Marc H. Bell
Mr. Bell has served as Co-Chairman of the Board of the Company since July 2012. Prior, he served as Chief Executive Officer and a Director since 2004 and also as President of the Company from 2004 to March 2012. In December 2007, the Company completed an approximately $400 million acquisition of Various, Inc., the parent company of the FriendFinder family of social networking and online personals sites. Also, in November 2007 Mr. Bell completed a $250 million IPO for Enterprise Acquisition Corp. (AMEX:EST), where he served as Chairman of the Board and Treasurer until its merger with ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) in November 2009. Mr. Bell has served as a member of the Board of Directors of ARMOUR since November 2009.
Mr. Bell is the Managing Director of Marc Bell Capital Partners, a private equity firm based in Boca Raton, Florida founded by Mr. Bell in 2003. Marc Bell Capital Partners invests in entertainment ventures, publishing, internet and real estate related assets.
Prior, Mr. Bell served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Globix Corporation, a web-hosting company which owned 20,000 miles of fiber and over 1m sq ft of internet data center space globally. Mr. Bell founded the predecessor company for Globix, NAFT International Ltd as a provider of desktop publishing systems in 1989 and added several complementary businesses including print brokerage, hosting, network and application services. This group of businesses called Bell Technology Group completed an IPO and was listed on the NASDAQ in 1996. Under Mr. Bell’s leadership and oversight, Bell Technology Group grew rapidly into Globix, a leading provider of sophisticated corporate Internet solutions, with over 1,000 employees worldwide.
Mr. Bell has founded numerous companies in his career and has been a seed investor in several start-up entities including iFilm, Vault.com, NetSat Express, Edgar Online, Earnings.com and SpamEx. He has also overseen several large scale real estate development projects in New York, London, Santa Clara, and South Florida.
As a producer of several successful Broadway musicals and plays (Jersey Boys, The Wedding Singer, August: Osage County, A Catered Affair) Mr. Bell has been a winner of the American Theatre Wing’s Tony Award (“2008 Best Play” for August: Osage County and “2006 Best Musical” for Jersey Boys) and a winner of the National Society of Recording Arts and Sciences Grammy Award (“Best Musical Show Album – 2006” for Jersey Boys).
Mr. Bell is a member of the Board of Trustees of New York University and New York University School of Medicine. He was an adjunct professor at the Global Entrepreneurship Center of Florida International University, where he taught graduate courses in Entrepreneurship.
The Marc and Ruti Bell Foundation originated in 2001 to foster education and advance medical research. Since its inception the foundation has organized significant personal and outside donations to schools, hospitals and educational institutions. Some of the foundation’s notable programs include The Bell Scholarship, which encourages undergraduates to choose careers in public service by relieving them of their debt upon graduation.
Mr. Bell has a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Babson College and a Masters in real estate from New York University.
Daniel C. Staton
Mr. Staton has served as Co-Chairman of the Board since July 2012. Prior, he served as Chairman of the Board from October 2004 to July 2012 and Treasurer of the Company from December 2008 to June 2011. Mr. Staton has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) since November 2009. Mr. Staton served as President and Chief Executive Officer and as a member of the Board of Directors of Enterprise Acquisition Corp. (AMEX: EST), a blank check company formed with the purpose of effecting a merger, acquisition or other similar business combination with an operating business, since its inception in July 2007 until November 2009. Mr. Staton has served as Managing Director of Staton Capital LLC, a private investment firm, since 2003 and as President of The Walnut Group, a private investment firm that has made over 20 private equity and venture capital investments, from 1997 to January 2007. Prior to forming The Walnut Group, Mr. Staton served as General Manager and partner of Duke Associates from 1981 to 1993. With its initial public offering, Mr. Staton became Chief Operating Officer and a director of Duke Realty Investments, Inc. (NYSE: DRE), a real estate investment trust, from 1993 to 1997. Mr. Staton served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Storage Trust Realty, a real estate investment trust, from 1997 to 1999 and led its merger with Public Storage (NYSE: PSA), where he has served on the Board of Directors since 1999. The Walnut Group was an initial investor and Mr. Staton served as director of Build-a-Bear Workshop (NYSE: BBW), a specialty retailer with over 300 stores, from 1998 until its initial public offering in 2004. The Walnut Group was an initial investor in Deal$: Nothing Over a Dollar, a specialty retailer which grew from one location to 67 locations until its sale to Supervalu Inc. in 2002. In connection with other investments by The Walnut Group, Mr. Staton served as director of Ameristop, a convenience store operator with over 140 locations, from 1998 to 2003, as a director of Skylight Financial, a credit card company for the “underbanked,” from 1998 until its sale in 2003 and as a director of Changing Paradigms, a leader in private-label household products, from 1999 until its sale in 2006.
Mr. Staton has also invested in and served as a director of United Sports Ventures, owner of three minor league baseball and four minor league hockey teams, from 1997 to 2002. Mr. Staton has co-produced or invested in numerous successful Broadway musicals, and plays including The Producers, Hairspray, Jersey Boys, and August: Osage County all of which won the Tony Award for “Best Musical” or “Best Play” as well as A Catered Affair and Smokey Joe’s Cafe, Broadway’s longest-running musical revue.
Mr. Staton majored in Finance at the University of Missouri and holds a B.S. degree in specialized business from Ohio University and a B.S. degree in business (management) from California Coast University. Mr. Staton has served as Executive in Residence at both the University of Missouri and Ohio University.
Anthony Previte
Mr. Previte has served as Chief Executive Officer of the Company since July 2012, President since March 2012, and a Director of the Company since May 30, 2012. Prior, he served as Chief Operating Officer of the Company from February 2008 through June 2012.
Robert B. Bell
Robert B. Bell has been a Director since 2005. Mr. Bell served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Globix Corporation for 10 years. Prior to joining Globix, Mr. Bell was a practicing attorney in New York City at the firm of Bell, Kalnick, Beckman, Klee and Green, which Mr. Bell founded in the early 1970s and specialized in the law of international real estate joint ventures and investment. He is the author of Joint Ventures in Real Estate published by John Wiley & Sons. Prior to 1994, Mr. Bell was for many years an Adjunct Professor at New York University.
Mr. Bell has a B.S. degree from New York University and a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of California at Berkeley. Mr. Bell is the father of Marc H. Bell, Chief Executive Officer.
Jason H. Smith
Jason H. Smith has been a Director since 2005. From 1994 to 2007, Mr. Smith was the Chief Operating Officer of Hopper Radio of Florida Inc., a successful consumer electronics distribution business which, among other things, sourced and distributed the Memorex brand of consumer electronics. Mr. Smith succeeded in helping to grow the business until its eventual sale to Imation in 2007. Among his many accomplishments is spearheading the Disney Electronics line of consumer electronics which debuted in 2003 through a partnership with Disney Consumer Products.
Mr. Smith graduated from the University of Florida in 1994 with a B.Sc. degree in business administration, with a major in marketing.
James “Jim” LaChance
James “Jim” LaChance has been a Director since 2008. Since 2004, Mr. LaChance has served as the Chairman of the Board of Northern Offshore Ltd., a drilling and production services company listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange (Oslo Børs: NOF). From July 2005 to February 2008, Mr. LaChance served as portfolio manager at Satellite Asset Management, L.P., an investment management fund in New York with approximately $7 billion assets under management. From 2002 to June 2005, he was a Partner at Post Advisory Group, LLC, an investment management firm in Los Angeles with $8 billion assets under management. Before that, he managed hedge funds for LibertyView Capital Management. He began his professional career as an audit and management consultant for Arthur Andersen & Co. Subsequent to obtaining his MBA Mr. LaChance worked as a restructuring and merchant banker with Chase Manhattan Bank.
Mr. LaChance graduated from Northeastern University in 1988 with a B.A. degree in business administration and an Master of Business Administration degree from the Stern School of Business at New York University in 1993.
Toby E. Lazarus
Toby E. Lazarus has been a Director since March 2009. Since 2004, Dr. Lazarus has served as Vice President of Operations for Lumen Management, a multi-strategy investment partnership. Prior to joining Lumen Management, she served in various positions in hospitals and health centers across the United States with an emphasis on developmental psychology and psychiatry.
Dr. Lazarus graduated from Johns Hopkins University, Phi Beta Kappa with honors in psychology, received her M.A. and Ph.D. in developmental psychology from the University of Chicago with a focus on neuropsychology and has presented her work at various conferences in the United States.
Donald A. Johnson
Mr. Johnson is a Managing Board Member at Heritage Development, LLC, a consulting company that develops software for horse racing companies. Since 1999, Mr. Johnson has also served as Chief Executive Officer of C.J. & Associates, Inc., a business development company. From 1997-2005, Mr. Johnson served on the board of directors of The Children’s Cultural Center, a nonprofit organization focused on enhancing the cultural education and enrichment of the youth of Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
From 1997-1998, Mr. Johnson served as Chief Executive Officer of PlayerServices, LLC and Chief Executive Officer of Playfair Racing Inc. From 1992-1995, he was Corporate Director of Budgetary Planning as well as a member of the Senior Executive Board at Green Racing Inc. From 1992-1995, Mr. Johnson also served as General Manager and Vice President of Racing at Philadelphia Park.
Mr. Johnson has served on numerous boards of directors and held executive positions at various horseracing companies including but not limited to: Thoroughbred Racing Association (1992-1995); Pegasus Riding Academy Inc. (1992-Present); M.A.D.R.E. Enterprises Inc. (1985-1994); Texas Racing Commission (1991); Oregon Racing, Inc. (1989-1991); Park Concession Company (1990-1992); Portland Meadows Race Course (1989-1990); Wyoming Pari-Mutuel Commission (1986-1989); and Meadow Creek Enterprises (1987-1994).
Steven Rattner
Mr. Rattner co-founded Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette’s (DLJ) Leveraged Finance business, and was instrumental in building and managing one of the most well-known and respected credit underwriting, sales, trading and research operations on Wall Street. His management skills and credit judgment helped to develop this business into one of the most profitable areas of the firm and on Wall Street overall. During his tenure, DLJ was the number one underwriter of non-investment grade debt and the top secondary market maker for over 14 consecutive years.
He has significant expertise in numerous areas of business including: gaming and hospitality, industrial and manufacturing, retail, media, healthcare, logistics, power and financial institutions. He has provided invaluable board level business and capital markets advice and raised billions of dollars of capital for hundreds of businesses at various stages of their business lives and during all parts of the economic cycle.
From 1988-2008, Mr. Rattner served as partner at DLJ Merchant Banking Partners (DLJMBP), one of the first private equity funds located within a major investment bank. During his tenure, DLJMBP invested over $7 billion of equity in 78 different companies, he sat on the investment committee and was ultimately responsible for managing the entire group. Mr. Rattner retired from DLJMBP as a full time partner at the end of 2008 which corresponded with the completion of the investment period of the last fund. He continues to sit on a number of boards for the benefit of the fund, acts as a consultant for various money managers in making investments in both debt and equity and as an advisor for operating businesses assisting them with sharpening their long and short-term strategies. He also continues to successfully make investments for his own portfolio.
Mr. Rattner has served on numerous boards of directors of public and private companies including Warner Chilcott, Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Peachtree Financial and Safilo Group International.
Kai Shing Tao
Mr. Tao currently serves as Chairman and Chief Investment Officer of Pacific Star Partners, a private investment group. Prior to founding Pacific Star Partners, Mr. Tao was a partner at FALA Capital Group, a single-family investment office, where he was responsible for the global liquid investments outside the operating companies.
He is an experienced global investor with a concentration in the Greater China region and the United States. Mr. Tao’s areas of business interests include the fields of real estate, consumer products, gaming, manufacturing, technology, media and telecommunications.
Mr. Tao has significant experience serving on the board of directors of both public and private companies. Since 2007, Mr. Tao has served as a member of the board of directors of Remark Media, Inc. (formerly HSW International, Inc.), a global digital media company focused on developing social media businesses that incorporate relevant, high quality content. Since 2006, he has served on the board of Genesis Today, a private nutritional supplement and juice company. In 2010, Playboy Enterprises, Inc. elected him to its board of directors where he served until the company went private in 2011.
Mr. Tao is a graduate of the New York University Leonard N. Stern School of Business.