Even Shark Tankers are confused

This won’t take long, promise….

If you’ve ever watched ABC’s The Shark Tank, you’ll have come across a woman by the name of Barbara Corcoran. I’m told that she found her financial success in the real estate market, and clearly has a sense of human nature. You can’t be good in residential real estate if you are short on the ability to read people.

So it was with some interest that I read that Ms. Corcoran has joined the good people of Wasaga Beach, Ont. (see prior post “What is the origin of O�Leary�s �billionaire� moniker?” Jan 24-10) in the belief that her Shark Tank co-star Kevin O’Leary is a bonafide Canadian billionaire.

Ms. Corcoran was interviewed by a blogger named Jason Cochran on the site WalletPop. Here’s the relevant excert:

Barbara Corcoran is a born salesperson. The self-made millionaire became a household name selling real estate, perhaps the biggest-ticket thing a person can buy. But now, instead of being the one doing the hustling, would-be businesspeople come begging to her week after week on ABC’s tense venture capitalism pitchfest, Shark Tank.

While he was visiting Corcoran to get the dish on the upcoming season of the popular ABC show, WalletPop’s Jason Cochran got the dish on her rival Sharks who try to horn in on her deals. Maybe she’s a little sore from being back-stabbed too many times, because she has a choice anecdote about the time Kevin O’Leary asked her to dinner — and then stiffed her with the check. “That guy’s got billions. I’ve got millions. Is that fair? No.”

Thanks to this live eye report, we have learned that this “billionaire” confusion is now rampant, despite the fact that Mr. O’Leary made US$6 million (not $6 billion) from his sale of shares in 2000 following the Mattel acquisition of his former company, TLC. From our last post:

According to the financial disclosure of the day, KO cleared about US$6 million (pre tax) from his sale of the shares he had in The Learning Company, and received another US$5.2 million (pre tax) as a departure package.

It makes you wonder: what’s driving this thriving false rumour about Mr. O’Leary’s “billionaire” status?

MRM
(disclosure – this post, like all blogs, is an Opinion piece)