Former 38 Studios chief Curt Schilling, whose studio accepted $75 million in loans from the state of Rhode Island in 2010, then fired all of its employees and went bankrupt two years later, has criticized US student loan forgiveness. (opens in new tab) plan, saying on Twitter that “unexplained uneducated children [are] is covered by hard work debt-paying Americans (opens in new tab).”
Schilling, who made tens of millions of dollars as a young man thanks to his ability to throw a ball really well, was a fan of MMOs during his MLB playing days (EverQuest in particular – he even reviewed a few EverQuest expansions for PC Gamer- magazine, long ago).
My body my choice? Your loan my responsibility? This isn’t loan forgiveness, it’s a generation of lazy, inexplicable, uneducated kids backed by hardworking, debt-paying Americans.August 25, 2022
So he decided to try making video games when he was done with baseball, and with virtually unlimited fame and fortune at his fingertips, he launched Green Monster Games, later renamed 38 Studios – the first a reference to the giant left field wall in Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox, and the latter his jersey number.
38 Studios was founded in Massachusetts in 2006, but moved to Providence, Rhode Island a few years later, lured by a $75 million loan guarantee offered by the state’s Economic Development Corporation. It was a lot of money, but not nearly enough to cover the studio’s riotous burn rate. After defaulting on a loan payment and failing to pay payroll, the studio was declared bankrupt (opens in new tab) in May 2012 and fired all staff, many of whom had relocated at considerable expense to work in the studio, with a massive email.
Lawsuits soon followed: Rhode Island sued virtually everyone involved and was eventually able to recover $61 million (opens in new tab), though legal fees absorb $11 million of that; Rhode Island taxpayers had to chew on a $39 million bill, plus another $12.5 million to cover the final payment of 38 Studios bonds.
The Rhode Island EDC also had problems as a result of the collapse. It was charged by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (opens in new tab) scamming investors through bond offerings because it didn’t tell them that the amount loaned to the studio wouldn’t be enough to actually complete the game project. Only $50 million of the $75 million bond would go to the studio, with the rest being kept to cover various related expenses. The state eventually agreed to pay $50,000 to settle the suit. It really was a wall-to-wall shit show.
I don’t think the SEC’s indictment doesn’t really make Schilling look any better, but it’s his go-to response to accusations of hypocrisy.
Preferring idiots and scammers like you is how that happens. Check the SEC files you idiot. Look who they’ve convicted of fraud. Hint: it wasn’t me.August 25, 2022
The collapse of Schilling’s 38 Studios not only left the state of Rhode Island with a multi-million dollar bill, it also left the company’s workforce in chaos. Some who took advantage of 38 Studios’ moving program found that the company hadn’t sold their old homes as expected and they were now looking for a second mortgage (opens in new tab). Schilling himself claimed that he had been “wired” (opens in new tab)after investing $50 million of his own money in the studio, although he eventually agreed to pay back $2.5 million to settle his share of the Rhode Island lawsuit.
38 Studios sent the final paychecks to its employees in 2021, barely a decade after the studio went bankrupt, but the checks only covered a small percentage of what the employees actually owed.
The 38 Studios debacle isn’t Schilling’s only failed post-MLB venture. In 2016, he was fired as an analyst at ESPN (opens in new tab) for transphobic comments he posted on Facebook that followed a suspension (opens in new tab) for sharing a meme comparing Muslims to Nazis.
Anyway, Curt Schilling thinks people who don’t pay off their loans are lazy losers.
They don’t go after the banks. They will just lower the checks for the freeloaders. They have no legal authority to force banks to cancel debts. Also note the corruption.August 25, 2022
0 Comments