Sumner Redstone, the Viacom and CBS mogul, is 'a living ghost', says law suit

Sumner Redstone, the 92-year-old executive chairman of Viacom and CBS, is a “living ghost” and prone to uncontrollable crying fits, according to a lawsuit which questions his ability to run the media companies.

The lawsuit filed by Manuela Herzer, one of the billionaire media mogul’s former girlfriends, asks for Redstone to be submitted to a brain scan and demands that he receive a mental examination to determine whether he can still make decisions for himself.

Her claims, however, were disputed by lawyers for Redstone, who say he was evaluated by a doctor on Monday and found to be in good spirits and able to make decisions.

Redstone’s physical and mental health have been the subject of intense debate and speculation, in part because he has been noticeably absent from his companies’ earnings calls this year and has not attended the annual meetings.

Redstone, who coined the phrase “content is king”, controls about 80% of the voting shares in his multi-billion dollar media empire which owns Paramount movie studios and cable channels such as MTV, Comedy Centrl and Nickelodeon.

Herzer, 51, claims in the court documents that Redstone was hospitalised three times in mid-2014, twice for aspiration and pneumonia. This left him with a feeding tube, catheter and the need to have saliva and phlegm suctioned from his throat multiple times day and night.

He can “barely vocalize” and is “emotionally distraught” at his inability to eat or drink, the documents claim.

His signature is like a straight line, “appearing as if someone moved the paper under his pen”.

Herzer had been chosen by Redstone to make healthcare decisions for him in case he was not able to, according to the lawsuit filed at Los Angeles county superior court. But Redstone executed a new agreement on 16 October to remove Herzer as his healthcare agent.

When his then girlfriend of five years, Sydney Holland, left him in August 2015, it sent Redstone on a “precipitous deterioration” of his mental and physical health, the filing says.

“After Ms Holland left, Mr Redstone became a living ghost,” the lawsuit alleges.

But Redstone’s attorney, Gabrielle Vidal, told Reuters the lawsuit was baseless and that Herzer had taken the action so that she would be in a better position to dispute Redstone’s will when he died.

“It is a meritless action, riddled with lies, and a despicable invasion of his privacy. It proves only that Ms Herzer will stop at nothing to pursue her personal financial agenda,” Vidal said. “Herzer’s claim that she filed this lawsuit out of concern for Mr Redstone is preposterous.”

His doctor, Richard Gold, visited him on Monday, the lawyers said, when Redstone “seemed to be his usual self”. While Gold called Redstone’s speech “substantially impaired”, he said his patient was able to make his own medical decisions.

After his death, Redstone’s ownership interest in the companies will be overseen by a group of seven trustees, including his daughter Shari Redstone and Viacom chief executive Philippe Dauman.

The filings also claim that Shari and her father are estranged.