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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe legal woes continue for National Lampoon Inc., the Los Angeles-based magazine publisher and movie production company led by Indianapolis businessman Tim Durham.
Court documents filed by the landlord of National Lampoon’s West Hollywood headquarters say it owes nearly $40,000 in back rent and could be evicted for nonpayment, according to entertainment news Web site TMZ.
Durham told TMZ that he expects the rent, which amounts to about $10,800 a month, will be paid and that “it’s no secret the Lampoon has been struggling for the last several months.”
Durham’s business partner, Paul Skjodt, resigned from the board of National Lampoon in December following the arrest of the company’s former CEO, Dan Laikin, on charges of securities fraud.
Skjodt, owner of the Indiana Ice hockey team, teamed with Laikin and Durham to buy a major stake in National Lampoon nearly a decade ago.
Skjodt’s departure from the board came five days after the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Securities and Exchange Commission unveiled charges that Laikin participated in a scheme to fraudulently pump up the company’s slumping stock price.
Neither the U.S. Attorney’s Office nor the SEC has accused Skjodt or Durham of wrongdoing.
Durham became president and CEO of National Lampoon following Laikin’s resignation. Attempts to reach Durham this morning regarding National Lampoon’s latest troubles were unsuccessful.
The National Lampoon magazine was founded in 1971 and has produced numerous popular movies, including “Animal House” and “Vacation.”
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