THE CONTROL OF LIZA MINNELLI

Liza Minnelli's rumored "controlling" best friend Michael Feinstein is allegedly ruling over her decisions, as he wants to be included in all of the legend's projects.

It seems like every part of the stage and screen star's life is apparently at the hand of her longtime friend, leaving pals anxious that she might not even realize it.

Friends are reportedly worried about Minnelli after noticing her 'controlling' friend has been making decisions in her life. In a recent chat with Interview magazine, the legendary EGOT winner made a surprising request: To have the interview conducted by none other than Michael.

Sources told us that Minnelli "didn’t care about the usual demands like control over the photographer or makeup team."

Feinstein was previously put under fire when fans noticed he had Minnelli's father's Oscar in his house.

An insider said: "To get Liza, you have to put up with Michael," adding the piano player "now controls every aspect of Minnelli’s life." Friends of the Cabaret star are reportedly "concerned about her well-being," questioning if she’s even aware of the demands he’s making on her behalf.

However, concerns over Feinstein’s behavior are nothing new.

In 2019, fans questioned seeing Minnelli’s beloved Oscar, awarded to her father Vincente Minnelli in 1959 for Gigi, on display at Feinstein’s house — he posted a photo of the statuette and claimed Vincente gave it to him.

The post stirred worries among her inner circle, with many doubting she would ever part with such a cherished keepsake.

Billy Stritch, Minnelli’s frequent accompanist, sarcastically commented on the post to ask Feinstein why the Oscar had previously been in Minnelli's apartment if it belonged to him. Stritch later deleted his comment, which left eagle-eyed fans even more puzzled. Feinstein eventually blamed his assistant for the "misinformation" and edited his post to clarify the situation.

The EGOT winner described the importance of taking care of her physical health in a new interview after sparking conce rns earlier this year.

GROUCHO MARX AND ELDER ABUSE

Groucho Marx is one of the greates comic minds of all time. Everything Julius Henry Marx, better known as Groucho, was comic gold. With his zany brothers Harpo, Chico, and sometimes Zeppo, he conquered American vaudeville, the Broadway stage, motion pictures, radio and television. (There was a fifth brother, Gummo, who was not a performer preferring, instead, to earn his daily bread in the dress business and, after Zeppo opened a lucrative talent agency in Hollywood, representing movie stars for 10 percent of their earnings).

By the time Groucho was an old man, however, he experienced significant problems in his daily activities, medical decision-making and the management of his estate. He suffered from elements of dementia, a heart attack and congestive heart failure, falls resulting in a broken hip, and after that hip was repaired, another fall and broken hip, urinary tract infections, strokes and hypertension.

The legal battles over Groucho’s money and possessions carried on long after he died.

Groucho died over 44 years ago, on Aug. 19, 1977, at age 86 of pneumonia, which is known as “the old man’s friend.” The turmoil of his last few years are all too familiar to adult children everywhere who are concerned with the welfare of their elderly parents and other relatives.

Groucho’s “girlfriend” and consort, Erin Fleming, was accused of elder abuse and, to make matters worse, his relationships with his son Arthur and daughter Miriam (children from his first marriage, to Ruth Johnson, a dancer in the Marx Brothers’ vaudeville act) were strained for various reasons. Arthur wrote several works based on life in the Marx family; at one point, Groucho threatened to sue his son over his depiction in one of Arthur’s memoirs.

Groucho also had a complicated relationship with Melinda, his third daughter from his second marriage to Kay Mavis Gorcey. Melinda often performed on her father’s television show, “You Bet Your Life,” and famously inspired a Groucho quip when he was told that she was forbidden from swimming in a country club pool because the family was Jewish. Groucho wrote the country club president, between puffs of his famous cigar: “She’s only half Jewish. How about if she only goes in up to her waist?”

After he divorced Eden Hartford — his third wife who was about 40 years younger than him — in 1969, Groucho met Erin Fleming in 1971. She played some minor roles in films, including Woody Allen’s “Everything You Wanted to Know About Sex But Were Afraid to Ask” (1972).

Her most famous role, however, was as Groucho’s secretary-manager and she was responsible for his popular comeback in the early 1970s. He played various colleges and eventually Carnegie Hall, a performance that resulted in the hit album, “An Evening With Groucho” (1972). That same year, there were revivals of his films at movie houses and libraries across the nation.

The problem was that many of Groucho’s friends felt Fleming was pushing him too hard to perform, evidenced by his advanced age and an inability to remember all of his lines. On the other hand, it was Fleming who waged a successful campaign for Groucho and his brothers to receive a special Academy Award in 1974. In his acceptance speech, after thanking Harpo and Chico, the actress Margaret Dumont, his long suffering foil who never understood his jokes, and his mother, Minnie, “because without her we never would have been anything,” Groucho thanked “Erin Fleming, who makes my life worth living and who understands all my jokes.”

That same year, Fleming was appointed his guardian and temporary conservator of an estate worth between $2 million and $4 million. In 1975, Groucho even tried to adopt her, until a psychologist declared he was not mentally competent to do so.

Groucho’s son, Arthur, took Fleming to court and accused her of having a harmful and destructive influence on his father, including threatening his well-being and being abusive. Arthur further alleged that Fleming pushed Groucho to perform, whether he was able or not, for her own financial gain. Groucho’s nurses claimed Erin overdosed the comedian on tranquilizers and called him nasty names like “pig” and “crazy old man.” Accoridng to court testimony, There were other occasions when Fleming reportedly walked about Groucho’s home naked to taunt him. Melinda Marx, too, testified that Fleming terrorized her father, yelled at him, and tried to alienate him from his family. Others, such as the comedian George Burns and actor Carroll O’Connor, disagreed and felt that her presence made an elderly and ill Groucho want to live.

During Groucho’s final days, a judge appointed the 72-year-old Nat Perrin, a close pal of Groucho’s and who co-wrote the Marx Brothers’ most anarchically funny 1933 film, “Duck Soup,” as temporary conservator of Groucho’s well-being and estate. Later, his 27-year-old grandson, Andrew, was named permanent conservator.

The legal battles over Groucho’s money and possessions carried on long after he died and into the early 1980s. Although he left most of his estate to his three children, Groucho left administrative control of his name, image and movie rights to Fleming. This, too, was a source of legal contretemps. Not only were such rights valuable, but they also carried the potential to encroach upon the income of the heirs to Chico and Harpo’s estates. The lawsuits were ultimately resolved in favor of Groucho’s children. A judge ordered Fleming to pay $472,000, which she bilked from Groucho’s bank accounts while she worked for him. Fleming spent much of the 1990s in and out of mental health facilities, suffering from a variety of psychiatric illnesses, and was often homeless. She died by suicide in 2003 at the age of 61.

Back in the late 1970s, the term “elder abuse” had not even been coined. Even though it clearly existed, it was rarely recognized until it was too late. Today, public health agencies, including the World Health Organization, have declared elder abuse to be a growing problem around the world and have detailed a long list of harmful activities, including physical, sexual, emotional and psychological forms of abuse and neglect, as well as the theft or withholding of financial assets needed to survive...

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MICKEY ROONEY AWARDED 2.8 MILLION

The court-appointed conservator for Hollywood legend Mickey Rooney has agreed to a $2.8 million stipulated judgment in a suit brought against the entertainer's stepson and his wife for restricting access to his assets, misappropriating his name and likeness and verbally abusing him, Rooney's attorneys announced Monday.

The settlement agreements, which have not yet received court approval, come after Rooney's conservator Michael R. Augustine filed suit in 2011, alleging various causes of action stemming from elder abuse and misappropriation of Rooney's likeness. Earlier that year, Rooney had been granted court protection from Christopher Aber and his wife Christina, according to Rooney's counsel.

"Clearly fame does not insulate an individual from the trauma and neglect of elder abuse, as Mickey Rooney's case vividly demonstrates," Bruce S. Ross, partner at Holland & Knight LLP and counsel to Rooney, said in a statement Monday. "We are very pleased to bring this long chapter of abuse by his stepson to an end."

The $2.8 million settlement brings the litigation mostly to an end, but litigation remains pending against the Abers' insurance company, Fire Insurance Exchange, which has sued Rooney's conservator in an effort to avoid paying the judgment, according to the firm.

Augustine filed the lawsuit in September 2011, claiming that after Rooney put his stepson in charge of his personal and business affairs, he and his wife banked on Rooney's fame to live a lavish lifestyle.

Aber kept Rooney in the dark about his own financial resources and forced him to make paid appearances against his will, the suit alleges. Aber and his wife also are accused of threatening and verbally abusing the 90-year-old entertainer.

Aber got a foothold into Rooney's finances through a company called Densmore Productions Inc., set up in 1998 to manage the actor's professional work, the suit said. Without telling Rooney, Aber had issued himself majority stock in the company and named himself treasurer, according to the suit. Aber was then able to be in control of other companies that managed Rooney's affairs, it said.

These entities, under Aber's control, received Rooney's residual payments, Social Security benefits, pension and other sources of income, according to the complaint. Aber then allegedly used the companies to take out credit cards and sign checks payable to himself, it said.

Aber also scheduled and negotiated Rooney's personal appearances and acting engagements, with the proceeds going to the entities he controlled, freezing Rooney out of his own money, the suit alleged.

Rooney received his court-appointed conservator in February 2011. The conservator's lawsuit sought damages, creation of a trust to oversee all the defendants' assets to which Rooney is entitled and an order blocking the defendants from using his name and image.

Vivian L. Thoreen of Holland & Knight said it was an honor and a privilege to help Rooney "obtain the justice he deserves."

"Mr. Rooney had tremendous courage to come forward with his story and we hope he will be an enduring example to other suffering seniors that they do not have to suffer silently alone," Thoreen said Monday. "As this judgment demonstrates, there will be serious consequences for those who abuse our seniors."

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MICKEY ROONEY GOES TO WASHINGTON

Mickey Rooney Takes Stand Against Elder Abuse
90-Year-Old Actor Testifies Before the Senate Committee on Aging
by Associated Press

Mickey Rooney spoke out against elder abuse before a senate committee on aging today. The 90-year-old actor has been the alleged victim of abuse at the hands of his own stepkids, according to court documents.

"Unfortunately, I'm testifying by the committee today not just as a concerned citizen, which we all should be, but as a victim of older abuse -- elder abuse, myself," Rooney said. "For years I suffered silently, unable to muster the courage to seek the help that I knew I needed. Even when I tried to speak up, I was silenced. It seemed like no one believed me. But I never gave up."

Rooney, 90, who has had one of the longest careers of any actor, filed a case against stepson Chris Aber and stepdaughter Christina Aber last month charging verbal, emotional and financial abuse, and alleging that they denied him such basic necessities as food and medicine.

"In my case, I was eventually and completely stripped of the ability to make even the most basic decisions -- where we go or what we do. Decisions that everyone likes to make over the course of time my daily life became... unbearable," Rooney said.

The goal of the senate hearing, entitled "Justice for All: Ending Elder Abuse, Neglect and Financial Exploitation," is to draw attention to the widely underreported problem and coordinate federal, state and local efforts to combat it.

"It's a really sad but important issue and Mr. Rooney is definitely lending his star power to it," committee spokesman Joe Bonfiglio said.

Rooney said he hopes his testimony will encourage other victims to stand up for themselves.

"To those seniors and especially elderly veterans -- Army, Navy, Marine -- you veterans like myself I want to tell you this: You're not alone and you have nothing nothing, ladies and gentlemen, to be ashamed of," Rooney said. "You deserve, yes you deserve better. You all have the right to control your own life."

The court documents say that both Chris and Christina Aber have been keeping Rooney as "effectively a prisoner in his own home" through the use of threats, intimidation and harassment. Christina Aber has also been accused of taking control over Rooney's finances, blocking access to his mail and forcing the actor into performances he does not wish to do.

"Sometimes the transition from being in control of your life to having absolutely no control is swift, but other times it is so gradual that you wonder exactly when it truly began," Rooney said. "In my case, I was eventually stripped of my ability to make even the most basic decisions in my own life."

Rooney was granted temporary restraining orders on Feb. 15, but will have to appear in court on April 5 if he wants them extended for three years. A Los Angeles Superior Court Judge also appointed a temporary conservator of Rooney's estate.

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MICKEY ROONEY'S COURT BATTLE

Actor Mickey Rooney has been the alleged victim of elder abuse at the hands of his own stepkids, according to restraining orders filed Monday.

The 90-year-old actor, who, born into vaudeville has had one of the longest careers of any actor, was granted court protection from stepson Chris Aber and his stepdaughter Christina Aber, after he filed a case against them charging verbal, emotional and financial abuse, and for denying him such basic necessities as food and medicine.

The court documents say that both Chris and Christina Aber have been keeping Rooney as "effectively a prisoner in his own home" through the use of threats, intimidation and harassment.

Christ Aber has also been accused of taking control over Rooney's finances, blocking access to his mail and forcing the actor into performances he does not wish to do.

With the assistance of attorneys Bruce Roth and Vivian Thoreen of Holland & Knight LLP, Rooney sought and was granted temporary protection for not only himself but for his wife, Jan Rooney, and his stepson, Mark Rooney, who lives with the actor.

Rooney fears for their safety and is worried Chris and Christina Aber might retaliate in a physically abusive way, or try to kidnap the actor now that the case has been filed, court documents say.

"All I want to do is live a peaceful life, to regain my life and be happy," Rooney wrote in a statement to his fans. "I pray to God each day to protect us, help us endure and guide those other senior citizens who are also suffering."

In addition to two temporary restraining orders granted against Christina and Chris Aber, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Reva Goetz appointed attorney Michael Augustine as temporary conservator of his estate. A hearing on who should take over as permanent conservator of the estate will take place in March, Bruce says.

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