Well, it's not much of a surprise at this point, but Eastman Kodak Co, the 131-year-old film company, officially filed for bankruptcy today. more ›

Eastman Kodak Co., the 131-year-old film company whose iconic "K" logo is a universal symbol for photographers and filmmakers around the world, is preparing to seek bankruptcy protection in the next weeks, reports the Wall Street Journal. more ›

These are tough times for Twinkies fans. Only two years after coming out of bankruptcy it appears that Hostess Brands, which owns Twinkies and Wonder Bread among other indestructible food brands, may be about to declare Chapter 11 again. The company hired restructuring advisors earlier this year and reportedly "has not been paying future pension benefits since August, thereby breaking its union contracts." more ›

No one is very happy about the impending postal service cuts, which include post office location closings and plans to kill next-day mail, because it's possible it will run out of cash in less than a year. Now, the U.S. Postal Service says, "In response to a request made by multiple U.S. Senators, [the USPS] has agreed to delay the closing or consolidation of any Post Office or mail processing facility until May 15, 2012. The Postal Service will continue all necessary steps required for the review of these facilities during the interim period, including public input meetings." more ›

Former NJ governor Jon Corzine is testifying in front of Congress today to explain what he knew of the collapse of MF Global. And basically he'll be saying he had no idea! According to prepared testimony, he says he was "stunned when I was told on Sunday, October 30, 2011, that MF Global could not account for many hundreds of millions of dollars of client money. I remain deeply concerned about the impact that the unreconciled and frozen funds have had on MF Global’s customers and others." more ›

This morning, AMR, the company that owns American Airlines, announced it would file for Chapter 11 reorganization in the U.S. bankruptcy court in New York City, explaining, "We must address our cost structure, including labor costs, to enable us to capitalize on these foundational strengths and secure our future. Our very substantial cost disadvantage compared to our larger competitors, all of which restructured their costs and debt through Chapter 11, has become increasingly untenable given the accelerating impact of global economic uncertainty and resulting revenue instability, volatile and rising fuel prices, and intensifying competitive challenges." more ›

It was earlier reported that MF Global, the brokerage firm formerly run by John Corzine, was entering bankruptcy with a shortfall of $593 million, or 11 percent of customer funds. Now it seems the shortfall is a tad higher—somewhere in the neighborhood of $1.2 billion, double previous estimates. A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you're talking real money! more ›

Yesterday, Sharon Bialek shared an account of her 1997 meeting with 2012 GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain in which he allegedly grabbed her genitals, pushed her head towards his groin and asked, "You want a job, don't you?" So what's Cain's next logical step in confronting these serious allegations? Get some TV laffs at their expense! more ›

Say goodbye to these bargains: Syms Corporation, including its subsidiary Filene's Basement, have filed for bankruptcy, and plan to close all 46 of their stores. Syms acquired Filene's Basement out of bankruptcy protection in the spring of 2009 for $62.4 million, but struggled to make the chain profitable again. “Blame the economy, blame the world. I wouldn’t call it expected, but I wouldn’t call it surprising,“ St. John’s University business professor Anthony Michael Sabino told the Post. more ›

The hits keep coming for the troubled brokerage MF Global: The FBI is joining the investigation on how an estimated $700-900 million of client money went missing. The company, which filed for bankruptcy and is being delisted by the New York Stock Exchange, is headed by former Goldman Sachs chair and former NJ Governor Jon Corzine, who had hoped to turn it into a "mini-Goldman." more ›

When Jon Corzine lost his re-election bid to remain NJ's governor to Chris Christie, the former Goldman Sachs chairman decided to head an upstart brokerage, MF Global. After a shaky week last week, the company filed for bankruptcy yesterday as MF Global couldn't find $700 million. Dealbook explains, "The discovery that money could not be located might simply reflect sloppy internal controls at MF Global. At first, as much as $950 million was believed to be missing, but as the firm sorted through its bankruptcy, that figure fell to less than $700 million by late Monday, the people briefed on the matter said. Additional funds are expected to trickle in over the coming days." And now MF Global admits it mixed client and company funds (a big no-no) and diverted client funds as well. more ›

After a rough day in the 'burbs, nothing turns that frown upside down faster than a Turkey Club SuperMelt® sandwich at Friendly's, followed by one of their signature "Happy Endings." But in today's economy, nobody can afford to end happily at Friendly's, and the long-running restaurant/ice cream chain is in deep trouble. Like the rest of America, Friendly's is drowning in debt. more ›

Is the era of absurdly over-priced food in New York waning? Maybe! Though you can still get expensive soup (not to mention Coca-Cola) around town, you can no longer get a $175 dollar burger. Crain's is reporting that the Wall Street Burger Shoppe, the purveyor of that over-priced patty, has declared bankruptcy. more ›

Call it "Mr. Hipster Goes To Delaware", or just a case of a regular guy who's tired of being pushed around by the rich and powerful. When Queens resident Nate Thoma gave a 24 minute statement in front of a judge at WaMu's bankruptcy hearing in December, it "changed the course of one of the largest bankruptcies in U.S. history." The Wall Street Journal, who apparently takes photos of subjects with Hipstamatic and will call any smoker with a scruffy beard a "hipster," details how the 33-year-old self-taught trader crawled his way back from losing all of his investment when the bank filed bankruptcy in late 2008, only to see hedge funds play in same strategy to quash smaller investors. more ›

Last we heard about Sbarro, the omnipresent mall pizzeria that grew from a Brooklyn storefront, the chain was preparing for bankruptcy. But now it appears a white knight may swoop in and save the pizza! The chain is in negotiations to accept an offer that would value it higher than the bankruptcy plan it entered in April. more ›

Former Mets star Lenny Dykstra has been a headline in the past few years (allegedly naked interviews, debt and divorce problems) and now, as he faces bankruptcy fraud charges, Dykstra has written a column for the NY Post in a style that can only be described as "Charlie Sheen, #winning era": "I told them, 'If you are trying to kill me, then you better put a bullet in my head because I am not backing down. Torture me all you want, I am stronger than you will ever know.' more ›

Garden Operation Realty, a company under the umbrella of H&H Bagels owner Helmer Toro, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Manhattan after finding themselves $5.1 million in debt. They owe $3.4 million to the IRS and an "undetermined amount" in back taxes to New York and New Jersey, and Toro says that their expansion of the Secaucus facilities "was more costly than anticipated," and that subtenant All Dutch Baking Co. also filed bankruptcy, which deprived Garden Operation of "much-needed rental income." Somewhere, an Ess-A-Bagel employee is petting his white cat, fiendishly watching as all his plans finally fall into place. more ›

This has not been a good year for bagel emporium H & H Bagels. Last May owner Helmer Toro pleaded guilty to second degree grand larceny for pocketing $330,000 in payroll taxes and yesterday he went and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to avoid being locked out of its New Jersey manufacturing facilities. Well, technically its parent company, Garden Operation Realty LP, did the filing. more ›

It's been a pleasantly long time since we last heard of New Jersey's Real Housewife Teresa Guidice, who in June was coping with her newly declared bankruptcy. Now the NY Post reports that the tantrum-throwing reality starlet was back in court yesterday claiming that her husband forged her name on mortgages and other documents, and that she was blissfully unaware of their financial woes. She was in front of the judge not because her husband Joe forged her name, however, but because he forged the name of an employee, a notary, and of his ex-business partner, who is suing him. more ›

The name "Fred Leighton" is familiar to anyone who has read People magazine or watched red carpet coverage of an awards show—stars (like Amy Adams, pictured) are frequently decked out in the jeweler's baubles. However, today, the Daily News reports that owner Ralph Esmerian "was arrested Monday morning on bankruptcy fraud and wire fraud charges, according to law enforcement officials. Esmerian is being charged with lying to U.S. Postal Inspectors about embezzling and double-pledging in connection to more than $210 million in loans used to finance his company, Fred Leighton." more ›

Irving Picard, the trustee who is overseeing the bankruptcy of Bernard Madoff's estate, has good news and bad news. According to a report he filed, he's found $849,000 for victims of the massive Ponzi scam, which is good...but during the same six-month period, he spent over $26 million, mostly on legal fees to Picard's firm. Bloomberg News reports, "Picard has recovered a total of about $1.5 billion for creditors of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC..." He also says he's "evaluated 14,030 investor claims as of Oct. 22 and approved 2,280" and "has committed to paying $738 million on behalf of the [SIPC]." Something else that is keeping Picard busy: Getting ready for those clawback lawsuits. more ›

As the Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village complex heads into foreclosure auction later this month, both the NY Times and Wall Street Journal look at how the development, in spite of its problems under Tishman Speyer, remains attractive. People are expecting a war over the property, and one investor group thinks it'll make a lot of money by turning the rental apartments into co-ops. William Ackman, whose Pershing Square Capital Management and Winthrop Realty Trust is one of the parties in the investor group, tells the WSJ, "The value of the property as a co-op is much higher than the value of the property as a rental." If only Tishman knew that four years ago! more ›

Last night's episode of the Real Housewives of New Jersey included segments dedicated to Joe Giudice showering his wife Teresa with expensive gifts for their 10 year anniversary (despite what seemed like major concerns he had over their financial situation; clip below). Or at least, we hear this is what happened—we were busy reading books. more ›

Real Housewife of New Jersey Teresa Guidice is speaking out about her and her husband's filing for bankruptcy, and guess what they're blaming? Those $2,000 in 10 minute shopping sprees The economy! Guidice told People magazine, “What is true is that due to the economy, most of my husband’s real estate ventures failed despite his hard work and effort. As a result, we looked to the Bankruptcy Court for a ‘fresh start.’" more ›

There may be a lawsuit to keep St. Vincent's from closing, but the hospital has put one of its buildings on the market, with the NY Times noting it's "the first of many buildings in its valuable Greenwich Village real estate portfolio." The 180,000 square foot "Staff House"—it house 160 medical residents and other staff members in 178 apartments—is at 555 Sixth Avenue, between 15th and 16th Streets. more ›

The government has laid out some conditions now that they've agreed to keep the cash strapped organization open for another year. The rescue plan includes opening 600 “quick bet” kiosks in private sports bars, closing most of the OTB parlors and eventually laying off half of the 1,300 workers. Gov. Paterson said, “We will be helpful to them to the extent we can be,” and assured that no taxpayer dollars will go toward the funding. Betters are rejoicing at the news. One Washington Heights gambler said “It’s a great sport, and OTB is a great place to hang out.” However, others just wish it would go away for good. “I wish they could close it—I’d save money!” said better Joe Rizzo. “I don’t even know myself how much money I’ve lost here.” more ›

Gov. Paterson is planning to offer legislation today to bail out the Off Track Betting Corp. for one year. The Post reports the proposal would keep the OTB from having to make some payments to tracks, while requiring them to cut management and create new revenue sources. Paterson said, "It will address the problems for some period of time, but the feasibility of the program working, we have not found the solution. Basically what it does is it shares the burden." more ›

The struggling Off-Track Betting Corporation was given a stay of execution yesterday by the city, which granted them an extra week to try to avoid shutting down altogether. The OTB has been in serious financial troubles, having filed for bankruptcy last year and having laid off 1,300 workers already. They were expected to be forced to shut down completely by this Sunday without intervention from the State Assembly. more ›