Latest news with #KMRTalent
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
NYC talent agent accused of stealing $1.8 million from over 100 actors
NEW YORK (PIX11) — A talent agent working in New York City was charged in connection with stealing about $1.8 million from 160 actors and another $26,000 in wages from employees, according to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr. Mark Measures, 60, of KMR Talent faces charges such as scheme to defraud, multiple counts of grand larceny and petit larceny, Bragg announced Tuesday. More Local News 'Rather than pay the actors and employees, the defendants used their hard-earned money to fund his lavish lifestyle,' said the District Attorney. Measures is accused of depositing checks issued to actors under the KMR agency then diverting the funds to pay business expenses, creditors and personal expenditures, court documents show. More: Latest News from Around the Tri-State Actors say when they asked about their payment, Measures blamed the bank or slow mail then sent checks that bounced, according to court statements. Some actors say they never received checks and that Measures stopped contacting them all together, the District Attorney reports. The majority of the alleged theft involved residual payments and holding fees, which can be difficult to monitor, according to Bragg. Most of the actors filmed commercials, voiced advertisements, and appeared in shows like 'Law & Order' while working other jobs to pursue full-time acting careers in New York City. Measures is also accused of taking wages that were intended for 401(k) accounts from six employees at an NYC office and never investing the money, said the District Attorney. The District Attorney's Worker Protection Unit has recovered and distributed more than $1.3 million in wages stolen from more than four dozen workers. Anyone who may be victim is advised to contact the office at (646) 712-0298. Dominique Jack is a digital content producer from Brooklyn with more than five years of experience covering news. She joined PIX11 in 2024. More of her work can be found here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
New York Post
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Disgraced Hollywood agent who stole millions from struggling actors has his day in court
A Hollywood agent stole $1.8 million from struggling actors on shows such as 'Law & Order' — claiming some of their checks were late because of 'earthquakes' while enjoying spa treatments at the Four Seasons, Manhattan officials said on April 22. Mark Measures, the disgraced former owner of KMR Talent, bilked 160 actors out of the hunk of dough in addition to stealing from six employees who worked at his agency, according to a 40-count indictment unsealed in Manhattan Supreme Court.
New York Post
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Hollywood agent allegedly stole $2M from actors — then gave this bizarre excuse to hide crime
A Hollywood agent stole $1.8 million from struggling actors on shows such as 'Law & Order' — claiming some of their checks were late because of 'earthquakes' while enjoying spa treatments at the Four Seasons, Manhattan officials said Tuesday. Mark Measures, the disgraced former owner of KMR Talent, bilked 160 actors out of the hunk of dough in addition to stealing from six employees who worked at his agency, according to a 40-count indictment unsealed in Manhattan Supreme Court. The washed-up agent, 60, was fueled by his illicit greed to fund his personal lifestyle — which included the fancy self-care hotel sessions as well as splurging $55,000 on seats at the Arena, the home of the Los Angeles Lakers, said Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Rachana Pathak. Advertisement 4 Washed-up Hollywood talent agent Mark Measures stole nearly $2 million from struggling actors he represented, Manhattan prosecutors announced Tuesday. Steven Hirsch 'This was during the time that actors and agents were begging for money,' Pathak told the judge. 'Raiding escrow accounts is black-letter embezzlement.' Measures also allegedly used the money for purchases at high-end clothing stores such as Zegna, Saks Fifth Avenue and Revolve, to pay off creditors, settle AMEX bills and make car payments. Advertisement The scheme, which ran between June 2021 and March 2024, stole residuals and holding fees from wannabe-bigtime actors who were represented in KMR, including those working in film, commercials and voiceover work nationwide. Measures, who lives in Los Angeles, would find any excuse in the book to not pay his clients, blaming everything from banks, 'earthquakes, power blackouts, sick employees, and mail delays' — until he ultimately ghosted them, prosecutors said. One of his victims, Joe Gately — a Harlem actor who has appeared in episodes of 'Law & Order' and 'Blue Bloods' — told The Post after Tuesday's arraignment that Measures owed him $6,500 over a drug-advertisement campaign in 2021. 'He's a thief,' Gately, 59, seethed outside the courtroom. 'We've all wondered where the money went, so today offered a little information. It's not surprising at all he couldn't pay.' Advertisement 4 Joe Gately, one of Measures' alleged victims, appeared in an episode of TV's 'Prodigal Son.' MAX Messages including emails released by the DA's office showed Measures' clients demanding their money from the washed-up agent, including one where an alleged victim is seeking thousands of dollars owed to her for desperately needed medical treatment. 'Those funds (that seem to have been stolen by you at this point) were to be used for my IVF treatment,' the emailed message reads. 'I am in the doctors office in tears as you've put me in a really challenging financial position by stealing my almost $20,000 from me.' Measures is also accused of embezzling $26,000 from wages intended for the retirement accounts of six workers at his New York City-based office. Advertisement 4 Measures was allegedly fueled by greed to fund his personal lifestyle — including by spending at least $55,000 on seats at the Arena, the home of the Los Angeles Lakers. Steven Hirsch He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment and refused to answer whether he stole money from his clients. Judge Althea Drysdale ordered Measures to turn over his passport before releasing him, as the charges were not bail-eligible. 'As much as you hail from California, you must be here on any day that I tell you to be here,' the judge warned. 4 Emails released by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office show Measures' clients confronting the talent agent about their missing money. DANY Press Office KMR operated as a franchise of the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists union until it was suspended in March 2024. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg urged victims to contact his office as the investigation remains ongoing. Advertisement 'Rather than pay the actors and employees, the defendants used their hard-earned money to fund his lavish lifestyle,' Bragg said in a statement. Measures is due back in court July 15.
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
KMR Talent CEO Mark Measures Hit With Fraud & Larceny Charges Over Millions Allegedly Stolen From Clients & Staff
Some allegedly ripped off and pissed off clients of KMR Talent got a taste of justice today as CEO Mark Measures faced a New York judge on charges of stealing almost $2 million. A year after the vaulted agency essentially crashed and burned as dozens and dozens of clients were burned with unpaid residuals and tax burdens, the indicted Measures turned himself in this morning to the Manhattan D.A. In a just completed arraignment, the company and the executive faced 40-counts of fleecing about 160 clients over a period from June 2021 to March 2024. More from Deadline Healthcare CEO Shooter Suspect Luigi Mangione Pleads Not Guilty To State Murder & Terror Charges In NY - Update New York D.A. Urges Judge Not To Dismiss Donald Trump's Hush Money Conviction, Proposes Other Sentencing Options Donald Trump's Hush Money Sentencing "Adjourned" Indefinitely In Win For Ex-POTUS - Update For such white-collar crimes, Measures could be looking at more than 15 years behind bars if found guilty. According to DA Alvin Braggs' office, Measures and KMR stole $1.8 million from clients and $26,000 from the 401 (k) accounts of employees in the company's NYC office. To that, the defendants are specifically charged one count of Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree, three counts of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, 28 counts of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, five counts of Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, and three counts of Petit Larceny. The actual indictment states: 'The defendants, in the County of New York and elsewhere, from on or about June 23, 2021 to present, engaged in a scheme constituting a systematic ongoing course of conduct with intent to defraud more than one person and to obtain property from more than one person by false and fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises, and so obtained property with a value in excess of one thousand dollars from one or more such persons, to wit: individuals known to the Grand Jury.' Along with the 160 New York-based clients named in today's indictment, there may be hundreds more across the country who have also be affected, I hear from law enforcement sources. 'As alleged, Mark Measures and KMR stole approximately $1.8 million from 160 hard working actors, many of whom were balancing other jobs to stay afloat while pursuing their acting careers,' DA Bragg said in a statement after the court hearing was over. 'These defendants also stole thousands of dollars from his employees by taking wages that were meant to be invested in their retirement accounts. Rather than pay the actors and employees, the defendants used their hard-earned money to fund his lavish lifestyle. This alleged conduct is egregious, and we will continue to fight for Manhattanites to receive every dollar they earn. This is an ongoing investigation – if you are a victim, please contact our office at (646) 712-0298.' Starting out as the Wormser Agency, KMR was formed in 1957 as the first voice-over and commercial agency in LA. Over the decades, the agency took on TV actors too. All was relatively copacetic until the pandemic hit. As clients wondered where their money from residuals and other sources was, KMR and Measures offered a series of excuses, blaming banks, payments systems and more over the last few years, SAG-AFTRA got involved for a spell but eventually this all ended up with law enforcement — who, as today makes clear, aren't messing around. With no bail required under the statutes of the Empire State, Measures was able to walk out of court Tuesday after entering a plea of not guilty. He will be back on July 15, according to the court calendar. Still, for at least one victim of KMR, seeing Measures in court Tuesday was fulfilling. 'I am very happy that he was indicted and has turned himself in,' says Joe Gately. 'And I am extremely grateful to Assistant DA Rachana Pathak and everyone in the DA's office for taking our case seriously and for all the work they've done to bring him to justice. He bounced a check to me, three times, for the renewal of a print campaign associated with a national commercial and I'm out $6500.00.' On Tuesday, the NY-based Gately was in the courtroom to see Measures in handcuffs. 'It was very satisfying to bear witness to that.' Lynette Rice contributed to this report. Best of Deadline 'The Last Of Us': Differences Between HBO Series & Video Game Across Seasons 1 And 2 'Ransom Canyon' Book Vs. Show Differences: From Quinn & Staten's Love Story To Yancy Grey's Plot Everything We Know About Netflix's 'Ransom Canyon' So Far
