I am in desperate trouble

Posted By: Peter DavidPosted On:

I was going to post this tomorrow but then realized people might think it’s an April Fool’s joke, so I’m doing it today.

Pretty much everyone has private things that have happened to them that they don’t want to discuss publicly. Well…this is mine.

Many years ago I had a television series on the air called “Space Cases.” And I made a lot of money that year. I mean a lot. And I had a ton of money sitting in my bank account ready to send to the IRS on April 15th. It was all good.

And then the day that I was going to send the check, I swung by the nearest ATM to withdraw some cash and was astounded to see that half the money in my account was gone. Why was it gone? Because my then wife withdrew it in order to pay for a divorce lawyer, which was how I found out my marriage was dissolving. So the money never went to the IRS because I had to use the remainder to hire my own attorney.

Over the years, I never managed to land another project that would pay me that much. I had lots of people make promises–I even did the work for some of them–and none ever came up with the money. Meanwhile I tried to make payment arrangements with the IRS but they didn’t last, because throughout the year I’d send in the payments but then on April 15 I had no money to pay the income tax because I’d already sent them all my spare money.

Then they seemed to just forget about it. Which was great.

Except recently they now seem to have remembered. And they want all the money, plus penalty and interest, or they are going to financially destroy me.

How much? $88,000.

So I’m asking you guys.

I’d love to say that we want the money because we want to repair the house, which is in desperate need, but that’s not the case. Every cent is going straight to the government.

Is it possible? Well, I have 5000 Facebook followers. If they each sent $10, that would get me halfway. I have over 13,000 Twitter followers. If they each sent $10, I’d be in the clear with money to pay any taxes due on the new income.

My Paypal account is padguy@aol.com. Don’t use the donate button on this site; that will send the money to the Heroes Initiative.

Do you want to get something for the money? Fine: Send a check to my PO Box, PO Box 951, Bayport, NY 11705 along with books of mine and a SASE and I’ll sign them and send them back. That’s something, I guess.

I’m sure that there are people out there who will be overjoyed that I’m having financial difficulties, but I’m hoping the rest of you will not judge me too harshly and help me out.

PAD

85 comments on “I am in desperate trouble”

  1. Hello PAD

    I can’t imagine how desperate you are. But I don’t known if your health allow you to offer some rewards for some substantial donations like autographs or some minutes talking to you by Skype/etc. This may help you to reach a better amount. I don’t want this kind of reward (at least not under these circumstances) – but maybe it may help to achieve better numbers.

    Regards

  2. I sent the 10, thanks for great runs on Hulk and Young Justice and more. Good Luck.

  3. I am sorry to hear about your troubles. I’ll see if I can resurrect my paypal account tonight after work. You’ve given me too much joy in my life to begrudge some help.

    Since you note that this has been an ongoing issue with the IRS, I assume that you know what type of communications are and are not scams. Phone calls from some “IRS guy” that you need to arrange payment right there over the phone or you’re going to be destroyed are almost always scams and if you were contacted by phone by someone you’ve never heard of, you might want to contact the IRS via one of there 800 numbers listed at IRS.gov and see if you can confirm this.

  5. A small donation has been sent. Hopefully together we can help, we should always take care of our own!

  8. I am a big fan of your work and I just sent you a donation. I hope it helps. I know just what you are going through, me ex-wife dumped a bunch of debt on me after our divorce.

  9. Pingback: Peter David needs some help... - Tales from the Longbox

  10. Funds en route but also I have been in your position and have some ideas that may help mitigate the damage (if you haven’t tried them already)-please feel free to reach out directly.

  11. So sorry to hear this. A donation is on the way. It isn’t much, but any amount pales in comparison to the wonderful stories you’ve given us over the years.

  13. My small part to help you out has been sent. Thanks for the countless hours of enjoyment with your writing.

  14. There’s no shame in this, Peter—in its broad outline, this is a common story, though creators hate to talk about it for obvious reasons. Emma and I are hoping for a happier update soon.

  15. Headed to donate now. Of the few times I’ve laughed out loud reading a comic, your books feature prominently. Great work. Your Hulk run especially comes to mind, and looking forward to your new stuff. Cheers.

  18. I’m sending you a gift, but I also want to encourage you to hire a CPA who is an Enrolled Agent (means they can negotiate with the IRS on your behalf) to work out an Offer In Compromise. If nothing else, they will likely be able to negotiate a reduction in penalties, especially given your health challenges. How do I know this? I have been in a very similar position myself, and had a very good outcome with the IRS.

    Best to you.

    1. My thought exactly – I’m an attorney, though not a tax one. However, I’ve had many clients able to make financial arrangements with IRS as JMS outlined or through a lawyer. The amount you spend on either could reap you savings. At least go consult with an expert.

  21. I hate to hear that one of the best writers of my generation is in trouble.

    Have you looked into The firms that will help you negotiate with the IRS even for a debt this old. Before you hand over everything to the IRS, wouldn’t hurt to look into this. They all do free consultation. There are good ones with A+ Better Business Ratings that could bring this amount down and even after you pay them, you’d still pay less.

    You CAN Negotiate with the IRS and pay less – an “offer in Compromise” is what they call it, and these firms can help you.

    Yes, you still need to raise the funds, but I don’t think your fans will let you down. Raise the $88.000 THEN find a firm to handle an offer in compromise.

  22. Hi, I have sent you $10 via paypal from the UK. Hope it helps. So sorry to hear of your difficulties. No reward required but as I said in my message on paypal new Star Trek New Frontier books to buy are always great to see. Here in the UK it is national kindness day so this is my small contribution to show how much kindness and love there is out there in this troubled world.

  24. Hi Peter,

    I’ve enjoyed your work over the years. And I can’t imagine the heartache you must be going through to make this public. I’m not trying to take advantage of your difficult times; however, you strike me as the sort of person who would rather not resort to out-and-out charity. I publish an anthology title, Meanwhile… where I’m always looking for decent stories. If you happen to have a stand-alone trunk story that I could buy, and give to one of the illustrators I have who need a script, I would be able to offer a really so-so page rate. (At least I’m being honest.) If this isn’t the direction you want to go, please let me know and I’ll tip in the tenner you’ve asked for.

    Kind regards,

    John Anderson

  28. You know I love ya, Peter, donation sent. Will also be auctioning off a splash page from the Stan Lee book and the money is yours.

  29. Seconded on the Taxpayer Advocate office. I had a tax problem a few years back that was not my fault, but I couldn’t navigate the system well enough to get them to understand that until an Advocate got involved.

    Is the GoFundMe legit?

  30. sent $10.00.

    Glad to help after all the great novels and comics of yours I’ve enjoyed over the years.

  32. I was in your boat when the industry crashed in the 90s and my income dropped 75% in one year. Before that my income always went up every year. All I can tell you is there are tax attorneys who deal with these situations and can get you a deal for much, much less than what you owe. You just need to get one fast and work out a deal. They will often settle for 10% of your debt.

  33. Just be aware that the IRS will consider any donations you’re given for this to be taxable income in its own right. So keep a record of the donations and include them on your tax return or they’ll come back and nail you again.

    1. I don’t doubt you, Cal, but that is some hardcore BS right there. Short of sending a letter with a $10 bill inside is there anyway that one could send their already taxed personal money as a gift to someone, to use as they wish???

      1. Bill,
        .
        I actually thought about that after donating this afternoon, but the only thing I could think of may not be feasible.
        .
        Peter posted a PO Box address to send checks. I as thinking that the checks could be made out directly to the Internal Revenue Service (however they have to have the “payment to” bit written out) rather than to Peter, but I don’t know if the IRS would still see that as paying Peter or gifting cash to him and tax it anyway.

      2. My $10 will be sent out hopefully tomorrow, when my new bankcard shows up (the previous bankcard having been invalidated when Wells Fargo wisely wondered about sudden purchases at Victoria’s Secret many miles from where I live).

        For the good friends I would not otherwise have were it not for this blog, it is a pittance. I wish I could give more.

      3. Well, I hope you bought yourself something nice, Bill. 😉

        My contribution is in the GoFundMe database.

    2. …ish. There’s been some issues with gofundme and the like, because those tend to be paid out in large chunks by a third party. Generally there’s an amount for personal gifts that’s excluded; as of the last time I was paying any attention that was $10,000.

      So more likely than not a bunch of individual $10 or $36 or whatevers showing up in paypal would be fine, but yes, whatever tax professional is helping deal with this should be asked about it.

      1. Gift tax is paid by the giver, not the receiver. The annual exemption for givers is $14,000, but I doubt that’s relevant here. Mr. David will not owe any tax on outright gifts, full stop.

    3. Seconding that gifts are not taxable except bye the giver and then rarely. Lifetime max is 5.x million. Also, I would be skeptical that using the service gofundme as a go-between matters in any way. Then again, I wouldn’t listen to twits like us. How do you know which twit is right. I do know that I did did taxes professionally, but I also know that he doesn’t know if that’s true. 🙂

  34. Peter Parker #112 is the reason I love comics. Not the first comic that I ever read and not the best comic I’ve ever read, but it was the magical one where something in the pages sparked my love of the medium. I’ve long credited you with that and I’ve wanted to thank you for it for years. Finally I have my chance.

  36. Dear Peter, I am sending you something in the mail. I used to run into you at cons ages ago (Carol Korish -sp- introduced us when you were new at Marvel…) I hope your problem gets settled, try not to let it stress you out more than it doubtlessly already has. Best wishes.

  38. Peter,
    For all the joy you’ve given me over the years with your writing, for all the times you’ve been cool to me at conventions, I am glad to help. I wish it could be more. I’ve been in your shoes before, and believe me that the only thing harder than being in a situation like that is asking for help. Good luck. Please keep us posted.
    Andrew

  39. I send $10 to PAD. I’ve enjoyed meeting and emailing him numerous times, so I don’t need another signature for me to help him out, even if it’s only a little. Best of luck!

  40. I’ll send you $10. It’s the least I could do, since you’ve been entertaining me since the 80s. If it makes you feel any better I’m a Grassroots Fundraiser, and I’m way behind on quota, so I need to raise $300 tomorrow to keep my job.

  41. I’m not a fan of sending checks to po boxes. If you set up a go fund me, I’ll donate.

  42. I’m glad to help, especially after all the years of entertainment that you’ve brought to us.

  43. Sent a donation via paypal. Appreciate all your work over the years. Good luck.

  44. Donated by PayPal. That seemed easier than doing the math to make sure I paid for the gofundme fees. You’ve been incredibly gracious to my son at DragonCon, and written so many things I’ve loved, I’m glad to help you out. See you in a few months.

  45. I loved Space Cases! That was a lot of fun and introduced us to Jewel Staite of Kaylee fame. I will speak to my wife about sending some money your way.

  46. Peter, something is messed up with my paypal. I am mailing you a check tomorrow. It should arrive Tuesday or Wednesday. Good luck man. Your work has provided a lot of pleasure to me and this is the least I can do.

    Dennis Donohoe

  47. Peter, I don’t know you from the man in the Moon, but I want to help…I will help. How about upping the ante and promise to write a short story with an allegory to the IRS as the villain? This evil organization that raids homes, harasses the innocent, and steals our money is the worst. It could be a partially humorous story. And it would be a challenge.

  48. Jesus. I had no idea.

    I just sent $100 via PayPal. Let me know that it got through, Peter. Hope it helps. 🙂

Comments are closed.