944 Media, which publishes fashion/entertainment/lifestyle magazines in 10 different regions, including Orange County, has filed for bankruptcy.
But,
not only does the company plan to keep publishing, it is having fun with its financial pickle by posting on its website, “The Top 9 Fun Facts About Chapter 11 and Hot Lawyers.”
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944 Magazine, which is essentially the same magazine with slight local tweaks, is distributed in Atlanta, Dallas,
Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Miami, Phoenix, Orange County,
San Diego and San Francisco.
Their local office is in Irvine.
The corporate mission statement:
“944 sets the pace with innovative media
trends and an all-inclusive insiders guide to What's New, What's Next,
What's Now To bring to life the world of fashion, entertainment and
lifestyle for cultural influencers. As a national magazine with local
relevance, we strive to inspire, entertain and empower our readers with
dynamic and relevant editorial, robust digital platforms and
unparalleled events that create memories that stand the test of time.
944 is a portal to the world's most influential and aspirational
readers.”
But the Las
Vegas Sun reports 944 has about $1 to $10 million in assets and $10 million to $50
million in liabilities. It owes about $2.45 million to Creel Printing
& Publishing Co. of Las Vegas, one of its largest creditors. There are apparently several more.
944 founder
and CEO Marc Lotenberg claims the bankruptcy filing will help resolve the legal issues, blogs Miami
New Times.
“The whole point of this proceeding is to enable us to keep doing what
we do while resolving the litigation in an orderly process,” Lotenberg states in a press release. “We are
confident that 944 Media will be able to resolve our pending issues, but
prudence dictates that we take steps to protect ourselves, our
employees and our clients through the Chapter 11 process.”
OC Weekly Editor-in-Chief Matt Coker has been engaging, enraging and entertaining readers of newspapers, magazines and websites for decades. He spent the first 13 years of his career in journalism at daily newspapers before “graduating” to OC Weekly in 1995 as the alternative newsweekly’s first calendar editor.