Life Done Right™

Anthony Marshall is 83; Brooke Astor died at 105. Let’s say for argument’s sake Anthony help himself to some of her estate for whatever reasons. Does it matter? I guess only to the next generation who might stand to inherit some of that dough. Like Anthony’s son, Phillip, who cried foul. How it all pans [...]

There are lots of way to get screwed in the world. Some are self-inflicted out of ignorance, others are the result of greed, and more than likely some are the work of a demented mind that finds it acceptable to take advantage of another human being for their own gain. Add to the list [...]

A will is more than a desire to express your feelings…it’s a piece of paper that articulates the nature of your relationship to another human being in monetary terms. The value you place on that relationship is directly related to the size of the inheritance. Spare the love, darling, just make sure there’s enough cash [...]

Ladies, pay attention. If you’re married to a wealthy millionaire, or with better luck, a billionaire, please, be sure to snoop around and find the old man’s will. It’s imperative that you know how much he loves (values) your relationship to him BEFORE he dies, because once you’re in the room listening to the executor [...]

Photo by Ümit Yaldiz
A piece of advice to you older gentlemen who like to marry younger women: don’t forget to leave enough money in your will to your spouse so she can afford to live beyond her means without working forever. Randolph Hearst apparently didn’t leave his wife, Veronica Hearst, enough cash to run the [...]

What do you get when you mix a corporate billionaire with a car mechanic? Answer: A high concept movie about two guys itching to live before they kick the bucket and discover the ashes inside belong to them. The movie is called The Bucket List. It’s directed by Rob Reiner. It opens on Christmas, December [...]

When death is just around the cemetery door it doesn’t really matter how much money you might have, or how big your house is, or whether you know important people. All that matters is your health. Those who wind up in a hospice are discovering that their desperate need to stay alive is fertile ground [...]

The problem: “My mom needs home care and it costs a lot of money.”
The setup: Hilly Kristal, the owner of CBGB club in New York, died and left his daughter, Lisa Burgman, as executor of his will. Hilly’s mother, Kara, 82, was president of CBGB but signed over her shares in the company to [...]

She was known as the Queen of Mean, but it turns out death has revealed a soft side to Leona Helmsley. She willed her dog $12 million and cut her two grandkids out of the barking dog will. She also stated that she “be interred wearing my gold wedding band (which is never to be [...]

Dancing on red hot coals requires special feet, namely ones shod in steel-toed shoes. Preparing a will, especially if you’re living beyond the average lifespan, is quite similar to this experience. Once your heirs get wind of your intentions about divvying up your estate, beware of dancing fools who devise the most elaborate routines to [...]

Death to a preacher is the ultimate test of faith in a world that constantly offers up atrocities that befuddle the human mind’s ability to reason. When it’s the preacher’s own wife on death’s bed, though, dying becomes a journey of will that takes more than a set of scriptures to sooth a restless soul. [...]

Dying is usually not a choice; how to survive just might be, as long as you can afford an attorney to file a lawsuit so you can gain access to innovative medical treatments. Here’s a fact: “97% of the sickest patients are ineligible for or don’t have access to the clinical trials that are testing [...]

When you get to be 84-years-old I guess you can pretty much do whatever you damn please, because what the hell, you never know when someone is going to pull your life bulb switch. When you’re running a public company like Viacom, though, and your name happens to be Sumner Redstone, then doing whatever you [...]

People have too much money when they can afford to take care of their pet instead of donating their money to people-based charities. If you can spend thousands on vet bills, I guess it makes sense to hire a lawyer to draft a pet will in the event that you should die before your cat [...]

Britain is at the forefront of arguing over whether the cost of keeping someone alive later in life is worth the money. The idea is that, given the expense, wouldn’t society be better off just pulling the plug and allocating the money to younger people. Well, the future is here. Read about how a stroke [...]

There’s a touching entry in Anna Nicole Smith’s diaries that were just sold on Ebay. It’s the plea of a caregiver who lacks the ability to change her love’s deteriorating condition. Her love, of course, was no ordinary relationship. Billionaire James Howard Marshall II married Anna at the ripe age of 89. No harm, no [...]

We were searching for a book called Inheritance by Andrea Stern but stumbled onto Natalie Danford’s book instead. While the cover of Andrea’s book sure does look provocative, the review of Natalie’s brings home the family. Our suggestion: hit Borders and browse the Stern book but buy Natalie’s. Cheap thrills are cheap thrills. Admit it. [...]

The Retirement Nightmare: How to Save Yourself from Your Heirs and Protectors : Involuntary Conservatorships and Guardianships
by Diane G. Armstrong Ph.D.

The Los Angeles Times has just finished up a 4-part series on the issue of guardians and conservators. Planning for a time when your mind might not be all there is crucial.
For Most Vulnerable, a [...]

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Wills and Estates (2nd Edition) (Paperback)
by Stephen Maple

A will tells a seemingly simple story. It informs those mentioned in it what they are entitled to receive from a deceased’s estate. If you are not in the will, you get nothing. Period. While a person can change their will at anytime, [...]

The BBC offers incredible programming, most of which they make available online for free, including the Reith Lectures from 2001 entitled The End of Age. The topic: Dramatic increases in life expectancy are shaking the structure of societies around the world and profoundly altering our perceptions of life and death.

Lecture 1: Brave Old World
“We [...]