MGM (the movie studio) files for bankruptcy

from the LA Times:



Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Hollywood's fabled and once most powerful studio, has filed for bankruptcy protection after it could no longer pay down its crippling debt or make and release new movies.

The filing, made Wednesday morning, comes after MGM's leading creditors struck a deal with corporate raider Carl Icahn, who had amassed about 15% of the company's debt and was previously pushing for a merger between MGM and Lions Gate.

Instead, Icahn agreed to support a plan under which the chief executives of film production and finance company Spyglass Entertainment will run MGM once it exits Chapter 11, which could occur in as soon as one month.

Under the pre-packaged bankruptcy plan, MGM's $4 billion worth of debt, upon which it could no longer afford to pay interest, will be converted into more than 99% of the equity in the studio, which is valued at $1.9 billion. Spyglass principals Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum will become co-chief executives and co-chairmen, running a slimmed-down MGM with significantly less overhead and start producing new movies, including a James Bond sequel and two films based on "The Hobbit" that will be co-financed with Warner Bros. ..........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/entertainmentnewsbuzz/2010/11/metro-goldwyn-mayer-files-for-bankruptcy-after-creditors-stirke-deal-with-icahn.html