Posted in: Comics, DC Comics, Ike Perlmutter, Marvel Comics | Tagged: dc comics, ike perlmutter, marvel, Pam Lifford

Is Pam Lifford Vs Ike Perlmutter Why There Is No Marvel/DC Crossover?

Sometimes you have two stories, separated by years, and never join them up. Ike Perlmutter is the Chairman of Marvel, a position he gained after he sold his toy company Toy Biz to Marvel. Appointed to the board, he successfully brought the publisher out of bankruptcy and into the movie-making business. It was his decision to sell Marvel to Disney, whereupon he got involved in other Disney businesses, including LucasArts. He is also known for being a major philanthropist for cancer treatment and transgender transition surgery, as well as being former President Donald Trump's leading campaign donor and confidant. He was then appointed by Trump to the Department of Veterans Affairs, now being accused of breaking the law by House Democrats. He has been a very controversial figure, both for his activities at Marvel, anecdotal and otherwise, his unwillingness to be photographed and interviewed, and for his involvement in the US administration. Along the way that included Disney settling a challenge from three black female executives at Disney after Perlmutter ripped through Disney's consumer products division. According to the Financial Times of 2012,

In the past year Andy Mooney, chairman of the unit, has left. Several lieutenants followed, including three female executives who hired a lawyer to seek individual financial settlements. Separately, another senior female executive filed an internal complaint about Mr Perlmutter, alleging that he made threatening remarks to her. The woman eventually changed jobs at Disney… "All of Andy's direct reports have left," says a person with knowledge of the situation. Three female executives – all African-Americans – became part of the exodus and have since sought settlements. Anne Gates, the chief financial officer, left following Mr Chapek's reorganisation of the division. Pam Lifford, the head of fashion and home products, quit after her unit was closed. Both women were said to have been offered alternative roles with comparable pay in the company. Susan Cole Hill, an executive with DCP's HR department, left after her role was eliminated following the restructuring. The three women declined to comment. Ms Gates, Ms Lifford and Ms Cole Hill have hired Dan Stormer, a partner with the Pasadena law firm Hadsell, Stormer, Keeny, Richardson and Rennick, to negotiate separate exit settlements, say people close to the situation.

With Deadline following up, saying,

Sources now tell me that all three female executives in employments disputes with the Walt Disney Co have settled – including one today — many months after the women lost their jobs in a Department Of Consumer Products reorganization set in motion nearly a year ago by Marvel boss Ike Perlmutter who is Disney's 2nd largest shareholder. Former DCP head of fashion and home products Pam Lifford, former chief financial officer Anne Gates, and former DCP HR exec Susan Cole Hill were all represented by the same attorney with the Pasadena law firm Hadsell, Stormer, Keeny, Richardson and Rennick which has sued Disney in other employee rights cases. According to my sources, the three women who are all African Americans referred to themselves as "The Help" – a reference to last summer's hit DreamWorks movie distributed by Disney and set during the civil rights movement about black maids in Mississippi.

Pam Lifford may then have been the head of fashion and home products at Disney, but now she is President of Global Brands and Experiences with responsibility over Warner Bros. Consumer Products, themed entertainment,  a new global franchise team – and DC Comics. She is the big boss of DC. But back then, she wasn't. Nevertheless, at Disney at least, she and her colleagues in relatively junior positions beat Ike Perlmutter. However you look at it, that's an impressive performance. No wonder she rose to the top at Warners.

But if ever anyone wonders why there is no Marvel/DC crossover event even though combatants Bill Jemas and Paul Levitz have long moved on from both Marvel and DC, might there be other personal animosities? Quite the shared history at the top of the comic book publisher echelon…

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