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The Money Problems of Doyle Bramhall II

Doyle Bramhall II with the new Renée

Whatever reason might be given for Renée Zellweger's dramatic change of appearance, common sense dictates that a Hollywood actress does not go through the expense and trouble of "cosmetic procedures" if the end result:

1. changes her appearance so much that she's no longer recognizable — much of a movie star's appeal rely on being predictably and uniquely identifiable as herself.
2. makes her look older — Hollywood actresses get facelifts to help them compete with the hordes of upcoming starlets.

Those smelling "some nefarious truth" might wonder at the money problems of her supposed current boyfriend, Doyle Bramhall II. Consider:

• Musician Susanna Melvoin — who married Doyle in April 1997 — claims she's struggling to bring up daughters India and Elle, 9 and 12.
• Melvoin's lawyer states she and Doyle are collectively $300,000 in debt.

Her ex-husband now resides at Zellweger’s sprawling home in Montecito, California. The actress' fortune is estimated at $45 million, and she's put her Connecticut estate up for sale for $1.6 million.

Doyle Bramhall senior, the quasi-famous musician, died in his sleep after suffering pneumonia-like symptoms at the sprightly age of 62 in November 2011. His passing followed by a few months a charity* trip Zellweger made to Liberia.**

Anybody curious about the money involved in all that?

SEE: "Putting on a brave face! Renée Zellweger enjoys a break in Mississippi with boyfriend Doyle Bramhall II as speculation rages about her altered appearance" by Jason Chester; 28 October 2014.

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*called "The GREAT Initiative", a group with no discernible internet presence, had Zellweger over as a patroness.
**if somebody returned from Liberia today, in the age of the Ebola virus, and a close relative exhibited the symptoms Zellweger's boyfriend's father did, one might legitimately wonder at the cause of death.

A $30-million happy ending

Qianlong

A family who saw their dreams of a £43 million windfall disappear after the auction of their Chinese vase went wrong, are finally getting their due. Tony Johnson and his mother Gene thought they had sold the 18th-century piece back in 2010. A Chinese billionaire bid £43 million but balked at paying the auctioneer fees, which would have brought the price to a record £51.6  million.

Peter Bainbridge, who owns the provincial auction house that “sold” the vase, tried to save the deal by negotiating with the buyer but with no success. After a two-year stalemate, the international auctioneer Bonhams was approached by an interested party to broker a deal. The unidentified buyer from the Far East is believed to have paid up to £25 million for the vase, the bulk of the money going to the Johnson family.

The 16-inch porcelain vase was made for the Chinese emperor Qianlong, who ruled from 1736 to 1795. It was looted from the Imperial Summer Palace during raids by the British and French in 1860. Johnson, 56, from the Isle of Wight, and his elderly mother inherited it from her late sister, Patricia Newman, in January 2010. It had belonged to Patricia’s late husband who had in turn inherited it from an uncle who brought it back from China.

The object attracted great interest from Chinese bidders at the auction in November 2010 where it sold for 40 times its estimate before the dispute erupted. Ivan Macquisten, the editor of Antiques Trades Gazette, called the object “one of the finest pieces ever made in China.”

SOURCE: "Couple’s broken dreams over Chinese vase have a £20 million happy ending" January 16, 2013.