obit-mag.com

More from neatorama.com

150,000,000 people have visted Lenin's Tomb.

Work on improving his appearance continued for decades after his death.

The mausoleum is kept at 59F.

There is a "body brigade that regularly removes Lenin's clothing and examines the body for signs of wear and tear.

Every 18 months he's bathed in preservatives and injected with chemicals.

Speaking of Art

Last week, two 16th century paintings that hung in William Randolph Heart's castle were confiscated by the Nazis in 1935. Last week Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and California State Parks Director Ruth Coleman handed them over on the second day of Passover.


The three works were acquired by newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst for his 165-room, hilltop castle in 1935; the origins were unknown at the time.

The family struck a deal with the state of California several months ago, after San Simeon curators agreed the paintings were Oppenheimer holdings sold at a Judenauktion, a coerced auction of Jewish possessions.

The paintings were deeded to the State of California with the sale of Heart Castle.

Peter Bloch of Boynton Beach, Florida and Inge Blackshear of Buenos Aires accepted the oil paintings on behalf of their grandparents, Jakob and Rosa Oppenheimer. Inge died at Auschwitz and Jakob died in poverty in Nice France in 1941.

Schwarzenegger's whose father was a member of the Nazi Party, said that the return of the paintings had special meaning for him.

The returned paintings are "Portrait of Alvise Vendramin," attributed to the school of Jacopo Tintoretto, and "Portrait of a Bearded Gentleman," credited to the school of Giovanni Cariani.

No Conservatorship, but maybe you can visit

A judge refused to establish a conservatorship for Peter Falk on Monday. For much of the hearing, the judge seemed inclined to rule against Catherine Falk and allow Shera Falk, the actor's wife of more than 32 years, to continue to manage his care and affairs. However he has scheduled testimony to decide whether court intervention is necessary to allow visits between the ailing actor and his daughter, according to the Associated Press.

Fight for Falk Continues

Looks like the Falk conservatorship dispute isn't settled at all. Daughter Catherine Falk argues that a conservatorship is the only way to prevent the actor's wife from blocking her regular visits.

She claims there has always been some resentment felt by Falk's wife towards his two daughters who were adopted when the actor was married to Alyce Mayo. Alyce Mayo defends Catherine's position. Another declaration was submitted by a personal assistant to Mr. Falk from 1968 to 1981 that he always maintained a relationship with his daughters, even after he remarried. She claims that there was some resentment from his new wife so the visits took place at Mayo's home or in public places.

Does a Lincoln still Live?

Obituary for Margaret Fristoe Beckwith
Margaret "Maggie" Beckwith, 87, a volunteer with the American Red Cross and the widow of President Abraham Lincoln's last heir, died March 10 of lung cancer at the Orchard, an assisted living facility in Warsaw, Va.

In 1950, she married James Poor Fristoe, an Air Force officer. That marriage ended in divorce. In 1979, she married Robert "Bob" Todd Lincoln Beckwith, the great-grandson of the president and the last Lincoln heir. She enjoyed accompanying her husband on Lincoln-related trips throughout the country and researching the family's heritage. Her husband, the grandson of Robert Todd Lincoln, died in 1985.

From the Washingtonpost Post Mortem by Joe Holley. (Taken from a Michael Beschloss article in the New Yorker 1994)

Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith was President Lincoln's great-grandson and was thought to be the last Lincoln heir when he died in 1985.

Some people think that a Lincoln heir survives.

Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith was married three times and claimed that he had no heirs. His second wife claimed otherwise. His third wife found out she was pregnant six months after the wedding, but Beckwith had had a vesectomy.

They divorced in 1976 where a trial was set in motion to determine whther the boy Timothy Lincoln Beckwith was a leigtimate Lincoln heir. He was seven at the time and stood to inherit more than $10,000,000. The boys mother left for Europe and refused to return. The divorce was granted and the court ruled that the child was the product of an "adulterous relationship." The judge said that another court would have to rule whether young Timothy could still seek the Lincoln fortune.

When Beckwith died in 1985, the three groups that were to inherit his millions -- Iowa Wesleyan College, the American Red Cross and the First Church of Christ, Scientist -- were worried about Timothy Beckwith, then 17 years old. The groups made him an offer -- the teenager said yes, and with that the "Lincoln family tree withered into history."
Wickipedia article here
Lincoln Family Tree Here,

Estate goes after the URL

Domain Name Wire reports that the estate of the late Jim Morrison wans the domain name JimMorrison.com and they are willing to fight. The fight goes the World Intellectual Property Organization (WITPO), which administates various IP treaties, in this case the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Disputes. The name is currently owned by a Rick Sentierei. It is a mash up of Jim Morrison stuff, with side bars on Health Shopping, Family Fun, and Places to go.

Jim Morrison, who died in 1971 of a likely overdose, willed his estate to Pamela Courson, his long-time companion. After her death in 1974 of an overdose, her parents battled Morrison's parents for control of the estate, which was eventally decided in favor of the Coursons.

Altovise Davis

NY Times reports the death of Altovise Davis, a dancer and actress and the widow of Sammy Davis Jr., Saturday of a stroke.

Sammy Davis Jr.'s estate is still unsettled. Mr. Davis squandered millions nad Altovise had to hire an attorney to help settle a multi-million tax debt to the IRS. The settlement required the sale of his Beverly Hills mansion, jewelry and other personal items. She also sued to former business partners claiming they fruadulently convinced her to release her rights to her husband's estate. That suit has not been settled. Mrs. Davis was 65.

The Cash is Gone, I've Nothing but My Songs.

Michael Jackson set to release music after death.

King of Pop Michael Jackson has reportedly recorded more than 100 songs but is refusing to release the tracks until after his death.

The collection of songs is also set to be heard by his children Prince, 11, Paris 10 and six-year old Prince Michael II.

Some people think Jackson is leaving the songs as his children’s inheritance in lieu of cash because of his current financial struggles.
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If this is true it could be quite the legacy. Composer of Billy Jean is Not My Lover, Bad, The Girl is Mine, Wanna Be Startin' Somethin', Jackson has had nine platinum singles in the U.S., the longest running non-soundtrack album Thriller was on #1 for 37 weeks and produced seven Top 10 singles.. The album spent 80 weeks in the Top 10. Four of his albums have debuted at #1. And his continuing ability to make money is not in doubt. Last week in the U.K. fans purchased 900,000 tickets to see him in concert.
___________

Trivia - The song Ben was written for Donny Osmond, but he was unavailable so it was offered to Jackson. The song became the first number-one pop hit as a solo artist. It won a Golden Globe and an Academy Award for best original song. In his career Jackson has sold over 500 million records. #4 on the list of best selling artists, after the Beatles, Elvis Presley, and Bing Crosby.