Sumner Redstone Separating From His Wife?
We hear from a good source that Sumner Redstone, the 85-year-old media mogul who controls Viacom (which includes MTV, BET, Paramount, and Dreamworks), is separating from Paula Fortunato, his wife of five years. Fortunato will be moving out this weekend, our source says. Redstone married Fortunato—a former public school teacher who is 40 years his junior—in 2003, several years after he divorced his first wife. Redstone's finances are currently under a significant strain thanks to the recent economic meltdown, causing him a good deal of stress. Fortunato's biggest moment in the spotlight came when she reportedly forced her husband to break with Tom Cruise in 2006. There were rumors a year ago that the marriage was not happy; now, according to our source, it's all but over. Anyone with more information can email us. This may be the first sign that relationships based on anything other than love or sexual attraction will be sorely tested by this financial crisis. Another source tells us that Martha Stewart and Mark Burnett, the reality show maven who works with her, "had a giant blowout, over money." Along with the timing of this Sumner Redstone rumor, it paints a grim picture. Let's hope this doesn't get so bad that it filters down to the non-rich.