Matthew Mellon was descended from the famous banking family. He died last month at the age of 54 after ingesting the hallucinogenic ayahuasca before starting rehab. At one time he had a $100K/month oxycontin habit.
When Mellon turned 21, he received a $25 million allowance from a family trust, one of 14 trusts established for him. He recently became a billionaire by investing in cryptocurrency. TMZ is reporting that his estate is now petitioning the probate court to authorize the sale of the cryptocurrency.
So many intersecting points in current events:
1. Someone should never give their child $25 million at the age of 21. Trusts can be created to defer an inheritance for as long as necessary.
2. In probate, assets can usually not be sold or transferred until the entire list of assets has been compiled which can take many months. With the decline in value of crytopcurrency, the estate wants to sell it before people realize its true value is likely zero.
3. Mellon might be the wealthiest victim of our tragic opioid crisis.
4. Following the lynching last month of a Canadian who moved to a Peruvian jungle to seek clarity through ayahuasca but somehow killed a shaman, Mellon is the second person whose newsworthy death can be attributed to it.
5. Ayahuasca is described as a sludgelike hallucinogenic potion used by indigenous shamans in spiritual exercises. I will take my drink inspired spiritual experiences through a nice fruit forward cabernet.
Photo Credit: Forbes/Ethan Pines
License: Fair Use/Education (linked article)
At the risk of turning this blog into TMZ-lite or another gossip site, Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom have called off their pending divorce. Lamar has recovered enough from his cocaine and Viagra induced coma that he is now in physical therapy.
Greg Plitt, the “star” of Bravo’s “Work Out” show, was struck and killed by a train last month while allegedly filming a commercial for an energy drink which involved him trying to outrun a train. Sources indicate that his will was not witnessed so TMZ has reported that his father has applied to be the administrator of his $800K estate.
Three quick points:
1. TMZ is not the bastion of legal accuracy so they are incorrect in stating that Plitt’s father will determine which creditors get paid and “how the remaining money gets divvied up.” The intestacy statute of California requires that his parents will share his estate.
2. Any 37 year old should have a will. It is part of being a grown up even if adolescence is prolonged while being a fitness model.
3. While we know that Plitt fatefully disregarded his parents’ advice about not playing on train tracks, it remains uncertain if he disregarded his parents’ admonitions about not running with sharp objects in his hand, playing with matches, and looking both ways before crossing the street.