Here’s the felony “false statement” to the SEC that Broadcom cofounder Henry Samueli was indicted on, pleaded guilty to and now has been exonerated on: “I was not involved in the actual (stock options) granting process, but Mr. (cofounder, then CEO Nick) Nicholas would make me aware of the amount of the grants that he was going to give to his direct reports, the Section 16 officers. So, I was aware of the number, but I wasn’t involved in the process.” Evasive perhaps, but not criminal, U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney ruled. Samueli blamed his misstatement on faulty recollection and testified that he had agreed to a guilty plea, probation and a $12 million fine in order to spare his family the ordeal of a trial and avoid a possible prison sentence. Carney declined to sentence Samueli on the plea deal more than a year ago. In a stunning and emotional courtroom scene last week, he threw out the charge and plea deal. It seems Samueli’s biggest false statement was to agree he made a false statement …
Addressing the state budget deficit at Chapman U’s annual economic forecast conference, Essie Adibi confided that colleague Jim Doti, an adviser to Arnold Schwarzenegger, “failed to teach the governor good economics.” But Adibi also noted, “I advise the controller (John Chiang). I failed too.” Doti and Adibi forecast a shallow recovery, informing and entertaining a record crowd of 2,200 at the Performing Arts Center …
Lots of buzz about AnQi, the new “Vietnamese fusion” restaurant at South Coast Plaza operated by the An family of Beverly Hills’ celebrated Crustacean …
To dedicate his Lyon Air Museum at John Wayne Airport, 86-year-old William Lyon donned his bomber pilot jacket, climbed into his B-17 and taxied up to the open door of the crowd-filled museum’s hangar. He stopped the Flying Fortress’ roaring engines just a few feet short of emcee Ed Arnold. (The KOCE-TV host and retired Marine didn’t flinch.) “I don’t know if you were nervous, but I was,” Lyon quipped. The General has provided an attraction for school kids, history buffs and gizmo lovers. The museum not only features World War II-vintage planes, autos and other memorabilia, but several “Greatest Generation” docents who can tell stories of the missions they flew or battles they fought. On Fridays you might catch Costa Mesa’s Jack Hammett showing off a B-25. Hammett survived Pearl Harbor, was in the D-Day invasion and served in the North Africa campaign. He went on to cofound and manage Bristol Park Medical Group, now with 10 locations. In February he and wife Mary Jo celebrate their 70th anniversary; in March he turns 90 …
One of the museum’s marketers, Dianne Seeber, has seen combat of a sort, too. She worked for subprime casualties Washington Mutual, ACC Capital Holdings (Ameriquest) and Lehman Brothers before affiliating with (non-lender) Rodheim Marketing Group.
