Filmmaker, pro-Wal-Mart group part ways
A filmmaker whose self-financed movie praising Wal-Mart helped the retailer counter a critical documentary last year has quit a pro-Wal-Mart advocacy group funded by the company, the group said Wednesday.
Ron Galloway left the national steering committee of Working Families for Wal-Mart over policy differences, group spokesman Kevin Sheridan said.
Galloway did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment.
It is the second high profile departure from Working Families since it was created late last year. In August, civil rights leader Andrew Young stepped down as chairman of the steering committee after remarks that were seen as racially offensive.
•Jacuzzi Brands Inc., maker of whirlpool baths and plumbing products, said Wednesday it agreed to a $990 million buyout offer from the private equity firm Apollo Management LP.
Under terms of the deal, Jacuzzi stockholders will get $12.50 per share in cash, a premium of 21 percent over Tuesday closing price of $10.35.
Apollo will also assume $260 million in debt in the deal.
Jacuzzi shares rose $2, or 19.3 percent, to close at $12.35 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Apollo bought the retailer Linens ‘n Things earlier this year and recently co-bid for the casino operator Harrah’s Entertainment Inc.
Jacuzzi’s board agreed to the deal, which is subject to shareholder and regulatory approval. The companies expect to close the transaction in the first quarter.
•One of the nation’s leading cheese producers waited much too long to object to a jerky and smoked meat company’s use of the word “Tillamook,” the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday.
The Tillamook County Creamery Association is a well-known producer cooperative that makes cheese at a factory on Oregon’s coast. It is described in court papers as the second-largest producer of some varieties, behind Kraft. The cooperative formed in 1909.
In 1976, a member of the association, Crawford Smith, started the jerky and smoked meats business and named it Tillamook Country Smoker.
The dispute arose when the meat company moved to expand its supermarket sales in the late 1990s.
The creamery filed suit alleging trademark infringement, but U.S. District Judge Michael Mosman ruled in 2004 that it was too late.