Country music superstar Garth Brooks' former business partner is suing the singer for more than $850,000 for being a fake.
Lisa Sanderson, who had worked with Brooks for nearly 20 years, alleges in a lawsuit filed Monday in Los Angeles that Brooks public persona is fake and that he is “a paranoid, angry, deceitful and vindictive man that will turn against those closest to him on a dime.”
Attorney Marty Singer filed the court papers on behalf of Sanderson, who alleged Brooks is anything but a humble and trustworthy “everyman.” She is seeking damages for fraud, breach of contract and unspecified punitive damages and attorney fees.
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A spokesman for Brooks at Red Strokes Entertainment Inc. responded.
“Mr. Brooks, of course, denies everything in the lawsuit filed [Monday] by Lisa Sanderson. Mr. Brooks and Red Stokes Entertainment Inc. will continue to take the necessary steps toward resolving this matter through the legal system,” said the spokesman.
Sanderson claims Brooks lured her away from a fulfilling television career and offered her producer’s fees and bonuses from film and television deals he hoped to secure through his production company, Red Stokes. But his ego got in the way, she claimed. Film roles he turned down because they were not big enough were in such movies as “Twister” (1996) and “Saving Private Ryan” (1998), the suit alleges.
“After realizing that he would never conquer Hollywood, Brooks decided to shut down Red Strokes, pack up his toys and go home,” the lawsuit alleges.
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Sanderson started working at Red Strokes in 1994 to help develop film and television projects for the country music singer. Apparently, Brooks' "unreasonable demands torpedoed nearly all of the potential deals that came their way," according to Sanderson's claims.
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