Free Republic

Edra Denise Blixseth, age 55, is tiny, barely 5 feet 3, but she is at the center of a huge financial mess. According to personal bankruptcy papers her lawyer filed in March, she owes $500 million to $1 billion and has assets of barely half that, almost none of them liquid. Earlier this month, the court approved the sale of one of her most prized possessions - the private ski resort in Big Sky, Mont., known as the Yellowstone Club - to the private-equity firm of one of its members for $115 million. Just a year ago, that same buyer,...

MAMMOTH LAKES – The Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, a longtime winter playground for Southern California residents, says it will sell a controlling interest to a private investment firm. The $365 million acquisition will be made by Starwood Capital Groups, led by luxury hotel mogul Barry S. Sternlicht. The move is expected to give the resort an upscale character, unlike the raw, unpolished style developed by founder and co-owner Dave McCoy. The deal will give Starwood 70 percent control and the right to operate 4,000 acres of ski terrain at Mammoth and June mountains and allow for some development. The land...