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Legendary Tech Billionaire’s Iconic Luxury Yacht Is Still an Awe-Inspiring Masterpiece

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The fabulous life of billionaire Netscape founder Jim Clark

Source: The Almanac

Clark is a high school dropout from Plainview, Texas. After getting his GED, B.S. and ph.D., he went on to become a professor of electrical engineering at Stanford. He founded visual effects company Silicon Graphics in 1982 and Netscape with Marc Andreessen in 1994.

Source: Forbes

With the success of Netscape and its incredibly popular Navigator browser, Clark and Andreessen became the first to capitalize on the World Wide Web. Clark's wealth grew after the company's extremely successful IPO in August 1995. He later became a billionaire thanks to timely investments in Apple and Facebook.

Source: Daily Mail

Clark has developed a number of expensive hobbies in the 20 years since Netscape's IPO. As a former Navy man, sailing is perhaps his number one passion. His latest watercraft is the new 100-foot monohull sailboat he named "Comanche." Though he hasn't shared how much the boat cost to build, he told the Australian Associated Press, "Boats of this type are sort of like building a Formula 1 car. They are expensive."

"Comanche" faced its first test in December, when Clark's crew competed in a 630-mile race from Sydney, Australia to Hobart, the capital of Tasmania. Though the boat finished second in the race, Clark has big plans for the next few months. "I do think it will break quite a few records," he said to the Australian Associated Press.

Source: Wired , "The New New Thing"

Clark's first yacht was "Hyperion," which he customized to essentially be a computer on the water. The 157-foot J-class yacht, which has since been sold for an undisclosed amount, has 22 touchscreens and a total 40 miles of wiring.

Source: Wired , "The New New Thing"

Source: Forbes , Yachting

He also owns two other J-class yachts: 136-foot "Hanuman" and 295-foot "Athena." He listed them for a combined $113 million in 2012, though the listing price for "Athena" recently dropped from $95 million to $75 million.

Source: Palm Beach Illustrated

Clark has been married four times. He married current wife Kristy Hinze in an exclusive ceremony on Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands in 2009. 35-year-old Hinze is an Australian model and TV personality who has appeared in Sports Illustrated and the Victoria's Secret catalogue. The couple has two young daughters together.

To celebrate Clark's 70th birthday last year, Hinze threw a three-day party at the luxurious Casa de Campo resort in the Dominican Republic. The soiree included a live performance from Jason Mraz.

Source: TIME

Clark's family has many connections to the tech community. Kathy Clark, his daughter from a previous marriage, is married to YouTube cofounder Chad Hurley.

Source: The Cove

Clark is also well-known in some Hollywood circles. He was the executive producer of "The Cove," a documentary that exposes secret dolphin-hunting practices taking place in a hidden cove in Taiji, Japan. The film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary in 2009. Here he poses with actor Ben Stiller at a special screening of "The Cove" in New York City.

Click here to see the townhouse »

Clark certainly has the real estate portfolio you'd expect from a billionaire. He recently paid $37 million for the Upper East Side townhouse that previously belonged to Listerine heiress Bunny Mellon.

Click here to see the townhouse »

Source: New York Post

And last month the New York Post revealed that the Netscape billionaire was the mystery buyer of Ron Howard's Armonk, N.Y. home, which he paid $37.5 million for in July 2014. The home has plenty of luxurious amenities, including a pool, sports facility, barn, greenhouse, and observatory.

Source: New York Times , Palm Beach Illustrated

In 1999, Clark paid $11 million for the opulent Il Palmetto estate in Palm Beach, Florida. Originally built in 1930 by noted architect Maurice Fatio, the mansion has been extensively renovated by Clark.

Source: Business Insider , Miami New Times

He also previously owned a 6,200-square-foot apartment at Miami's posh Setai Resort and Residences. He sold the penthouse for $21.5 million in 2011.

Source: Businessweek

Though he spends much of his time in Florida and New York and on the high seas, he previously made his home in the ritzy Silicon Valley town of Atherton. According to local legend, Clark once had to come up with a creative solution when he discovered that his neighbors could see directly into his home. He wanted to build a taller fence, but since that would be against Atherton zoning rules, he brought in enough dirt to build a hill in his backyard, raising the height of the fence.

Source: Sotheby\'s , Sotheby\'s

But homes aren't the only things this billionaires collects. A longtime wine connoisseur, he has a collection that's rumored to contain as many as 40,000 bottles, mostly from the Burgundy region of France. "I may have gotten overly enthusiastic about it," Clark told Sotheby's. "I have more wine than I can ever drink." In November 2014, he sold a selection of wines that fetched nearly $2.6 million at a Sotheby's auction.

Source: Sotheby's , Sotheby's

He also has an extensive art collection and is rumored to own pieces by such big names as Monet, Matisse, Picasso, and Van Gogh.

Source: Daily Mail , "The New New Thing"

He owns a Gulfstream jet, which he uses for both business and pleasure.

Source: Daily Mail , "The New New Thing"

Source: "The New New Thing"

According to a particularly memorable account from Michael Lewis' book "The New New Thing," Clark owned a McDonnell Douglas helicopter that he learned to fly himself. According to Lewis, Clark loved the helicopter so much he had considered buying the company that made it.

Source: "The New New Thing"

Source: Stanford News Service

Clark is a noted philanthropist as well. In 1999, he donated $150 million to fund a biomedical engineering center at Stanford. That donation remains one of the largest gifts the university has ever receieved. He also makes yearly donations to New York's Perlman Music Program.

The fabulous life of Notch, the hard-partying founder of Minecraft »

Now read about another wealthy tech founder..

The fabulous life of Notch, the hard-partying founder of Minecraft »

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The fabulous life of billionaire Netscape founder Jim Clark

Silicon Valley legend Jim Clark made it big when Netscape, the web browser company he founded with Marc Andreessen, went public in 1995.

Twenty years later, Clark is  worth an estimated $1.5 billion , thanks in part to large timely investments in Apple, Facebook, and Twitter.

Clark lives the life one would expect of a billionaire, with multiple mansions, racing yachts, private jets, and a model wife. 

Clark is a high-school dropout from Plainview, Texas. After getting his GED, B.S., and Ph.D., he went on to become a professor of electrical engineering at Stanford. He founded the visual-effects company Silicon Graphics in 1982 and Netscape with Marc Andreessen in 1994.

Source: The Almanac

With the success of Netscape and its incredibly popular Navigator browser, Clark and Andreessen became the first to capitalize on the World Wide Web. Clark's wealth grew after the company's extremely successful IPO in August 1995. He later became a billionaire thanks to timely investments in Apple and Facebook.

Source: Forbes

Clark has developed numerous expensive hobbies in the 20 years since Netscape's IPO. As a former Navy man, Clark is perhaps most passionate about sailing. His latest watercraft is the new 100-foot monohull sailboat he named "Comanche." Though he hasn't shared how much the boat cost to build, he told the Australian Associated Press, "Boats of this type are sort of like building a Formula 1 car. They are expensive."

Source: Daily Mail

"Comanche" faced its first test in December, when Clark's crew competed in a 630-mile race from Sydney to Hobart, the capital of Tasmania. Though the boat finished second in the race, Clark has big plans for the next few months. "I do think it will break quite a few records," he said to the Australian Associated Press.

Source:  Daily Mail  

Clark's first yacht was "Hyperion," which he customized to essentially be a computer on the water. The 157-foot J-class yacht, which has since been sold for an undisclosed amount, has 22 touch screens and 40 miles of wiring.

Source: Wired , "The New New Thing"

He also owns two other J-class yachts: 136-foot "Hanuman" and 295-foot "Athena." He listed them for a combined $113 million in 2012, though the listing price for "Athena" recently dropped to $75 million from $95 million.

Source: Forbes , Yachting

Clark has been married four times. He married current wife Kristy Hinze in an exclusive ceremony on Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands in 2009. Hinze, 35, is an Australian model and TV personality who has appeared in Sports Illustrated and the Victoria's Secret catalogue. The couple has two young daughters together.

Source: Palm Beach Illustrated

To celebrate Clark's 70th birthday last year, Hinze threw a three-day party at the luxurious Casa de Campo resort in the Dominican Republic. The soiree included a live performance from Jason Mraz.

 Source: Daily Mail

Clark's family has many connections to the tech community. Kathy Clark, his daughter from a previous marriage, is married to YouTube cofounder Chad Hurley.

  Source: Time

Clark is also well known in some Hollywood circles. He was the executive producer of "The Cove," a documentary that exposes secret dolphin-hunting practices taking place in a hidden cove in Taiji, Japan. The film won the Academy Award for best documentary in 2009. Here he poses with actor Ben Stiller at a special screening of "The Cove" in New York City.

Source: The Cove

Clark certainly has the real-estate portfolio one would expect from a billionaire. He recently paid $37 million for the Upper East Side townhouse that previously belonged to Listerine heiress Bunny Mellon.

Click here to see the townhouse »

And last month the New York Post revealed that the Netscape billionaire was the mystery buyer of Ron Howard's Armonk, New York, home, which he paid $37.5 million for in July. The home has plenty of luxurious amenities, including a pool, sports facility, barn, greenhouse, and observatory.

Source: New York Post

In 1999, Clark paid $11 million for the opulent Il Palmetto estate in Palm Beach, Florida. Originally built in 1930 by noted architect Maurice Fatio, the mansion has been extensively renovated by Clark.

Source: New York Times , Palm Beach Illustrated

Clark also previously owned a 6,200-square-foot apartment at Miami's posh Setai Resort and Residences. He sold the penthouse for $21.5 million in 2011.

Source: Business Insider , Miami New Times

Though Clark spends much of his time in Florida and New York and on the high seas, he previously made his home in the ritzy Silicon Valley town of Atherton. According to local legend, Clark once had to come up with a creative solution when he discovered that his neighbors could see directly into his home. He wanted to build a taller fence, but because that would be against Atherton zoning rules, he brought in enough dirt to build a hill in his backyard, raising the height of the fence.

Source: Businessweek

But homes aren't the only things this billionaire collects. A longtime wine connoisseur, Clark has a collection that is rumored to contain as many as 40,000 bottles, mostly from the Burgundy region of France. "I may have gotten overly enthusiastic about it," Clark told Sotheby's. "I have more wine than I can ever drink." In November he sold a selection of wines that fetched nearly $2.6 million at a Sotheby's auction.

Source: Sotheby's , Sotheby's

Clark also has an extensive art collection and is rumored to own pieces by such big names as Monet, Matisse, Picasso, and Van Gogh.

Source:  Forbes

Clark owns a Gulfstream jet, which he uses for both business and pleasure.

Source: Daily Mail ,  "The New New Thing"

According to a particularly memorable account from Michael Lewis' book "The New New Thing," Clark owned a McDonnell Douglas helicopter that he learned to fly. According to Lewis, Clark loved the helicopter so much he had considered buying the company that made it.

Source:  "The New New Thing"

Clark is a noted philanthropist as well. In 1999, he donated $150 million to fund a biomedical engineering center at Stanford. That donation remains one of the largest gifts the university has ever received. He also makes yearly donations to New York's Perlman Music Program.

Source: Stanford News Service

Now read about another wealthy tech founder.

The fabulous life of Notch, the hard-partying founder of Minecraft »

• Main content

• Yachting World
• Digital Edition

J Class: the enduring appeal of the world’s most majestic yachts

• October 9, 2023

Only ten J Class yachts were built before the Second World War stopped the movement in its tracks, but in the last 20 years these magnificent sloops have made an incredible comeback. Why has the J Class remained irresistable? David Glenn explains.

One of the most awe-inspiring sights in modern yachting is the Spirit of Tradition fleet blasting off the start line at the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta. It happens every year at the end of April. Chances are it will include at least two J Class yachts, hitting the line on the gun at full tilt, exploding through the cobalt blue Caribbean rollers at anything up to 12 knots as they charge upwind.

Watching Velsheda , Ranger , Shamrock V and Endeavour will bring a lump to your throat, such is the emotion generated by these beautifully proportioned 130ft racing machines with their carbon rigs driving 170 tonnes of steel, aluminium and teak towards the weather mark. It’s heady stuff.

Watching them is one thing; racing quite another matter. In 1999 I was aboard the rebuilt Velsheda , taking part in the Antigua Classic Regatta. I had a single task as part of a four-man team – to tend the forward starboard runner. Nothing else. “Let that go once we’ve tacked and the whole rig comes down,” warned skipper Simon Bolt, as another wall of water thundered down the leeward deck and tried to rip me from the winch.

Dressed in authentic off-white, one-piece cotton boiler-suits, which had to be worn with a stout belt “so there’s something to grab if you go overboard”, they were tough, adrenaline-filled days out. God knows what it was like up forward as massive spinnakers were peeled and headsails weighing a quarter of a tonne were wrestled to the  needle-sharp foredeck as the bow buried itself into the back of yet another wave. Sometimes you daren’t look.

But with the race won or lost, back on the dock the feeling of elation, fuelled by being part of the 36-strong crew aboard one of these extraordinary yachts, triggered a high like no other. You knew you were playing a role, no matter how small, in a legendary story that began in 1930, was halted by World War II and then defied the pundits by opening another chapter 20 years ago. Today with five Js in commission, all in racing trim, and at least two more new examples about to be launched, the J Class phenomenon is back.

Why is the J Class so popular?

Why does a yacht with an arguably unexciting performance – they go upwind at 12 knots and downwind at 12 knots – costing £20 million to build and demanding eye-watering running costs, seem to be burgeoning during the worst recession since the class was born?

There is no single answer, but you only have to look back to the 1930s and the characters that owned and raced the Js on both sides of the Atlantic, sometimes for the America’s Cup , to understand why the class occupies a special place in yachting history. Underlying everything is the look of the J Class. It seems to transcend any change in yachting vogue, displaying a timeless line with outrageous overhangs and a proportion of hull to rig that is hard to better.

They possess true elegance. There is no doubt that captains of industry who want to flex their sporting muscle have been drawn to a class which only the very rich can afford and there are distinct parallels between J owners in the 1930s and those of the past 20 years. The difference is that in the 1930s owners liked to shout about their achievements and hogged the pages of national newspapers. Today, they are as quiet as mice.

Origins of the J Class

The J Class emerged in 1930 and marked a quantum leap in yachting technology, but comprised a hotchpotch of design altered over many years.

The J Class – so named because it was the letter allocated to its particular size by the Universal Rule to which the yachts were built (K and M Class yachts were, for example, shorter on the waterline) – emerged in 1930 and marked a quantum leap in yachting technology.

The so-called Big Class, which flourished in the UK in the 1920s, was impressive, but comprised a hotchpotch of design altered over many years. Yachts like King George V’s Britannia , built in 1893 as a gaff-rigged cutter but converted in the 1920s to Bermudan rig to rate as a J, Candida , Cambria , White Heather and schooners like Westward were even larger and more expensive to run. But as the greater efficiency of the Marconi or Bermudan rig became apparent their days were numbered.

One catalyst for the J Class itself was legendary grocer Sir Thomas Lipton’s final crack at challenging for the America’s Cup in 1931. He did so under the Universal Rule with the composite, wooden-planked, Charles E. Nicholson-design Shamrock V .

It was the 14th challenge since 1851 and the Americans, despite the withering effects of the Great Depression, reacted in dramatic fashion, organising their defence with four syndicates, each bulging with millionaires, putting forward separate Js: Enterprise , Whirlwind , Weetamoe and Yankee , which apart from Enterprise had already been launched.

Key to the American effort was the remarkable Harold Vanderbilt of the New York Yacht Club, who had inherited fabulous wealth from the family’s railroad companies, making him one of the country’s richest men.

Brought up on the family’s Idle Hour estate on Long Island Sound, he was a keen and accomplished sailor, and he used American technology and teamwork to build a far superior J in Enterprise. The defence completely overwhelmed Lipton’s effort. The British press castigated Lipton’s lack of preparedness and old-fashioned attitude. Vanderbilt, who among other things is credited with inventing contract bridge, left no stone unturned. “Mr. Harold Vanderbilt does not exactly go boat-sailing because summer is the closed season for fox-hunting,” stated an acerbic critic in the British yachting press.

Later when Shamrock was owned by aircraft builder Sir Richard Fairey and was being used to train crew for another Cup challenge, Beecher Moore, a skilful dinghy sailor who was draughted aboard the J to try to sort her out, reported in Yachts and Yachting many years later: “We found that when we got on board it was very much like a well-run country house, in that the gentleman does not go into the kitchen and on a well-run J Class the owner does not go forward of the mast.”

J Class tactics: Britain vs USA

A look at the huge gap between the British and American J Class tactics and designs in the early years of the America’s Cup.

In the early days there was a yawning gap between the way the Americans and British approached the Cup and, for that matter, how they ran a yacht. Revolutionary metal masts, Park Avenue booms to improve sail shape (the British copied this American design with their ‘North Circular’ version), bronze hulls that needed no painting, superior sails, and campaigns that cost £100,000 even in those days, blew away the Brits. Lipton had spent just £30,000 to build and equip Shamrock .

In the second Cup challenge in Js, in 1934, Sir T. O. M. Sopwith’s first Endeavour , also designed by Nicholson and equipped with wind instruments designed by her aircraft industrialist owner, nearly won the Cup, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory after leading the series 0-2. Sopwith was also up against Vanderbilt, who this time sailed Rainbow , which many considered to be the slower boat. But the British campaign was hobbled by a pay dispute – Endeavour ’s crew got £5 a week but they wanted a raise for ‘going foreign’ – and the campaign approach was again brought into question when the first thing to be stripped off the yacht when they won a dispute over reducing weight was the bath!

Back in Britain, the 1935 season proved to be the zenith of J Class and Big Class racing, although by the end of it the Js were under the cosh for their tendency to lose masts. Five went over the side that year and Endeavour II , launched with en eye on the next Cup challenge, lost hers twice.

There was added spice in the competition off the shores of the UK with the arrival of the American J Yankee , now owned by millionaire and Listerine businessman Gerard Lambert, who enjoyed sparring with the Brits. But even Yankee lost her mast and the press rounded on the class for being dangerous and wasteful! That wasn’t enough to stop Sopwith, whose tail had been extracted from between his legs following the last defeat in Newport: Endeavour II was towed across the Atlantic in a veritable armada that included  the first Endeavour. The British yachts found themselves up against the most advanced sailing machine the world had ever seen – Ranger , dubbed ‘the Super J’.

Vanderbilt was the man to beat again. Not only had he bankrolled the entire defence as American business remained beset by a struggling economy, but he used highly scientific means to perfect design. The brilliant naval architect Starling Burgess, who had designed for Vanderbilt throughout the 1930s, was now aided by the equally brilliant but considerably more youthful Olin Stephens. Between them they finally selected ‘model 77-C’ from six tank tested.

The yacht was considered ugly by some and not a natural to look at, but Vanderbilt’s team trusted the science (still the difference between the Americans and the Brits) and Ranger with her bluff or barrel bow and ‘low slung’ counter was the result. She proved to be dynamite on the race course and Endeavour II didn’t stand a chance. She was beaten in five straight races by large margins. The Americans and Vanderbilt had done it again. War then brought an end to an extraordinary era in yachting.

Only ten J Class yachts were built to the Universal rule and not a single American yacht survived. Most were scrapped for the war effort. In any case, the American way was to discard the machine once it has served its purpose. In Britain they faired a little better, and some Js were mud-berthed on the East and South Coasts. Two survived in the UK: Velsheda , originally built by the businessman who ran Woolworths in the UK (W. L. Stevenson named her after his daughters Velma, Sheila and Daphne), but which never challenged for the America’s Cup; and Endeavour , saved by becoming a houseboat on the Hamble. Shamrock ended up in Italy and survived the war hidden in a hay barn.

J Class resurgence

Seemingly resigned to the history books, the J Class made a triumphant return in the 1980s.

In his seminal book about the J Class, Enterprise to Endeavour, yachting historian Ian Dear predicted in the first edition in 1977 that the likes of the Js would never be seen again. By the time the fourth edition was published in 1999 he was quite happily eating his words!

The American Elizabeth Meyer was, without doubt, instrumental in bringing the class back to life when in the 1980s she extracted what was left of Endeavour from a  amble mud-berth, began rebuilding her in Calshot, and then moved her to Royal Huisman in Holland, who completed the restoration superbly. With the transom of the original Ranger mounted on a bulkhead in her saloon, Endeavour is still regarded as one of the best-looking and potentially fastest Js.

She was owned briefly by Dennis Kozlowski, the disgraced tycoon who ran Tyco, who famously said: “No one really owns Endeavour, she’s part of yachting history. I’m delighted to be the current caretaker.” Unfortunately he ended up in prison and the State of New York became Endeavour’s ‘caretaker’ before they sold her to her current owner, who has kept the yacht in the Pacific. She’s currently being refitted in New Zealand.

Ronald de Waal is a Dutchman who until recently was chairman of the Saks Group in the USA and has made a fortune in clothing. He has dedicated a lot of time to improving Velsheda over the years since he had her rebuilt by Southampton Yacht Services to a reconfigured design by Dutch naval architect Gerry Dykstra. Ronald de Waal steers the yacht himself to great effect and has had some legendary tussles with Ranger, the new Super J built in Denmark for American realestate magnate John Williams.

The rivalry between the two is fierce and even led to a collision between the yachts in Antigua last year. But Velsheda would have been lost had it not been for British scrap-metal merchant Terry Brabant who saved her from a muddy grave on  the Hamble and famously sold his Rolls-Royce to cast a new lead keel for the yacht. With very little modern equipment he sailed her hard in the Solent, chartering her and crossing the Atlantic for a Caribbean season, all without an engine! Without Brabant’s initiative Ronald de Waal wouldn’t have what he has today.

Shamrock V is owned by a Brazilian telecommunications businessman Marcos de Moraes who had the yacht rebuilt at Pendennis Shipyard in Falmouth in 2001. He tends to keep away from the race course but with a number of events being planned in the run-up to the 2012 London Olympics he might be tempted back. The latest new J to launch, Hanuman, a modern interpretation of Endeavour II, has recently entered the racing fray. She was commissioned by serial yacht owner Jim Clark (Hyperion and Athena), the American who brought us Netscape and Silicon Graphics, and who remains a colossus in Silicon Valley.

Hanuman, named after a Hindu deity, built by Royal Huisman and designed by Gerry Dykstra, has had no expense spared when it comes to rig and sail wardrobe. Last year she beat Ranger in the Newport Bucket but in March this year she lost out 2-1 to the same boat at the St Barths Bucket. They were due to meet again with Velsheda at the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta in April. Another Dutchman, property developer Chris Gongriep, who has owned a number of yachts including Sapphire and Windrose of Amsterdam, has given the go-ahead for a new  version of Rainbow, which is well advanced in Holland at Freddie Bloesma’s aluminium hull fabrication yard. The yacht, reconfigured by Gerry Dykstra, will be in the water in 2011 with a full-on race programme.

About to be launched is Lionheart, the biggest J so far, redesigned by Andre Hoek and built in Holland by Claasen Jachtbouw, after an extensive research programme.  Unfortunately, her owner’s business commitments mean that he won’t be able to enjoy the fruits of this project – she’s for sale with Yachting Partners International and Hoek Brokerage. What an opportunity to join a class with such a remarkable history and one which looks destined to run and run!

First published on SuperYachtWorld.com on Aug 4, 2010

ATHENA Royal Huisman

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If you have any questions about the ATHENA information page below please contact us .

A Summary of Sailing Yacht ATHENA

Originating from the Royal Huisman ship building company in the Netherlands the ATHENA is 90 m 295 (ft) in length. Completed in 2005 the comparatively recent interior design and decor confirms the capabilities from Rebecca Bradley Interior Design and their approach to interior yacht design. Superyacht ATHENA is able to accommodate up to 12 passengers with 22 crew. She is a recent triple masted schooner. She will reach a maximum speed of 19 knots.

The classic beauty ATHENA is a clipper bowed triple masted schooner that was built for internet entrepreneur James H Clark who already owned the 47,4m sailing yacht HYPERION. ATHENA was the winner of the Show Boats International Award for Best Sailing Yacht over 40 Meters in 2004

The New Build & Naval Architecture of Luxury Yacht ATHENA

Dijkstra & Partners was the naval architect involved in the formal nautical design work for ATHENA. Also the company Dijkstra & Partners and Pieter Beeldsnijder Design expertly collaborated on this project. Interior designer Rebecca Bradley Interior Design was commissioned for the overall interior styling. Created at Royal Huisman this vessel was constructed in the Netherlands. She was officially launched in Vollenhove in 2005 before being delivered to the owner. Her core hull was crafted from aluminium. The sailing yacht superstructure component is fabricated mostly from aluminium. The total length of the luxury yacht on deck is 77.04 (252.76 ft). With a width of 12.2 m / 40.03 ft ATHENA has impressive interior. She has a deep draught of 5.77m (18.93ft). She had refit improvement and modification carried out by 2008.

The Main Engines And The Crusie Speed That S/Y ATHENA is Able To Achieve:

The 3516B engine powering the yacht is built by CATERPILLAR. Her propulsion units are twin screw propellers (wartsila 4 blades). The main engine of the ship gives 2000 horse power (or 1492 kilowatts). She is equiped with 2 engines. The sum output for the yacht is therefore 4000 HP or 2943 KW. The bow thrusters are Holland Roer.

Aboard Superyacht ATHENA She Caters For The Following Guest Accommodation Layout:

Having cabins for a maximum of 12 yacht guests staying on board, the ATHENA accommodates them luxuriously. Under normal conditions she utilises circa 22 professional crewmembers to run.

A List of the Specifications of the ATHENA:

Further Information On The Yacht

Around October 2009 ATHENA visited Newport, in United States. ATHENA also traveled the location including Newport County during October 2009. The yacht was built with Heinen & Hopman A/C. ATHENA features a teak deck.

ATHENA Disclaimer:

The luxury yacht ATHENA displayed on this page is merely informational and she is not necessarily available for yacht charter or for sale, nor is she represented or marketed in anyway by CharterWorld. This web page and the superyacht information contained herein is not contractual. All yacht specifications and informations are displayed in good faith but CharterWorld does not warrant or assume any legal liability or responsibility for the current accuracy, completeness, validity, or usefulness of any superyacht information and/or images displayed. All boat information is subject to change without prior notice and may not be current.

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Captain of Sunken Lynch Family Yacht Declines to Answer Investigators' Questions

Captain of Sunken Lynch Family Yacht Declines to Answer Investigators' Questions

FILE PHOTO: Rescue personnel work next to the body bag containing the corpse of British entrepreneur Mike Lynch, who died when a yacht owned by his family sank off the coast of Porticello, near the Sicilian city of Palermo, Italy, August 22, 2024. REUTERS/Louiza Vradi/File Photo

PALERMO, Italy (Reuters) - The captain of the luxury yacht owned by the family of British tech magnate Mike Lynch that sank off Sicily last week declined to respond to prosecutors during questioning on Tuesday, one of his lawyers said.

James Cutfield, a 51-year old New Zealand national, was put under investigation on Monday by Italian prosecutors.

"The captain exercised his right to remain silent for two fundamental reasons," lawyer Giovanni Rizzuti told reporters.

"First, he's very worn out. Second, we were appointed only on Monday and for a thorough and correct defence case we need to acquire a set of data that at the moment we don't have."

Lynch and six other people were killed when the British-flagged Bayesian, a 56-metre-long (184-foot) yacht, capsized and sank on Aug. 19 within minutes of being hit by a pre-dawn storm while anchored off northern Sicily.

Being placed under investigation in Italy does not imply guilt and does not mean formal charges will necessarily follow. It is still unclear whether other crew members or other people will also be placed under investigation.

Prosecutors said their investigation would take time, and would require the wreck to be salvaged from the sea. The Bayesian is currently lying on its right side, at a depth of around 50 metres.

The coastguard is conducting activities to monitor the environmental conditions in the area where the yacht sank, it said in a statement on Tuesday.

"At the moment we don't register any leaks from tanks and there are no traces of oil pollution," it said.

(Reporting by Wladimiro Pantaleone, writing by Alberto Chiumento,; Editing by Keith Weir)

Copyright 2024 Thomson Reuters .

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Walmart billionaire’s €300m superyacht moored off Dún Laoghaire coast

Heiress’s luxury vessel comes complete with a heli pad, swimming pool and 16 cabins.

A superyacht belonging to one of the wealthiest women in the world was sighted on Tuesday moored in Scotsman’s Bay, off Dún Laoghaire, providing a rare treat for the harbour’s yacht spotters.

The 110-metre, €300 million Kaos is reportedly owned by Nancy Walton Laurie, heiress to the Walmart US retail empire.

Weighing in at 4,523 tons, it has impressive features including 16 cabins, a gym, a steam room, an indoor beach club, a cinema, a sauna, and a spa. There is also a swimming pool and a helipad.

The yacht’s interiors are known for their lavish style which includes marble and stone fittings, and custom-made silk carpets.

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The yacht was recently seen in London and Cornwall before making its way to Dún Laoghaire.

According to Superyacht Times, Kaos was formerly known as Jubilee, and was launched in 2017, as the largest yacht ever built in the Netherlands.

“The exterior features a combination of curved lines and glass panels in the bulwarks is visually stunning to create an illusion of extra decks and a trompe l’oeil effect where the yacht appears long and lean. Metallic paint enhances reflected sunlight on these curved lines,” the publication said.

It was the second large private yacht to visit the Dublin in recent weeks and follows the more modest €80 million Scout which was moored in the Liffey and visited Kinsale.

🛥️ An unusual visitor to Dun Laoghaire this morning. A 110 metre, $300,000,000 super yacht called Kaos belonging to billionaire Walmart Heiress Nancy Walton. It has 4 decks, a helipad 🚁, swimming pool 🏊🏻‍♀️, an aquarium 🐠 and a cinema 🎥. @DunLaoghaireTn #dunlaoghaire pic.twitter.com/42h6o13mN7 — Glenn Polley (@glennpolley) June 13, 2023

Scout, also a Dutch-built vessel, was launched in 2019 for James Berwind, whose family made a fortune out of coal and mining. He now engages in social entrepreneurship and is reported to have a passion for animal welfare.

Berwind and his partner Kevin Clark designed Scout, which is named after the couple’s dog, to be a semi-permanent base from which they can explore the world.

The superyacht visits come at the beginning of what is expected to be a busy season for cruise ships at the historic south Dublin port town.

Mary Hanafin, former Cathaoirleach of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown council, said more than 90 ships will visit Dún Laoghaire this year. During her tenure as Cathaoirleach, which concluded this week, Ms Hanafin said she visited three ships which were first-time arrivals in Dún Laoghaire. She said the cruise ships which she visited were two small luxury vessels which can accommodate 500 to 600 passengers, and one larger ship which could accommodate some 3,200 passengers and 1,400 crew.

Ms Hanafin said the local authority which controls the harbour receives fees for boats moored offshore while power boat owners also received fees for escorting tenders.

She said while some passengers went on to Dublin or Glendalough, many remained in Dún Laoghaire Town and spent money on gifts. She said the council has set up and tourist information and gift shops as well as a reception area in the harbour.

Tim O'Brien

Tim O'Brien is an Irish Times journalist

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Hot on the trail of 56 superyachts owned by Russian oligarchs and subject to seizure

• Published: Mar. 06, 2022, 2:04 p.m.

French authorities have seized the yacht Amore Vero linked to Igor Sechin, a Putin ally who runs Russian oil giant Rosneft, as part of EU sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The boat arrived in La Ciotat on Jan. 3 for repairs and was slated to stay until April 1 and was seized to prevent an attempted departure. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni) AP

• The Associated Press

The massive superyacht Dilbar stretches one-and-a-half football fields in length, about as long as a World War I dreadnought. It boasts two helipads, berths for more than 130 people and a 25-meter swimming pool long enough to accommodate another whole superyacht.

Dilbar was launched in 2016 at a reported cost of more than $648 million. Five years on, its purported owner, the Kremlin-aligned Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, was already dissatisfied and sent the vessel to a German shipyard last fall for a retrofit reportedly costing another couple hundred million dollars.

That’s where she lay in drydock on Thursday when the United States and European Union announced economic sanctions against Usmanov — a metals magnate and early investor in Facebook — over his ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin and in retaliation for the invasion of Ukraine.

“We are joining with our European allies to find and seize your yachts, your luxury apartments, your private jets,” President Joe Biden said during his State of the Union speech Tuesday night, addressing the oligarchs. “We are coming for your ill-begotten gains.”

But actually seizing the behemoth boats could prove challenging. Russian billionaires have had decades to shield their money and assets in the West from governments that might try to tax or seize them.

Several media outlets reported Wednesday that German authorities had impounded Dilbar. But a spokeswoman for Hamburg state’s economy ministry told The Associated Press no such action had yet been taken because it had been unable to establish ownership of the yacht, which is named for Usmanov’s mother.

Dilbar is flagged in the Cayman Islands and registered to a holding company in Malta, two secretive banking havens where the global ultra-rich often park their wealth.

Still, in the industry that caters to the exclusive club of billionaires and centimillionaires that can afford to buy, crew and maintain superyachts, it is often an open secret who owns what.

Working with the U.K.-based yacht valuation firm VesselsValue, the AP compiled a list of 56 superyachts — generally defined as luxury vessels exceeding 79 feet in length — believed to be owned by a few dozen Kremlin-aligned oligarchs, seaborne assets with a combined market value estimated at more than $5.4 billion.

The AP then used two online services — VesselFinder and MarineTraffic — to plot the last known locations of the yachts as relayed by their onboard tracking beacons.

While many are still anchored at or near sun-splashed playgrounds in the Mediterranean and Caribbean, more than a dozen were underway to or had already arrived in remote ports in small nations such as the Maldives and Montenegro, potentially beyond the reach of Western sanctions. Three are moored in Dubai, where many wealthy Russians have vacation homes.

Another three had gone dark, their transponders last pinging just outside the Bosporus in Turkey — gateway to the Black Sea and the southern Russian ports of Sochi and Novorossiysk.

Graceful, a German-built Russian-flagged superyacht believed to belong to Putin, left a repair yard in Hamburg on Feb. 7, two weeks before Russia invaded Ukraine. It is now moored in the Russian Baltic port of Kaliningrad, beyond the reach of Western sanctions imposed against him this past week.

Some Russian oligarchs appear to have not gotten the memo to move their superyachts, despite weeks of public warnings of Putin’s planned invasion.

French authorities seized the superyacht Amore Vero on Thursday in the Mediterranean resort town of La Ciotat. The boat is believed to belong to Igor Sechin, a Putin ally who runs Russian oil giant Rosneft, which has been on the U.S. sanctions list since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

The French Finance Ministry said in a statement that customs authorities boarded the 289-foot Amore Vero and discovered its crew was preparing for an urgent departure, even though planned repair work wasn’t finished. The $120 million boat is registered to a company that lists Sechin as its primary shareholder.

On Saturday, Italian financial police in the port of San Remo seized the 132-foot superyacht Lena, which is flagged in the British Virgin Islands. Authorities said the boat belongs to Gennady Timchenko, an oligarch close to Putin and among those sanctioned by the European Union. With an estimated net worth of $16.2 billion, Timchenko is the founder of the Volga Group, which specializes in investments in energy, transport and infrastructure assets.

The 213-foot Lady M was also seized by the Italians while moored in the Riviera port town of Imperia. In a tweet announcing the seizure on Friday, a spokesman for Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said the comparatively modest $27 million vessel was the property of sanctioned steel baron Alexei Mordashov, listed as Russia’s wealthiest man with a fortune of about $30 billion.

But Mordashov’s upsized yacht, the 464-foot Nord, was safely at anchor on Friday in the Seychelles, a tropical island chain in the Indian Ocean not under the jurisdiction of U.S. or EU sanctions. Among the world’s biggest superyachts, Nord has a market value of $500 million.

Since Friday, Italy has seized $156 million in luxury yachts and villas in some of its most picturesque destinations, including Sardinia, the Ligurian coast and Lake Como.

Most of the Russians on the annual Forbes list of billionaires have not yet been sanctioned by the United States and its allies, and their superyachts are still cruising the world’s oceans.

The evolution of oligarch yachts goes back to the tumultuous decade after the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union, as state oil and metals industries were sold off at rock-bottom prices, often to politically connected Russian businessmen and bankers who had provided loans to the new Russian state in exchange for the shares.

Russia’s nouveau riche began buying luxury yachts similar in size and expense to those owned by Silicon Valley billionaires, heads of state and royalty. It’s a key marker of status in Moscow and St. Petersburg, and size matters.

“No self-respecting Russian oligarch would be without a superyacht,” said William Browder, a U.S.-born and now London-based financier who worked in Moscow for years before becoming one of the Putin regime’s most vocal foreign critics. “It’s part of the rite of passage to being an oligarch. It’s just a prerequisite.”

As their fortunes ballooned, there was something of an arms race among the oligarchs, with the richest among them accumulating personal fleets of ever more lavish boats.

For example, Russian metals and petroleum magnate Roman Abramovich is believed to have bought or built at least seven of the world’s largest yachts, some of which he has since sold off to other oligarchs.

In 2010, Abramovich launched the Bermuda-flagged Eclipse, which at 533 feet was at the time the world’s longest superyacht. Features include a wood-burning firepit and swimming pool that transforms into a dance floor. Eclipse also boasts its own helicopter hangar and an undersea bay that reportedly holds a mini-sub.

Dennis Cauiser, a superyacht analyst with VesselsFinder, said oligarch boats often include secret security measures worthy of a Bond villain, including underwater escape hatches, bulletproof windows and armored panic rooms.

“Eclipse is equipped with all sorts of special features, including missile launchers and self-defense systems on board,” Cauiser said. “It has a secret submarine evacuation area and things like that.”

Eclipse was soon eclipsed by Azzam, purportedly owned by the emir of Abu Dhabi, which claimed the title of longest yacht when it was launched in 2013. Three years after that, Usmanov launched Dilbar, which replaced another slightly smaller yacht by the same name. The new Dilbar is the world’s largest yacht by volume.

Abramovich, whose fortune is estimated at $12.4 billion, fired back last year by launching Solaris. While not as long as Eclipse or as big as Dilbar, the $600 million Bermuda-flagged boat is possibly even more luxurious. Eight stories tall, Solaris features a sleek palisade of broad teak-covered decks suitable for hosting a horde of well-heeled partygoers.

But no boat is top dog for long. At least 20 superyachts are reported to be under construction in various Northern European shipyards, including a $500 million superyacht being built for the American billionaire Jeff Bezos.

“It’s about ego,” Cauiser said. “They all want to have the best, the longest, the most valuable, the newest, the most luxurious.”

But, he added, the escalating U.S. and EU sanctions on Putin-aligned oligarchs and Russian banks have sent a chill through the industry, with boatbuilders and staff worried they won’t be paid. It can cost upwards of $50 million a year to crew, fuel and maintain a superyacht.

The crash of the ruble and the tanking of Moscow stock market have depleted the fortunes of Russia’s elite, with several people dropping off the list of Forbes billionaires last week. Cauiser said he expects some oligarch superyachts will soon quietly be listed by brokers at fire-sale prices.

The 237-foot Stella Maris, which was seen by an AP journalist docked this past week in Nice, France, was believed to be owned by Rashid Sardarov, a Russian billionaire oil and gas magnate. After publication of an earlier version of this story, AP was contacted Sunday by yacht broker Joan Plana Palao, who said his company represents a U.S. citizen from California who purchased the Stella Maris last month. He declined to disclose the name of the buyer or the person from whom the boat had been purchased.

On Thursday, the U.S. Treasury Department issued a new round of sanctions that included a press release touting Usmanov’s close ties to Putin and photos of Dilbar and the oligarch’s private jet, a custom-built 209-foot Airbus A340-300 passenger liner. Treasury said Usmanov’s aircraft is believed to have cost up to $500 million and is named Bourkhan, after his father.

Usmanov, whose fortune has recently shrunk to about $17 billion, criticized the sanctions.

“I believe that such a decision is unfair and the reasons employed to justify the sanctions are a set of false and defamatory allegations damaging my honor, dignity and business reputation,” he said in a statement issued through the website of the International Fencing Federation, of which he has served as president since 2008.

Abramovich has not yet been sanctioned. Members of the British Parliament have criticized Prime Minister Boris Johnson for not going after Abramovich’s U.K.-based assets, which include the professional soccer club Chelsea. Under mounting pressure, the oligarch announced this past week he would sell the $2.5 billion team and give the net proceeds “for the benefit of all victims of the war in Ukraine.”

Meanwhile, location transponders showed Solaris moored in Barcelona, Spain, on Saturday. Eclipse set sail from St. Maarten late Thursday and is underway in the Caribbean Sea, destination undisclosed.

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Leonard Clark

Added 2023-12-12 16:44:26 -0800 by private user.

• Collection: U.S. Social Security Death Index (SSDI)
• Birth: Feb 14 1900
• Death: Oct 1981
• Last residence: Moscow, Idaho 83843, USA

Leonard James Clark

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• Collection: Western United States, Marriage Index, 1838-2016
• Marriage: June 6 1937 - Moscow, Idaho, United States
• Bride: Jean Almira Richardson

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• Collection: Idaho, County Marriages, 1864-1950
• Marriage: June 6 1937 - Latah, Idaho
• Wife: Jean Almira Richardson

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• Collection: FamilySearch Family Tree
• Birth: Feb 1900 - North Carolina
• Parents: Charles Bascomb Clark, Mary E Clark (born Hall)
• Siblings: ...Bumpus (born Clark), William C Clark, Clarance Z Clark, Nannie E Clark, Leonard James Clark, Eula M Grove (born Clark), Harley Richard Clark

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• Birth: Feb 14 1900 - Asheville, Buncombe, North Carolina, United States
• Death: 1981
• Wife: Jean Almira Clark (born Richardson)
• Siblings: ...Bumpus (born Clark), William C Clark, Clarance Z Clark, Nannie E Clark, James Leonard Clark, Eula M Grove (born Clark), Harley Richard Clark

James L Clark

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• Collection: 1900 United States Federal Census
• Birth: Feb 1900 - North Carolina, United States
• Residence: 1900 - Leicester Township, Precincts 2-3, Buncombe, North Carolina, USA
• Parents: Charley B Clark, Mary E Clark
• Siblings: Navada B Clark, William C Clark, Nannie E Clark

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• Collection: 1910 United States Federal Census
• Birth: Circa 1900 - North Carolina, United States
• Residence: 1910 - Rimrock, Nez Perce, Idaho, USA
• Parents: Charley B Clark, Mollie E Clark
• Siblings: Lovada B Clark, Clarance Z Clark, Ula Clark, Harlie Clark, Blanche Clark

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Luxury yachts and other myths: How Republican lawmakers echo Russian propaganda

Two senior Republican lawmakers, the chairs of the House Intelligence and Foreign Affairs committees, say their colleagues are echoing Russian state propaganda against Ukraine.

Researchers who study disinformation say Reps. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, and Michael McCaul, R-Texas, are merely acknowledging what has been clear for some time: Russian propaganda aimed at undermining U.S. and European support for Ukraine has steadily seeped into America’s political conversation over the past decade, taking on a life of its own.

McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Puck News he thinks “Russian propaganda has made its way into the United States, unfortunately, and it’s infected a good chunk of my party’s base.”

Turner, chair of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, told CNN that anti-Ukraine messages from Russia are “being uttered on the House floor.”

For the past decade, since Russia’s first military incursion into Ukraine in 2014, Moscow has spread propaganda and disinformation in a bid to undercut U.S. and European military support for Ukraine, according to U.S. and Western officials.

Some of the arguments, distortions and falsehoods spread by Russia have taken root, mostly among right-wing pro-Trump outlets and Republican politicians, researchers say, including that Ukraine’s government is too corrupt to benefit from Western aid and that the Biden family has alleged corrupt ties to Ukraine.

Russia, in keeping with traditional propaganda techniques, seeks to make its case and tarnish Ukraine through a mixture of outright falsehoods, half-truths, inferences or simply amplifying and promoting arguments already being made by American or European commentators and politicians, researchers say.

The propaganda is sometimes spread covertly, through fake online accounts, or openly by Russian officials and state media. As a result, the origin of some allegations or criticisms is often opaque, especially when a certain accusation or perception has gained wide acceptance, leaving no clear fingerprints.

Early in the war, a false story boosted by Russian propaganda — that the U.S. had helped Ukraine build biological weapons labs — gained traction on right-wing social media and was touted by then-Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

Russia also is conducting a parallel propaganda campaign in Europe. Belgium’s prime minister said Thursday that his government is investigating alleged Russian bribes to members of the European Parliament as part of Moscow’s campaign to undermine support for Ukraine. Czech law enforcement officials last month alleged that a former pro-Russian member of Ukraine’s parliament, Viktor Medvedchuk, was behind a Prague-based Russian propaganda network designed to promote opposition to aiding Ukraine.

Here are some examples of Republican lawmakers using arguments often promoted by Russian propaganda:

Buying yachts

When Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with members of Congress behind closed doors in December to appeal for more U.S. help for his country’s troops, some lawmakers raised questions about Ukraine allegedly buying yachts with American aid money.

Zelenskyy made clear that was not the case, according to Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, a strong supporter of arming Ukraine. “I think the notion of corruption came up because some have said we can’t do it, because people will buy yachts with the money,” Tillis told CNN. “[Zelenskyy] disabused people of those notions.”

Where did the yacht rumor come from?

Pro-Russian actors and websites promoted a narrative alleging Zelenskyy bought two superyachts with U.S. aid dollars. One Russia-based propaganda site, DC Weekly , published a story last November that included photos of two luxury yachts, called Lucky Me and My Legacy , which it alleged were bought for $75 million.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., a vocal opponent of military aid to Ukraine, in November retweeted a post about the alleged yacht purchase from the Strategic Culture Foundation, a Russian-based propaganda outlet directed by Russia’s intelligence services, according to the Treasury Department. The U.S. has imposed sanctions on the organization, accusing it of spreading disinformation and interfering in U.S. elections.

Another outspoken critic of aid to Ukraine, Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, also made a similar claim.

In a December interview with former President Donald Trump’s White House adviser Steve Bannon, Vance claimed that members of Congress wanted to cut Social Security benefits to provide more aid to Ukraine, and that money would allegedly be used for Zelenskyy’s ministers to “buy a bigger yacht.”

“There are people who would cut Social Security, throw our grandparents into poverty. Why? So that one of Zelenskyy’s ministers can buy a bigger yacht?” Vance said. “Kiss my ass, Steve. It’s not happening.”

The tale of Zelenskyy’s luxury yacht, however, turned out to be totally false . The yachts cited in the DC Weekly article remain up for sale , the owners told The Associated Press.

Two academics at Clemson University, disinformation researchers Darren Linvill and Patrick Warren, found that DC Weekly ran numerous stories copied from other sites that were rewritten by artificial intelligence engines. The articles had bylines with fake names along with headshots copied from other online sites. DC Weekly appeared to be a Russian effort to launder false information through a seemingly legitimate news site as part of an attempt to undermine U.S. support for Ukraine, according to the researchers .

Asked by reporters about Vance’s comments, Tillis said: “I think it’s bullshit. ...If you’re talking about giving money to Ukrainian ministers — total and unmitigated bullshit.”

Greene’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Vance’s spokesperson said the senator was making a rhetorical point about how he opposed sending U.S. assistance to what he sees as a corrupt country, but was not asserting the yacht stories online were accurate.

Vance’s office referred NBC News to an earlier response to the BBC on the same topic:

“For years, everyone in the West recognized that Ukraine was one of the most corrupt countries in the world. Somehow everyone forgot that just as we started sending them billions of dollars in foreign aid.”

Enabling ‘corruption’

Russian state media for years has painted Ukraine as deeply corrupt, and has argued that the U.S. and its allies are wasting money and military hardware by assisting such an allegedly corrupt government.

“This is absolutely a line that they have pushed, and then once it appears in the Western ecosystem, other [Russian] media picks it up and it gets recycled back,” said Bret Schafer, a senior fellow at the Alliance for Securing Democracy.

This line of argument has gained traction partly because Ukraine does face a genuine corruption problem.

Russia’s effort to focus attention on corruption in Ukraine reflects a long-established propaganda method of using facts or partial truths to anchor a broader assertion or accusation, sometimes making a leap in logic, Schafer and other researchers said. Russia’s message amounts to: Ukraine is corrupt, therefore U.S. and Western aid will be stolen and wasted.

Schafer said it was ironic for Russia, a country mired in corruption and kleptocracy, to be leveling accusations about corruption.

Republican Rep. Mary Miller has said she strongly opposes more assistance for Ukraine because it amounts to sending cash to “corrupt oligarchs.”

“With Zelensky coming to DC this week to ask for more money, I will continue to vote AGAINST sending your tax $$ to corrupt oligarchs in Ukraine for a proxy war that could have ended in ‘22,” Miller wrote in a post on X in December.

The Illinois lawmaker also echoed another assertion that often appears in Russian media, that the Biden administration allegedly undermined efforts by Russia to avoid war with Ukraine.

 “A peace deal was on the table that [Ukraine] and [Russia] were both ready to sign, but Biden said NO,” she wrote.

There was in fact no proposed peace agreement that Russia and Ukraine were prepared to sign before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, according to U.S. and European officials. As Russian troops massed on the border of Ukraine, Western governments urged Russia not to invade and warned there would be economic and diplomatic consequences.

Reuters has reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected a possible deal to avert a war that had been discussed with Kyiv by Russia’s envoy to Ukraine. The Kremlin said the report was inaccurate and has said Russia tried for years to arrive at an understanding with Ukraine.

As for corruption in Ukraine, Zelenskyy has vowed to tackle the problem, sacking senior officials in some recent cases. But some civil society groups have criticized his approach and Ukrainians say corruption is the country’s second-most serious problem, after the Russian invasion, according to a poll conducted last year.

In an annual survey, Transparency International said Ukraine made progress toward addressing the issue and now ranks 104th out of 180 countries on its Corruption Perceptions Index , climbing 12 places up from its previous ranking.

Ukraine is not alone among countries that receive U.S. and other foreign aid but struggle with corruption. Supporters of assisting Ukraine argue it would undermine America’s influence in the world and its humanitarian efforts if Washington withheld foreign aid from every country where there were reports of corruption.

Miller’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

The Biden family and Ukraine

Republicans have repeatedly alleged that President Joe Biden and his son Hunter have corrupt ties to Ukraine, and that they sought $5 million in bribes from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma to protect the firm from an investigation by Ukraine’s prosecutor general.

There is no credible evidence for the allegations. A key source for the accusations against the Bidens is a former FBI informant, Alexander Smirnov, who was arrested in February on federal charges of fabricating the bribery claims. Smirnov says he was fed information by Russian intelligence.

Republicans had heavily promoted Smirnov’s allegations against the Bidens, seeing them as crucial to a planned impeachment effort against the president that has since fizzled .

“In my estimation, that is probably the clearest example of Russian propaganda working its way into the American political system,” said Emerson Brooking, a resident senior fellow at the Digital Forensic Research Lab of the Atlantic Council.

GOP Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona cited the false bribery allegations in expressing his opposition to providing assistance to Ukraine.

“In exchange for … bribe money from Ukraine, Joe Biden has dished out over $100 billion in taxpayer money to fund the war in Ukraine. I will not assist this corruption by sending more money to the authoritarian Ukrainian regime,” Gosar said in a statement in October.

Gosar’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Dan De Luce is a reporter for the NBC News Investigative Unit. 

Syedah Asghar is a Capitol Hill researcher for NBC News and is based in Washington, D.C.

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Nikki glaser to host 82nd golden globes: “this might get me canceled”.

The comedian and brutal roastmaster will emcee the Globes in January.

By James Hibberd

James Hibberd

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Watch out, Golden Globe nominees: Nikki Glaser is hosting next year.

The popular comedian and scathing celebrity roaster will host the 82nd annual Golden Globes in January.

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Glaser continued, “Some of my favorite jokes of all time have come from past Golden Globes opening monologues when Tina [Fey], Amy [Poehler] or Ricky [Gervais] have said exactly what we all didn’t know we desperately needed to hear. I just hope to continue in that time-honored tradition (that might also get me canceled). This is truly a dream job. Plus, I no longer have to feel guilty for every TV show and movie I’ve binged over the past year. It was all worth it. ( Below Deck: Sailing Yacht  Season Four will be nominated, right?)”

“Nikki Glaser brings a fresh and unmatched candor to her comedy and to the Golden Globes,” said Jay Penske, chairman and CEO of Dick Clark Productions and Penske Media Corporation. “Her unapologetic style made her an obvious and compelling choice as host for this year’s event. We’re hopeful this could be the first of many Golden Globes that Nikki will surprise and delight our CBS audience, as well as our audiences around the globe.”

Glaser currently hosts and executive produces Lovers and Liars , a spinoff of the HBO Max and CW reality dating series FBoy Island , which she hosted and executive produced for three seasons. She has also hosted The Nikki Glaser Podcast since 2021.

“Nikki Glaser is a comedic powerhouse whose daring and unfiltered humor is the perfect match for the Golden Globes,” said Helen Hoehne, Golden Globes president. “She is sure to bring a unique energy and spontaneity to the show that will keep the audience entertained all night.” 

“The Golden Globes has a rich history as a night for entertaining, provocative humor,” added George Cheeks, Office of the CEO, Paramount Global, president and chief executive officer, CBS. “Nikki Glaser is a comedic force whose funny, bold and irreverent comedy will continue that legacy and further establish this special as a can’t-miss event.”

The 82nd annual Golden Globes will air Sunday, Jan. 5, on CBS, and stream on Paramount+ for Paramount+ With Showtime subscribers.

Dick Clark Productions, which produces the Golden Globes, is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Penske Media Corporation and Eldridge that also owns The Hollywood Reporter .

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