the list of 9 for march 24, 2009:
NINE LOTTERY WINDFALLS - AND HOW I'D SPEND THEM
In these trying economic times, when both jobs and solid investment opportunities are scarce, eventhe most hardened realists may dream about winning easy money in a lottery. Why, all you need todo is guess six or seven numbers, and you could win millions! I only buy lottery ticketsonce or twice a year, and of course I've never won anything, but it's fun to dream. Thus, thebelow is what I'd do with my various winnings. In the spirit of fun, let's pretend each amount iswhat I'd see after taxes, and that I wouldn't be allowed to put any money into savings or spend iton "drudgery costs" such as bills, rent or groceries.
- $1. I'd just reinvest it in another lottery ticket.
- $10. I'd treat myself to lunch or a matinee (sadly, in LosAngeles it's hard to find an evening movie under $11).
- $100. At this point I'd share the wealth by taking my wifeout to a nice dinner. We could eat well for under a hundred, as she's vegan, so no steaks.
- $1,000. If you can't spend it on bills, a thousand dollarsis actually an awkward windfall. It's too small to do anything extravagant with. But this amountof money would easily cover a nice weekend in San Francisco with the wife, even taking friendsup there out to dinner. And I'd take a hundred bucks and give it to charity.
- $10,000. Not to brag, but I've won ten grand before,though not in a lottery, so I should know what to do with this amount. Of course in reality itwent into savings and bills, though I did buy a new iMac with it. If I won the same today, Iwouldn't waste it on a new computer. I don't need one of those yet. Instead, I'd whisk the wifeoff to a week in Paris. We're frugal people, though, so I imagine we could only burn through aboutsix grand of it. I'd spend the remainder on a small trip for myself, going to some destinationthat the wife has no interest in, or where I have a friend. Surely there'd still be a few hundredbucks left over, and that would go to charity too.
- $100,000. Now we're getting serious. Yet not seriousenough to, say, buy a house. So seeing as how I don't need a new car yet, this hundred grand wouldjust go into more travel! And perhaps I'd spread the joy by hosting a nice party in town for ahundred of my closest friends. Charities would of course benefit too; I reckon I'd shoot them atleast five grand. And last but not least, I'd tuck about $20K into an account for my 7-year-oldniece's college fund. It's technically putting the money into savings, but for a good cause.
- $1,000,000. With a cool million, I'd buy a house. Thanksto today's crippled real estate market, I could finally find a decent place in LA for $700K, maybea cute little Spanish revival with a big yard and lots of sun so I can grow fruit. The rest wouldgo into travel, my niece's college fund (Hopefully $150K would pay for four years ofmost schools by the time she's 18), and charitable causes.
- $10,000,000. You may have been thinking Hey Mark,aren't you an indie filmmaker? Why wouldn't you spend any of that winnings on making a movie?Yes, I've made two features for well under a million dollars, and I could do it again. But why?Why, when there are so many more fun things to waste money on? Don't get me wrong, I'd shoot afeature again in a heartbeat. But for all the lawsuits and egos and heartaches involved, I'm in norush to spend a great deal of my own cash on a film again. But for ten million? Sure, I'd make afilm. Maybe two films. Because you see, I've also learned that if a filmmaker wants his films toactually make money, he really needs to drop some serious coin on nabbing an A-list star who willsell the picture, and the right producers reps and publicists to get it seen and sold. That's howthe game works. Even if a film went nowhere, I'd still have bought a nice house in LA and one inNew Jersey, too (don't laugh; my wife's from the Jersey shore and it's quite nice out there), andI'd never have to work again anyway.
- $100,000,000. It boggles my mind that some have actuallywon this much dough in a lottery, even after taxes. That's frankly too much for most people todeal with. But not for me! Before any greedy third cousins can come out of the woodwork, I'd setup a production company and start cranking out a $5-10 million movie every couple of years, andpresumably I'd make some money back on that. Naturally the houses, the travel, thecharities and my niece would be well taken care of. I'd become a more serious art investor, too.And set up a scholarship somewhere (or even better, an "I'll pay off your student loan for you"situation, which I prefer because it's helping those who already made it through college and needto get on with their lives debt-free). What wouldn't I buy is the more interestingquestion. Answer: fancy cars. I don't care one whit about them. Private jets? Waste of money.Mansions? No, small houses are more my style. Personal assistants? I can tie my own shoes, thankyou. Oh, okay. Perhaps a chauffeur.
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