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Posted in music on December 5, 2008

Hilly Kristal's family in court over CBGB estate

"But just as CBGB is getting its due [at the new Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Annex in NYC] alongside John Lennon's piano and Jimi Hendrix's guitar, its ownership and legacy are being challenged by a lawsuit that has riven the family of its proprietor, Hilly Kristal, who died last year. Like the battle over the Brooke Astor estate -- minus $100 million or so, but still worth plenty, thanks to the popularity of CBGB T-shirts -- the case is filled with accusations of fraud and deception, and it adds a bitter coda to the story of a beloved New York institution.

In the suit, filed last year in Surrogate's Court in Manhattan but amended in a hearing last week, Mr. Kristal's 83-year-old former wife, Karen [pictured (Robert Stolarik for The New York Times)], says she is the rightful owner of the business, and that Mr. Kristal and their daughter, Lisa Kristal Burgman, 53 -- who inherited the bulk of her father's estate of more than $3 million -- systematically deceived her by hiding money from the sale of merchandise." [NY Times]

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Posted on December 5, 2008 12:34 PM

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