Thursday morning headlines

Ron Burkle's payday: You don't think he became a billionaire out of nowhere, do you? It looks like the L.A.-based Burkle will be making in the neighborhood of $40 million - not including commissions - on the Whole Foods purchase of Wild Oats. Burkle, who first invested in Wild Oats in 2005, now has an 18 percent stake in the company. The Whole Foods offer is $18.50 a share. Burkle, of course, has been a master at buying and selling supermarkets at very healthy profits (most notably when he sold Ralphs parent Fred Meyer to Kroger in 1999). It might be worth noting that Burkle has a large stake in Albertson's parent Supervalu. NYT

KB compensation: So much for the good old days. The L.A.-based homebuilder's proxy shows that new CEO Jeffrey Mezger received a mere $6 million in 2006, largely because KB stock options were left out of the equation. Some of those options, and when they were priced, are the subject of an SEC investigation - and led to the forced departure of longtime KB head Bruce Karatz. The proxy shows that Karatz received about $2 million in 2006, although his final settlement with the company has not been determined. The year before, his compensation totalled $135.5 million, much of that in exercised options. Mezger's pay includes straight salary, cash bonus and restricted stock. AP

Luxury home sale: Prices fell for the first time in two years, another small but telling sign of a softer housing market. The average price of a so-called luxury home was $2.35 million in Los Angeles, down 0.8 percent from the previous three months and ending 18 straight quarters of increased value. During that period, L.A. values nearly doubled. In Bev Hills, the market is said to have picked up since the first of the year, while buying and selling in West L.A. remained hot in the fourth quarter and into 2007 (more buyers and not much inventory is the explanation). The survey comes from First Republic Bank, which is still using the outdated $1 million threshold in defining what a luxury home is. PR Newswire

Economy softening?: That's what state legislative analyst Elizabeth Hill is suggesting after a plunge in quarterly tax receipts. The drop is due to the weaker housing market and a decline in investment income. Hill said that with less money coming in than expected, the legislature must begin cutting programs before the fiscal shortfall really gets nasty. It's a reminder of how much the state must still rely on quarter-to-quarter upticks in tax revenues to keep certain programs afloat. Officials in the governor's office say that the revenue dip may have been a fluke. LAT

WGA win: A National Labor Relations Board judge turned down NBC Universal's claim that the union pressured show runners for "The Office" and "Heroes" to avoid writing "webisodes" from those series. The network said that the work was covered under existing labor agreements, but the union wanted to negotiate additional terms for the extra work. It's a small point, but the question of how writers are compensated for new technology platforms like cell phones and the Internet is sure to come up during the upcoming contract talks. There's a lot of chatter about a strike in the fall. LAT

Disney's bridal business: The Mouse House is teaming up with designer Kirstie Kelly to sell wedding gowns for between $1,100 and $3,000 - part of the company's effort to expand its line of princess paraphernalia to older customers. The Disney Princess line has apparently become a huge revenue source within the company's consumer products division. The dresses are inspired by Cinderella, Snow White and the other Disney characters. From the WSJ:

In thinking of ways it could reach outside the core princess crowd of 3- to 6-year-olds, Disney homed in on women who had grown up with the characters. Brides seemed an obvious target. "Most brides, even the cynical ones, want to be a princess on their wedding day and see their husband-to-be as Prince Charming," Ms. Kelly said recently at her bridal boutique in the upscale Brentwood district of Los Angeles. To date, there are no plans to offer prince costumes for grooms. But don't expect the gaudy princess costumes that kids run around in. Ms. Kelly says her designs are more about capturing the "mood" of the princess than creating an exact replica of each of the cartoon characters' outfits.

Red carpet whispers: Georgina Chapman is a fledgling young fashion designer from London. She also happens to be dating movie mogul Harvey Weinstein (we won't get into the fact that she's 30 and he's, well, a lot older). Anyway, it turns out that the creations churned by Chapman and her partner Keren Craig are being worn by the likes of Cate Blanchett, Scarlett Johansson, Felicity Huffman, Anne Hathaway and Penélope Cruz. And there are those in the fashion world (no names, please!) who aren't exactly thrilled by this sudden rise to stardom, pointing out that - now hold onto your hats for this one - Weinstein produced films in which some of the actresses wearing the Chapman-designed gowns have starred. From the NYT:

Hollywood power stylists, designers and influential editors, few of whom would speak on the record for fear of offending Mr. Weinstein, say that Ms. Craig and Ms. Chapman, both 30, have yet to earn their laurels. “People are asking, ‘How is it these two young gals with nothing but a lot of money behind them can put themselves out there as a brand,’ ” said Patricia Black, the director of a fashion showroom in New York, who stresses that she does not share that view.

Bank of opportunity: That's the new tag line for Bank of America, replacing the "Higher Standards" tag that had been running for four years. A new ad campaign will be launched during Sunday's Oscar telecast. Charlotte Observer