Topps Dismisses Two From Committee Considering Takeover Bid

Topps yesterday dismissed BOD members Arnaud Ajdler and Timothy Brog from a “special ad-hoc committee set up to evaluate any rival bid” to former Disney Chair & CEO Michael Eisner’s $385M takeover offer, according to Zachery Kouwe of the N.Y. POST. Topps “cited a recent quote from Ajdler saying he wanted to ‘kill the deal, take the company over, improve the margins and create value’ as proof that he isn’t acting in the best interest of other shareholders.” Ajdler’s Crescendo Partners and Brog’s Pembridge Capital Management own “roughly 7[%] of Topps,” and both voted against the $9.75-per-share deal the company made with Eisner’s Tornante Co. and buyout firm Madison Dearborn Partners last week. Some shareholders have also questioned BOD member Stephen Greenberg’s independence “because of his close ties to Eisner.” Greenberg, an exec at Allen & Co., “worked under Eisner after selling his Classic Sports Network” to ESPN in ’97. Eisner is also a “frequent guest at Allen & Co.’s media mogul-fest” (N.Y. POST, 3/14).