Dreaming the Hollywood dream

Milwaukee lawyers Robert Bernhoft and Robert Barnes figured that getting actor Wesley Snipes off the felony tax charges he faced, and opening an office in Malibu, would gain them entree to A-list Hollywood. Instead, they're representing Joe Francis of Girls Gone Wild. But Portfolio did do a story about them. Amy Wallace writes:

The rented office that serves as the command center for the Bobs’ push into Hollywood is a modern, two-room affair a little too far north on the Pacific Coast Highway. But to Bernhoft, it was perfect. He picked the paint colors—Believable Buff, Sassy Green—and the Italianate office furniture himself. He ordered a top-of-the-line Elie Bleu humidor from France and stocked it with supplies: Hennessy Richard and several boxes of premium Partagás, Cohiba Siglo VIs, and the nine-inch Montecristos famous for their role in the Clinton–Lewinsky dalliance.

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Relationships are currency here, and the lawyers who have them are perceived to be the most effective. The Bobs have zero relationships. “We can’t call up Ben Silverman and have a chitchat,” Bernhoft admits, referring to NBC’s entertainment president.

But what the Bobs lack in connections they believe they can make up for in cunning. To date, they have won acquittals in 50 percent of their felony tax cases—a remarkable record, considering that the government wins the vast majority of the tax cases it brings to trial.

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As the maître d’ shows them to their table, the Bobs exchange a look. Just a few feet away—so close they could sample his edamame—sits the aging rocker Ozzy Osbourne. “The Oz-man himself!” Bernhoft recounts later.

Also enjoying a quiet dinner at a nearby table is one of Hollywood’s power couples: Paula Wagner, Tom Cruise’s longtime producing partner (who has since left United Artists to go it alone), and Rick Nicita (then a partner at Creative Artists Agency).

The Bobs have no idea they’re there.

Also in Portfolio: "Ask any shareholder not named Murdoch or Redstone—big media just isn't working."