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The New York Times/ ­- Politics, Sáb, 14 de Abril de 2012
CLIPPING INTERNACIONAL (Supreme Court)
The Battle for a Comic-Book Empire
That Archie Built
MAMARONECK, N.Y. — The entry vestibule at Archie
Comic Publications here is a glass portal to childhood
innocence, sunny summer days and endless nostalgia:
The back end of a vintage white Cadillac, circa 1948,
with its killer shark­-fin fenders and leather interior
intact, has been retrofitted to function as a sofa. Two
salvaged audio hookups from an extinct drive­-in movie
theater complete the Memory Lane montage. Framed
posters of Archie, the gullible Riverdale High School
redhead, and his equally colorful entourage invigorate
the walls.But to gain access to the company’s
administrative offices, you must pass through a
reminder of its troubled present: double­-locked doors
and security cameras primarily installed to keep out a
designated intruder, the company’s co­-chief executive,
Nancy Silberkleit, who since January has been under
court order to stay away from Archie.
At this, the last of the privately run Mom­-and­-Pop
comic book dynasties, Ms. Silberkleit, 59, the
daughter­-in­-law of a company founder, Louis H.
Silberkleit, is deadlocked in a court battle for control of
the company with Jonathan Goldwater, 52, a son of
another founder, John L. Goldwater. Like Betty and
Veronica, the two are feuding over Archie’s future, but
there is nothing comic — or friendly — about their
rivalry. Each accuses the other of endangering the
family legacy, Mr. Goldwater by wanting to expand
Archie into a megabrand with help from outside
investors and the Hollywood uber­-agent Ari Emanuel,
Ms. Silberkleit by vowing to keep the company’s
traditions intact and preserve family ownership,
ostensibly leading to stagnation.
The hostilities are withering. She says he defamed her
and conspired with their employees against her in
order to steal control of the company. He says she
poisoned the workplace by threatening longtime
employees with termination and spewing sexual
insults. Meanwhile, they both claim to love Archie
dearly, almost like a son — a son who is pushing 71
yet retains a head of lush red hair, abundant freckles
and the top spot in a famous love triangle.
Competing lawsuits filed in State Supreme Court in
Manhattan and State Supreme Court in Westchester
County lay out a litany of bitter allegations. He
punctured her car tires, destroyed her Web site and
claimed that she sexually harassed employees. She
ordered him to fire several longtime employees
because they were too old, too fat or too buxom, and
let her dog, Willow, roam the offices and defecate in
the art department.
In a suit where Archie Comic Publications was
co­-plaintiff, Mr. Goldwater sought and obtained a
restraining order against Ms. Silberkleit in fall 2011 that
limited her contact with Archie employees. When she
failed to comply with its terms, the plaintiffs sought and
obtained a preliminary injunction, and in January she
was banned outright from her own memorabilia­-filled
office by Justice Shirley Werner Kornreich of State
Supreme Court.
At stake is the future of a company that was
established in 1939 and became renowned for
emphasizing family values and enduring friendships.
Archie’s fan club was a parent­-endorsed bastion for
children: even a 9­-year­-old Amy Carter, then the first
daughter, sent in her quarter to join, listing the White
House as her address. Over the decades Archie
expanded into an international teenage symbol: in
2008, the company published 10 million Archie­-related
comics in 12 languages. Its app has been downloaded
four million times, suggesting that Archie, besides
inspiring nostalgia, has 21st­-century cred.
Last week, the two sides began court­-approved
mediation, but it seems unlikely they will resolve their
differences quickly or easily — if at all. If mediation
fails, Mr. Goldwater will resume his quest to make Ms.
Silberkleit’s absence permanent; she will presumably
continue to pursue a $100 million defamation lawsuit
against him and the company.
“I have to wonder how much of a succession plan was
in place,” said Johanna Draper Carlson, a comic book
critic and blogger. “Two C.E.O.’s can be a recipe for
disaster. There are rumors circulating: everybody’s
talking about it, especially since it’s happening at
Archie, which is supposed to be so good and
wholesome. Suddenly we’re hearing talk of liquidation
coming out of the courtroom. It’s unfortunate because
Archie really is a unique company.”
Indeed, its historical peers, DC and Marvel, are now
corporately owned: Warner Brothers Entertainment is
the parent of DC and Marvel was acquired by Disney
for $4 billion in 2008.
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