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SCHEDULE 14A INFORMATION
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Soliciting Material Pursuant to §240.14a-12 |
JAKKS Pacific, Inc.
(Name of Registrant as Specified In Its Charter)
JAKKS Pacific, Inc.
(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the Registrant)
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
JAKKS PACIFIC, INC.
22619 Pacific Coast Highway
Malibu, CA 90265
NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS
To be Held on September 9, 2005
The Annual Meeting of Stockholders of JAKKS Pacific, Inc. (the
Company) will be held at the Sherwood Country Club,
320 West Stafford Road, Thousand Oaks, California 91361, on
September 9, 2005 at 9:00 a.m. local time, to consider
and act upon the following matters:
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1. To elect 7 directors to serve for the ensuing year. |
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2. To ratify the selection by the Board of Directors of the
firm of PKF, Certified Public Accountants, A Professional
Corporation, as the Companys independent auditors for the
current fiscal year. |
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3. To transact such other business as may properly come
before the meeting or any adjournment thereof. |
Stockholders of record as of the close of business on
July 18, 2005 will be entitled to notice of and to vote at
the meeting or any adjournment thereof. The stock transfer books
of the Company will remain open.
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By Order of the Board of Directors |
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Stephen G. Berman, |
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Secretary |
Malibu, California
August 5, 2005
WHETHER OR NOT YOU EXPECT TO ATTEND THE MEETING, PLEASE
COMPLETE, DATE AND SIGN THE ENCLOSED PROXY AND MAIL IT PROMPTLY
IN THE ENCLOSED ENVELOPE IN ORDER TO ENSURE REPRESENTATION OF
YOUR SHARES. YOU MAY REVOKE THE PROXY AT ANY TIME BEFORE THE
AUTHORITY GRANTED THEREIN IS EXERCISED.
JAKKS PACIFIC, INC.
22619 Pacific Coast Highway
Malibu, CA 90265
Proxy Statement for the 2005 Annual Meeting of
Stockholders
To be Held on September 9, 2005
This Proxy Statement is furnished in connection with the
solicitation of proxies by the Board of Directors of JAKKS
Pacific, Inc. (the Company) for use at the 2005
Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held on September 9,
2005, and at any adjournment of that meeting (the Annual
Meeting). Throughout this Proxy Statement, we,
us and our are used to refer to the
Company.
The shares of our common stock represented by each proxy will be
voted in accordance with the stockholders instructions as
to each matter specified thereon, unless no instruction is
given, in which case, the proxy will be voted in favor of such
matter. Any proxy may be revoked by a stockholder at any time
before it is exercised by delivery of written revocation or a
subsequently dated proxy to our corporate Secretary or by voting
in person at the Annual Meeting.
We are mailing this Proxy Statement to our stockholders on or
about August 5, 2005, accompanied by our Annual Report to
Stockholders for our fiscal year ended December 31, 2004.
Voting Securities and Votes Required
At the close of business on July 18, 2005, the record date
for the determination of stockholders entitled to vote at the
Annual Meeting, there were outstanding and entitled to vote an
aggregate of 26,691,040 shares of our common stock, par
value $.001 per share. All holders of our common stock are
entitled to one vote per share.
The affirmative vote of the holders of a plurality of the shares
of our common stock present or represented by proxy at the
Annual Meeting is required for election of directors. The
affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of
our common stock present or represented by proxy at the Annual
Meeting is required for the ratification of the appointment by
the Board of Directors of PKF, Certified Public Accountants, A
Professional Corporation, as our independent auditors for the
current fiscal year, all as hereinafter described. A majority of
the outstanding shares of our common stock represented in person
or by proxy at the Annual Meeting will constitute a quorum at
the meeting. All shares of our common stock represented in
person or by proxy (including shares which abstain or do not
vote for any reason with respect to one or more of the matters
presented for stockholder approval) will be counted for purposes
of determining whether a quorum is present at the Annual
Meeting. Abstentions will be treated as shares that are present
and entitled to vote for purposes of determining the number of
shares present and entitled to vote with respect to any
particular matter, but will not be counted as a vote in favor of
such matter. Accordingly, an abstention from voting on a matter
has the same legal effect as a vote against the matter. If a
broker or nominee holding stock in street name
indicates on the proxy that it does not have discretionary
authority to vote as to a particular matter (broker
non-votes), those shares will not be considered as present
and entitled to vote with respect to such matter. Accordingly, a
broker non-vote on a matter has no effect on the voting on such
matter.
Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and
Management
The following table sets forth certain information as of
July 18, 2005 with respect to the beneficial ownership of
our common stock by (1) each person known by us to own
beneficially more than 5% of the outstanding shares of our
common stock, (2) each of our directors and nominees for
director, (3) each of our executive officers named in the
Summary Compensation Table set forth under the caption
Executive Compensation, below, and (4) all our
directors and executive officers as a group.
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Amount and | |
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Nature of | |
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Percent of | |
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Beneficial | |
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Outstanding | |
Name and Address of Beneficial Owner(1)(2) |
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Ownership(s)(3) | |
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Shares(4) | |
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Third Avenue Management LLC
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3,685,321 |
(5) |
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13.81 |
% |
Barclays Global Investors, N.A.
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2,768,907 |
(6) |
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10.37 |
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Dimensional Fund Advisors, Inc.
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2,050,711 |
(7) |
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7.68 |
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FMR Corp.
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1,800,238 |
(8) |
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6.74 |
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Jack Friedman
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1,010,212 |
(9) |
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3.74 |
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Stephen G. Berman
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878,538 |
(10) |
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3.25 |
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Michael Bianco, Jr.
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232,050 |
(11) |
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* |
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Joel M. Bennett
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201,773 |
(12) |
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* |
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Dan Almagor
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30,954 |
(13) |
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* |
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David C. Blatte
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84,500 |
(14) |
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* |
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Robert E. Glick
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101,019 |
(15) |
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* |
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Michael G. Miller
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91,644 |
(16) |
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* |
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Murray L. Skala
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102,957 |
(17) |
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All directors and executive officers as a group (8 persons)
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2,730,461 |
(18) |
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9.83 |
% |
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Less than 1% of our outstanding shares. |
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(1) |
Unless otherwise indicated, such persons address is
c/o JAKKS Pacific, Inc., 22619 Pacific Coast Highway,
Malibu, California 90265. |
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(2) |
The number of shares of common stock beneficially owned by each
person or entity is determined under the rules promulgated by
the Securities and Exchange Commission. Under such rules,
beneficial ownership includes any shares as to which the person
or entity has sole or shared voting power or investment power.
The percentage of our outstanding shares is calculated by
including among the shares owned by such person any shares which
such person or entity has the right to acquire within
60 days after July 18, 2005. The inclusion herein of
any shares deemed beneficially owned does not constitute an
admission of beneficial ownership of such shares. |
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(3) |
Except as otherwise indicated, exercises sole voting power and
sole investment power with respect to such shares. |
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(4) |
Does not include any shares of common stock issuable upon the
conversion of $98 million of our 4.625% convertible
senior notes due 2023, initially convertible at the rate of
50 shares of common stock per $1,000 principal amount at
issuance of the notes (but subject to adjustment under certain
circumstances as described in the notes). |
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(5) |
The address of Third Avenue Management LLC is 622 Third Avenue,
New York, NY 10017. Possesses sole voting power with respect to
3,587,152 of such shares and sole dispositive power with respect
to all of such 3,685,321 shares. All the information
presented in this Item with respect to this beneficial owner was
extracted solely from the Schedule 13G/A filed on
February 16, 2005. |
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(6) |
The address of Barclays Global Investors, N.A. is 45 Fremont
Street, San Francisco, CA 94105. Possesses sole voting
power with respect to 2,510,290 of such shares and sole
dispositive power with respect to all of such
2,768,907 shares. All the information presented in this
Item with respect to this beneficial owner was extracted solely
from the Schedule 13G filed on May 10, 2005. |
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(7) |
The address of Dimensional Fund Advisors, Inc. is 1299
Ocean Avenue, 11th Floor, Santa Monica, CA 90401. All the
information presented in this Item with respect to this
beneficial owner was extracted solely from the
Schedule 13G/A filed on February 9, 2005. |
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(8) |
The address of FMR Corp. is 82 Devonshire Street, Boston,
Massachusetts 02109. All the information with respect to this
beneficial owner was extracted solely from its
Schedule 13G/ A filed on March 10, 2005. |
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(9) |
Includes 3,186 shares held in trusts for the benefit of
children of Mr. Friedman. Also includes 304,754 shares
of common stock issuable upon the conversion of options held by
Mr. Friedman. Also includes 120,000 shares of common
stock issued on January 1, 2005 pursuant to the terms of
Mr. Friedmans January 1, 2003 Employment
Agreement, which shares are further subject to the terms of our
January 1, 2005 Restricted Stock Award Agreement with
Mr. Friedman (the Friedman Agreement). The
Friedman Agreement provides that Mr. Friedman will forfeit
his rights to all 120,000 shares unless certain conditions
precedent are met prior to January 1, 2006, including the
condition that our Pre-Tax Income (as defined in the Friedman
Agreement) for 2005 exceeds $2,000,000, whereupon the forfeited
shares will become authorized but unissued shares of our common
stock. The Friedman Agreement further prohibits
Mr. Friedman from selling, assigning, transferring,
pledging or otherwise encumbering (a) 60,000 of the
120,000 shares prior to January 1, 2006 and
(b) the remaining 60,000 shares prior to
January 1, 2007; provided, however, that if our Pre-Tax
Income for 2005 exceeds $2,000,000 and our Adjusted EPS Growth
(as defined in the Friedman Agreement) for 2005 increases by
certain percentages as set forth in the Friedman Agreement, the
vesting of some or all of the 60,000 shares that would
otherwise vest on January 1, 2007 will be accelerated to
the date the Adjusted EPS Growth is determined. |
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(10) |
Includes 304,754 shares of common stock issuable upon the
conversion of options held by Mr. Berman. Also includes
120,000 shares of common stock issued on January 1,
2005 pursuant to the terms of Mr. Bermans
January 1, 2003 Employment Agreement, which shares are
further subject to the terms of our January 1, 2005
Restricted Stock Award Agreement with Mr. Berman (the
Berman Agreement). The Berman Agreement provides
that Mr. Berman will forfeit his rights to all
120,000 shares unless certain conditions precedent are met
prior to January 1, 2006, including the condition that our
Pre-Tax Income (as defined in the Berman Agreement) for 2005
exceeds $2,000,000, whereupon the forfeited shares will become
authorized but unissued shares of our common stock. The Berman
Agreement further prohibits Mr. Berman from selling,
assigning, transferring, pledging or otherwise encumbering
(a) 60,000 of the 120,000 shares prior to
January 1, 2006 and (b) the remaining
60,000 shares prior to January 1, 2007; provided,
however, that if our Pre-Tax Income for 2005 exceeds $2,000,000
and our Adjusted EPS Growth (as defined in the Berman Agreement)
for 2005 increases by certain percentages as set forth in the
Berman Agreement, the vesting of some or all of the
60,000 shares that would otherwise vest on January 1,
2007 will be accelerated to the date the Adjusted EPS Growth is
determined. |
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(11) |
Such information was derived exclusively from
Mr. Biancos most recently filed Form 4. Includes
48,000 shares of common stock, 50% of which vest on each of
January 1, 2006 and 2007, all in accordance with the terms
of that October 13, 2004 Termination Agreement and
October 13, 2004 Consulting Agreement by and between
Mr. Bianco and us. |
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(12) |
Includes 85,070 shares which Mr. Bennett may purchase
upon the exercise of certain stock options. |
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(13) |
Includes 29,644 shares which Mr. Almagor may purchase
upon the exercise of certain stock options and 1,310 shares
of common stock issued pursuant to our 2002 Stock Award and
Incentive Plan, pursuant to which 310 and 1,000 shares may
not be sold, mortgaged, transferred or otherwise encumbered
prior to December 20, 2005 and January 1, 2006,
respectively. |
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(14) |
Includes 82,500 shares which Mr. Blatte may purchase
upon the exercise of certain stock options and 2,000 shares
of common stock issued pursuant to our 2002 Stock Award and
Incentive Plan, pursuant to which 1,000 of such shares may not
be sold, mortgaged, transferred or otherwise encumbered prior to
January 1, 2006. |
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(15) |
Includes 99,019 shares which Mr. Glick may purchase
upon the exercise of certain stock options and 2,000 shares
of Common Stock issued pursuant to our 2002 Stock Award and
Incentive Plan, pursuant to which 1,000 of such shares may not
be sold, mortgaged, transferred or otherwise encumbered prior to
January 1, 2006. |
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(16) |
Includes 89,644 shares which Mr. Miller may purchase
upon the exercise of certain stock options and 2,000 shares
of Common Stock issued pursuant to our 2002 Stock Award and
Incentive Plan, pursuant to which 1,000 of such shares may not
be sold, mortgaged, transferred or otherwise encumbered prior to
January 1, 2006. |
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(17) |
Includes 97,771 shares which Mr. Skala may purchase
upon the exercise of certain stock options, 3,186 shares
held by Mr. Skala as trustee under a trust for the benefit
of Mr. Friedmans minor child and 2,000 shares of
common stock issued pursuant to our 2002 Stock Award and
Incentive Plan, pursuant to which 1,000 of such shares may not
be sold, mortgaged, transferred or otherwise encumbered prior to
January 1, 2006. |
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(18) |
Includes 3,186 shares held in a trust for the benefit of
Mr. Friedmans minor child and an aggregate of
1,093,156 shares which the directors and executive officers
may purchase upon the exercise of certain stock options. |
ELECTION OF DIRECTORS
(Proposal No. 1)
The persons named in the enclosed proxy will vote to elect as
directors the seven nominees named below, unless authority to
vote for the election of any or all of the nominees is withheld
by marking the proxy to that effect. All of the nominees have
indicated their willingness to serve, if elected, but if any
nominee should be unable to serve or for good cause will not
serve, the proxies may be voted for a substitute nominee
designated by management. Each director will be elected to hold
office until the next annual meeting of stockholders or until
his successor is elected and qualified. There are no family
relationships between or among any of our executive officers or
directors.
Nominees
Set forth below for each nominee as a director is his name and
age, position with us, the committees of the Board upon which he
sits, his principal occupation and business experience during at
least the past five years and the date of the commencement of
his term as a director.
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Name |
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Age | |
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Position with the Company |
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Board Committee Membership |
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Jack Friedman
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66 |
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Chairman and Chief Executive Officer |
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Stephen G. Berman
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40 |
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Chief Operating Officer, President, Secretary and Director |
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Dan Almagor
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51 |
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Director |
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Nominating and Corporate Governance (Chairman) |
David C. Blatte
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40 |
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Director |
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Audit (Chairman) |
Robert E. Glick
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60 |
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Director |
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Compensation (Chairman) and Audit |
Michael G. Miller
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58 |
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Director |
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Compensation and Audit |
Murray L. Skala
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58 |
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Director |
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4
Jack Friedman has been our Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer since co-founding JAKKS with Mr. Berman in January
1995. Until December 31, 1998, he was also our President.
From January 1989 until January 1995, Mr. Friedman was
Chief Executive Officer, President and a director of THQ. From
1970 to 1989, Mr. Friedman was President and Chief
Operating Officer of LJN Toys, Ltd., a toy and software company.
After LJN was acquired by MCA/ Universal, Inc. in 1986,
Mr. Friedman continued as President until his departure in
late 1988.
Stephen G. Berman has been our Chief Operating Officer
and Secretary and one of our directors since co-founding JAKKS
with Mr. Friedman in January 1995. Since January 1,
1999, he has also served as our President. From our inception
until December 31, 1998, Mr. Berman was also our
Executive Vice President. From October 1991 to August 1995,
Mr. Berman was a Vice President and Managing Director of
THQ International, Inc., a subsidiary of THQ. From 1988 to
1991, he was President and an owner of Balanced Approach, Inc.,
a distributor of personal fitness products and services.
Dan Almagor has been one of our directors since September
2004. Since March 1992, Mr. Almagor has served as the
Chairman of ACG Inc., an advisory firm affiliated with First
Chicago Bank One Equity Capital, a global private equity
organization which provides equity capital financing primarily
to private companies.
David C. Blatte has been one of our directors since
January 2001. From January 1993 to May 2000, Mr. Blatte was
a Senior Vice President in the specialty retail group of the
investment banking division of Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette
Securities Corporation. From May 2000 to January 2004,
Mr. Blatte was a partner in Catterton Partners, a private
equity fund. Since February 2004, Mr. Blatte has been a
partner in Centre Partners, a private equity fund.
Robert E. Glick has been one of our directors since
October 1996. For more than 20 years, Mr. Glick has
been an officer, director and principal stockholder in a number
of privately-held companies which manufacture and market
womens apparel.
Michael G. Miller has been one of our directors since
February 1996. From 1979 until May 1998, Mr. Miller was
President and a director of a group of privately-held companies,
including a list brokerage and list management consulting firm,
a database management consulting firm, and a direct mail graphic
and creative design firm. Mr. Millers interests in
such companies were sold in May 1998. Since 1991, he has been
President of an advertising company.
Murray L. Skala has been one of our directors since
October 1995. Since 1976, Mr. Skala has been a partner of
the law firm Feder, Kaszovitz, Isaacson, Weber, Skala,
Bass & Rhine LLP, our general counsel. Mr. Skala
is a director of Traffix, Inc., a publicly-held company in the
business of internet media and marketing.
A majority of our directors are independent, as
defined under the rules of the Nasdaq Stock Market. Such
independent directors are Messrs. Blatte, Glick, Miller and
Almagor. Our directors hold office until the next annual meeting
of stockholders and until their successors are elected and
qualified.
Committees of the Board of Directors
We have an Audit Committee, Compensation Committee and
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.
Audit Committee. The primary functions of the Audit
Committee are to select or to recommend to our Board the
selection of outside auditors; to monitor our relationships with
our outside auditors and their interaction with our management
in order to ensure their independence and objectivity; to
review, and to assess the scope and quality of, our outside
auditors services, including the audit of our annual
financial statements; to review our financial management and
accounting procedures; to review our financial statements with
our management and outside auditors; and to review the adequacy
of our system of internal accounting controls.
Messrs. Blatte, Glick and Miller are the current members of
the Audit Committee and are each independent (as
that term is defined in NASD Rule 4200(a)(14)), and are
each able to read and understand fundamental financial
statements. Mr. Blatte is the Chairman of the Audit
Committee and
5
possesses the financial expertise required under
Rule 401(h) of Regulation SK of the Act and NASD
Rule 4350(d)(2). He is further independent, as
that term is defined under Item 7(d)(3)(iv) of
Schedule 14A under the Exchange Act. We will, in the
future, continue to have (i) an Audit Committee of at least
three members comprised solely of independent directors, each of
whom will be able to read and understand fundamental financial
statements (or will become able to do so within a reasonable
period of time after his or her appointment); and (ii) at
least one member of the Audit Committee that will possess the
financial expertise required under NASD Rule 4350(d)(2).
Our Board has adopted a written charter for the Audit Committee
and the Audit Committee reviews and reassesses the adequacy of
that charter on an annual basis.
Compensation Committee. The functions of the Compensation
Committee are to make recommendations to the Board regarding
compensation of management employees and to administer plans and
programs relating to employee benefits, incentives, compensation
and awards under our Third Amended and Restated 1995 Stock
Option Plan and our 2002 Stock Award and Incentive Plan (the
2002 Plan). Messrs. Glick (Chairman) and Miller
are the current members of the Compensation Committee. The Board
has determined that each of them are independent, as
defined under the applicable rules of the Nasdaq Stock Market.
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. The
functions of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
are to develop our corporate governance system and to review
proposed new members of our board of directors, including those
recommended by our stockholders. Messrs. Almagor
(Chairman), Glick and Miller are the current members of our
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. The Nominating
and Corporate Governance Committee operates pursuant to a
written charter adopted by the Board. The full text of the
charter is available on our website at
www.jakkspacific.com. The Board has determined that each
member of this Committee is independent, as defined
under the applicable rules of the Nasdaq Stock Market. For
instructions on how stockholders may submit recommendations for
director nominees to our Nominating and Corporate Governance
Committee, see Stockholder Communications, below.
The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will review,
on an annual basis, the composition of our Board of Directors
and the ability of its current members to continue effectively
as directors for the upcoming fiscal year. In the ordinary
course, absent special circumstances or a change in the criteria
for Board membership, the Nominating and Corporate Governance
Committee will renominate incumbent directors who continue to be
qualified for Board service and are willing to continue as
directors. If that Committee thinks it in our best interests to
nominate a new individual for director in connection with an
annual meeting of stockholders, or if a vacancy on the Board
occurs between annual stockholder meetings, the nominating
committee will seek out potential candidates for Board
appointment who meet the criteria for selection as a nominee and
have the specific qualities or skills being sought. Director
candidates will be selected based on input from members of the
Board, our senior management and, if the Committee deems
appropriate, a third-party search firm. The Nominating and
Corporate Governance Committee will evaluate each
candidates qualifications and check relevant references
and each candidate will be interviewed by at least one member of
that Committee. Candidates meriting serious consideration will
meet with all members of the Board. Based on this input, the
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will evaluate
whether a prospective candidate is qualified to serve as a
director and whether the Committee should recommend to the Board
that this candidate be appointed to fill a current vacancy on
the Board, or presented for the approval of the stockholders, as
appropriate.
Meetings of the Board of Directors and Board Member
Attendance at Annual Stockholder Meeting
From January 1, 2004 through December 31, 2004, the
Board of Directors met or acted without a meeting pursuant to
unanimous written consent ten times.
We do not have a formal written policy with respect to board
members attendance at annual stockholder meetings,
although we do encourage each of them to attend. All of the
directors then serving attended our 2004 Annual Stockholder
Meeting.
6
Stockholder Communications
Stockholders interested in communicating with our Board may do
so by writing to any or all directors, care of our Chief
Financial Officer, at our principal executive offices. Our Chief
Financial Officer will log in all stockholder correspondence and
forward to the director addressee(s) all communications that, in
his judgment, are appropriate for consideration by the
directors. Any director may review the correspondence log and
request copies of any correspondence. Examples of communications
that would be considered inappropriate for consideration by the
directors include, but are not limited to, commercial
solicitations, trivial, obscene, or profane items,
administrative matters, ordinary business matters, or personal
grievances. Correspondence that is not appropriate for Board
review will be handled by our Chief Financial Officer. All
appropriate matters pertaining to accounting or internal
controls will be brought promptly to the attention of our Audit
Committee Chair.
Stockholder recommendations for director nominees are welcome
and should be sent to our Chief Financial Officer, who will
forward such recommendations to our Nominating and Corporate
Governance Committee, and should include the following
information: (a) all information relating to each nominee
that is required to be disclosed pursuant to Regulation 14A
under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (including such
persons written consent to being named in the proxy
statement as a nominee and to serving as a director if elected);
(b) the names and addresses of the stockholders making the
nomination and the number of shares of our common stock which
are owned beneficially and of record by such stockholders; and
(c) appropriate biographical information and a statement as
to the qualification of each nominee, and must be submitted in
the time frame described under the caption, Stockholder
Proposals for 2006 Annual Meeting, below. The Nominating
and Corporate Governance Committee will evaluate candidates
recommended by stockholders in the same manner as candidates
recommended by other sources, using criteria, if any, approved
by the Board from time to time. Our stockholder communication
policy may be amended at any time with the consent of our
Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee.
Code of Ethics
We have a Code of Ethics that applies to all our employees,
officers and directors. This code was filed as an exhibit to our
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended
December 31, 2003. We will disclose when there have been
waivers of, or amendments to, such Code, as required by the
rules and regulations promulgated by the Securities and Exchange
Commission and/or Nasdaq.
Executive Officers
Our officers are elected annually by our Board of Directors and
serve at the discretion of the Board of Directors. Two of our
executive officers, Jack Friedman and Stephen G. Berman, are
also directors of the Company. See the section above entitled
Nominees for biographical information about these
officers. The remaining executive officer is Joel M. Bennett,
our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.
Joel M. Bennett, 43, joined us in September 1995 as Chief
Financial Officer and was given the additional title of
Executive Vice President in May 2000. From August 1993 to
September 1995, he served in several financial management
capacities at Time Warner Entertainment Company, L.P., including
as Controller of Warner Brothers Consumer Products Worldwide
Merchandising and Interactive Entertainment. From June 1991 to
August 1993, Mr. Bennett was Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer of TTI Technologies, Inc., a direct-mail
computer hardware and software distribution company. From 1986
to June 1991, Mr. Bennett held various financial management
positions at The Walt Disney Company, including Senior Manager
of Finance for its international television syndication and
production division. Mr. Bennett holds a Master of Business
Administration degree and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Certain Relationships and Related Transactions
One of our directors, Murray L. Skala, is a partner in the law
firm of Feder, Kaszovitz, Isaacson, Weber, Skala,
Bass & Rhine LLP, which has performed, and is expected
to continue to perform, legal services for us. In 2004, we
incurred approximately $4,281,292 for legal fees and $584,648
for reimbursable expenses payable
7
to that firm. As of December 31, 2003 and 2004, legal fees
and reimbursable expenses of $721,837 and $1,309,829,
respectively, were payable to this law firm.
Legal Proceedings
On October 19, 2004, we were named as defendants in a
lawsuit commenced by WWE in the U.S. District Court for the
Southern District of New York concerning our toy licenses with
WWE and the video game license between WWE and the joint venture
company operated by THQ and us, encaptioned World Wrestling
Entertainment, Inc. v. JAKKS Pacific, Inc., et al.,
1:04-CV-08223-KMK (the WWE Action). The complaint
also named as defendants THQ, the joint venture, certain of our
foreign subsidiaries, Jack Friedman (our Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer), Stephen Berman (our Chief Operating Officer,
President and Secretary and a member of our Board of Directors),
Joel Bennett (our Chief Financial Officer), Stanley Shenker and
Associates, Inc., Bell Licensing, LLC, Stanley Shenker and James
Bell.
WWE is seeking treble, punitive and other damages (including
disgorgement of profits) in an undisclosed amount and a
declaration that the video game license with the joint venture,
which is scheduled to expire in 2009 (subject to the joint
ventures right to extend that license for an additional
five years), and an amendment to our toy licenses with WWE,
which are scheduled to expire in 2009, are void and
unenforceable. This action alleged violations by the defendants
of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act
(RICO) and the anti-bribery provisions of the
Robinson-Patman Act, and various claims under state law.
On February 16, 2005, we filed a motion to dismiss the WWE
Action. On March 30, 2005, the day before WWEs
opposition to our motion was due, WWE filed an amended complaint
seeking, among other things, to add the Chief Executive Officer
of THQ as a defendant and to add a claim under the Sherman Act.
On March 31, 2005, the WWE sent a letter to the Court
proposing, inter alia, a briefing schedule for
defendants motions to dismiss the amended complaint. On
April 6, 2005, the Court denied WWEs application,
ordered WWE to identify how the amended complaint responds to
the dispositive motions raised by defendants, and ordered the
parties to appear at a conference on April 27, 2005. At the
conference, the Court ordered that by May 6, 2005, WWE was
to identify how the amended complaint responded to the
dispositive motions raised by defendants and to address whether
costs should be assessed in connection with legal work required
of defendants in these circumstances. WWE filed its letter on
May 6, 2005; we responded on May 13, 2005; and WWE
replied to that response on May 23, 2005. A court
conference has been scheduled for August 18, 2005.
In November 2004, several purported class action lawsuits were
filed in the United States District Court for the Southern
District of New York: (1) Garcia v. Jakks Pacific,
Inc. et al., Civil Action No. 04-8807 (filed on
November 5, 2004, (2) Jonco Investors, LLC v.
Jakks Pacific, Inc. et al., Civil Action No. 04-9021
(filed on November 16, 2004), (3) Kahn v. Jakks
Pacific, Inc. et al., Civil Action No. 04-8910 (filed
on November 10, 2004), (4) Quantum Equities
L.L.C. v. Jakks Pacific, Inc. et al., Civil Action
No. 04-8877 (filed on November 9, 2004), and
(5) Irvine v. Jakks Pacific, Inc. et al., Civil
Action No. 04-9078 (filed on November 16, 2004) (the
Class Actions). The complaints in the
Class Actions allege that defendants issued positive
statements concerning increasing sales of our WWE licensed
products which were false and misleading because the WWE
licenses had allegedly been obtained through a pattern of
commercial bribery, our relationship with the WWE was being
negatively impacted by the WWEs contentions and there was
an increased risk that the WWE would either seek modification or
nullification of the licensing agreements with us. Plaintiffs
also allege that we misleadingly failed to disclose the alleged
fact that the WWE licenses were obtained through an unlawful
bribery scheme. The Class Actions seek compensatory and
other damages in an undisclosed amount, alleging violations of
Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the
Exchange Act) and Rule 10b-5 promulgated
thereunder by each of the defendants (namely the Company and
Messrs. Friedman, Berman and Bennett), and violations of
Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act by Messrs. Friedman,
Berman and Bennett. On January 25, 2005, the Court
consolidated the Class Actions under the caption In re
JAKKS Pacific, Inc. Shareholders Class Action Litigation,
Civil Action No. 04-8807. On May 11, 2005, the Court
appointed co-lead counsels and provided until July 11,
2005, for an amended complaint to be filed; until
September 9, 2005 for a motion to dismiss to be filed;
until November 8, 2005 for opposition to be filed; and
until December 8, 2005 for a reply to be filed. On
July 11, 2005, a consolidated
8
amended class action complaint was filed on behalf of purchasers
of our common stock between December 3, 1999 and
October 19, 2004.
We believe that the claims in the WWE Action and the
Class Actions are without merit and we intend to defend
vigorously against them. However, because these Actions are in
their preliminary stages, we cannot assure you as to the outcome
of the Actions, nor can we estimate the range of our potential
losses.
On December 2, 2004, a shareholder derivative action was
filed in the Southern District of New York by Freeport Partner,
LLC against us, nominally, and against Messrs. Friedman,
Berman and Bennett, Freeport Partners v. Friedman,
et al., Civil Action No. 04-9441 (the Derivative
Action). The Derivative Action seeks to hold the
individual defendants liable for damages allegedly caused to us
by their actions and in particular to hold them liable on a
contribution theory with respect to any liability we incur in
connection with the Class Actions. On or about
February 10, 2005, a second shareholder derivative action
was filed in the Southern District of New York by David
Oppenheim against us, nominally, and against
Messrs. Friedman, Berman, Bennett, Blatte, Glick, Miller
and Skala, Civil Action 05-2046 (the Second Derivative
Action). The Second Derivative Action seeks to hold the
individual defendants liable for damages allegedly caused to us
by their actions as a result of alleged breaches of their
fiduciary duties. On or about March 16, 2005, a third
shareholder derivative action was filed. It is captioned
Warr v. Friedman, Berman, Bennett, Blatte, Glick, Miller,
Skala, and Jakks (as a nominal defendant), and it was filed in
the Superior Court of California, Los Angeles County (the
Third Derivative Action). The Third Derivative
Action seeks to hold the individual defendants liable for
(1) damages allegedly caused to us by their alleged
breaches of fiduciary duty, abuse of control, gross
mismanagement, waste of corporate assets and unjust enrichment;
and (2) restitution to us of profits, benefits and other
compensation obtained by them. Stays and/or extensions of time
to respond have been negotiated with plaintiffs counsel in
the derivative actions, but plaintiffs counsel in the
Second Derivative Action and the Third Derivative Action have
the right to terminate the stay and/or refuse to renew the
extension of the time to respond.
On March 1, 2005, we delivered a Notice of Breach of
Settlement Agreement and Demand for Indemnification to WWE (the
Notification). The Notification asserted that
WWEs filing of the WWE Action violated A Covenant Not to
Sue contained in a January 15, 2004 Settlement Agreement
and General Release (General Release) entered into
between WWE and us and, therefore, that we were demanding
indemnification, pursuant to the Indemnification provision
contained in the General Release, for all losses that the
WWEs actions have caused or will cause to us and our
officers, including but not limited to any losses sustained by
us in connection with the Class Actions. On March 4,
2005, in a letter from its outside counsel, WWE asserted that
the General Release does not cover the claims in the WWE Action.
We are a party to, and certain of our property is the subject
of, various other pending claims and legal proceedings that
routinely arise in the ordinary course of our business, but we
do not believe that any of these claims or proceedings will have
a material effect on our business, financial condition or
results of operations.
Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting
Compliance
Based solely upon a review of Forms 3 and 4 and amendments
thereto furnished to us during 2004 and Forms 5 and
amendments thereto furnished to us with respect to 2004, during
2004, (i) Michael Bianco, a former executive officer of our
Company, untimely filed one report on Form 4 reporting four
late transactions; and (ii) Dan Almagor, a member of our
Board of Directors, untimely filed one report on Form 3 and
untimely filed one report on Form 4 reporting one late
transaction. Based solely upon a review of Forms 3 and 4
and amendments thereto furnished to us during 2004 and
Forms 5 and amendments thereto furnished to us with respect
to 2004, all other Forms 3, 4 and 5 required to be filed
during 2004 were done so on a timely basis.
9
Executive Compensation
The following table sets forth the compensation we paid for our
fiscal years ended December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002 to
(i) our Chief Executive Officer; (ii) each of our
other executive officers whose compensation exceeded $100,000 on
an annual basis; and (iii) up to two additional individuals
for whom disclosure would have been provided under the forgoing
clause (ii) but for the fact that the individual was not
serving as an executive officer of our Company at the end of the
last completed fiscal year (collectively, the Named
Officers).
Summary Compensation Table
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Annual Compensation | |
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Long Term Awards | |
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Restricted | |
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Stock | |
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Name and |
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Other Annual | |
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Awards | |
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Options | |
Principal Position |
|
Year | |
|
Salary ($) | |
|
Bonus ($) | |
|
Compensation($) | |
|
($)(*) | |
|
(#) | |
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| |
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Jack Friedman
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2004 |
|
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990,000 |
|
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|
1,980,000 |
|
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9,750 |
(5) |
|
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1,578,000 |
(6) |
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|
Chairman and Chief Executive |
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2003 |
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965,000 |
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1,327,140 |
(3) |
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9,000 |
(5) |
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2,524,800 |
(7) |
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Officer |
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2002 |
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846,000 |
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1,429,696 |
(3) |
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8,250 |
(5) |
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Stephen G. Berman
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2004 |
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990,000 |
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1,980,000 |
|
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6,500 |
(5) |
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1,578,000 |
(6) |
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Chief Operating Officer,
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2003 |
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965,000 |
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1,327,140 |
(3) |
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6,000 |
(5) |
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2,524,800 |
(7) |
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President and Secretary |
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2002 |
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821,000 |
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1,429,696 |
(3) |
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5,500 |
(5) |
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Joel M. Bennett
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2004 |
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320,000 |
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300,000 |
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6,500 |
(5) |
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Executive Vice President and |
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2003 |
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300,000 |
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6,000 |
(5) |
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1,262,400 |
(8) |
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Chief Financial Officer |
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2002 |
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272,500 |
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495,000 |
(4) |
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5,500 |
(5) |
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Michael Bianco, Jr.(1)
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2004 |
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1,024,200 |
(2) |
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6,500 |
(5) |
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1,262,400 |
(9) |
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Former Executive Vice President |
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2003 |
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700,000 |
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6,000 |
(5) |
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1,009,920 |
(10) |
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and Chief Merchandising Officer |
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2002 |
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575,000 |
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600,000 |
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5,500 |
(5) |
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(*) |
The shares of restricted stock referenced in this column were
all issued pursuant to the 2002 Plan. The total number of
restricted shares issued under the 2002 Plan that were
outstanding at December 31, 2004 was 1,236,630 shares.
Such shares had an aggregate value of $27,341,890, representing
the product of (a) 1,236,630 shares, multiplied by
(b) $22.11, the closing price of our common stock on
December 31, 2004, as reported by Nasdaq. |
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(1) |
Effective October 13, 2004, we entered into a Termination
Agreement and General Release with Mr. Bianco (the
Bianco Agreement), which had the effect of
terminating Mr. Biancos employment with us. The
Bianco Agreement further (i) canceled all of the 222,279
unexercised stock options (vested and unvested) held by
Mr. Bianco, (ii) included the waiver by
Mr. Bianco of all claims by him for future compensation
under his prior employment agreement with us, including the
right to receive 288,000 shares of restricted stock to
which he was otherwise entitled to receive between now and
January 2007, (iii) revised the vesting schedule of the
96,000 shares of restricted stock he received in January
2004 to delay the vesting of 24,000 of those shares from
January 1, 2006 to January 1, 2007 and
(iv) provided for mutual general releases between us and
Mr. Bianco for all matters arising from his prior
employment agreement. |
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(2) |
Consists of $544,000 in salary and $480,000 paid to
Mr. Bianco under his consulting agreement with us, entered
into simultaneously with the Bianco Agreement (the
Consulting Agreement). Pursuant to the terms of the
Consulting Agreement, which is effective until
September 30, 2007, Mr. Bianco is to serve as a
product development and marketing consultant for us, in
particular with regard to our product and marketing activities
at the annual Toy Fair held in New York City, for which he will
be compensated in the amount of $1,280,000 in the aggregate
(including the $480,000 paid him in 2004). |
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(3) |
On March 31, 2005, we restated the financial statements
included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal
year ended December 31, 2003, which included our financial
statements for 2003 and 2002, |
10
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to account for the acquisition of Toymax, Trendmasters and
P&M Products in accordance with paragraph 39 of
SFAS 141 (the Restatement). Specifically, a
portion of the purchase price for each of these transactions has
now been allocated to acquired product rights and other
intangible assets other than goodwill. The Restatement had the
effect of reducing our income before provision for income taxes
and minority interest (pre-tax income) for both 2003
and 2002. The bonuses paid to Messrs. Friedman and Berman
in 2003 and 2002 were determined based upon our pre-tax income
for those periods. We are evaluating the impact that the
Restatement and the attendant reduction in our pre-tax income
for 2003 and 2002 may have on the bonuses paid to
Messrs. Friedman and Berman for those years. |
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(4) |
Includes the forgiveness of a note receivable and accrued
interest in the aggregate amount of $285,000. |
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(5) |
Represents matching contributions made by us to the Named
Officers 401(k) defined contribution plan. See
Employee Pension Plan, infra. |
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(6) |
Represents the product of (a) 120,000 shares of
restricted stock multiplied by (b) $13.15, the last sales
price of our common stock, as reported by Nasdaq on
January 1, 2004, the date the shares were granted, all of
which vested on January 1, 2005. |
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(7) |
Represents the product of (a) 240,000 shares of
restricted stock multiplied by (b) $10.52, the closing
price of our common stock, as reported by Nasdaq, on
March 27, 2003, the date the shares were granted, all of
which vested on January 1, 2004. |
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(8) |
Represents the product of (a) 120,000 shares of
restricted stock multiplied by (b) $10.52, the closing
price of our common stock, as reported by Nasdaq, on
March 27, 2003, the date the shares were granted, which
vested as follows: 60,000 shares on each of January 1,
2004 and 2005. |
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(9) |
Represents the product of (a) 96,000 shares of
restricted stock multiplied by (b) $13.15, the last sales
price of our common stock, as reported by Nasdaq on
January 1, 2004, the date the shares were granted, which
vested or will vest as follows: 72,000 shares on
January 1, 2005 and 24,000 shares on January 1,
2007 (see Note (1) to this table, above). |
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(10) |
Represents the product of (a) 96,000 shares of
restricted stock multiplied by (b) $10.52, the closing
price of our common stock, as reported by Nasdaq, on
March 27, 2003, the date the shares were granted, all of
which vested on January 1, 2004. |
Aggregated Option/ SAR Exercises in Last Fiscal Year
and Fiscal Year End Option/ SAR Values
The following table sets forth certain information regarding
options exercised and exercisable during 2004, and the value of
options held as of December 31, 2004 by the Named Officers:
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Number of Securities | |
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Value of Unexercised | |
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Underlying Unexercised | |
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In-the-Money | |
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Options/SARs | |
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Options/SARs | |
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Shares | |
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at Fiscal Year End | |
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at Fiscal Year End(1) | |
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Acquired on | |
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Value | |
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| |
Name |
|
Exercise (#) | |
|
Realized ($) | |
|
Exercisable | |
|
Unexercisable | |
|
Exercisable | |
|
Unexercisable | |
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| |
Jack Friedman
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255,318 |
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101,936 |
|
|
$ |
2,974,920 |
|
|
$ |
644,965 |
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Stephen G. Berman
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3,491,024 |
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101,936 |
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4,309,936 |
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644,965 |
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Joel M. Bennett
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57,176 |
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33,894 |
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738,925 |
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390,356 |
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Michael Bianco, Jr.
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(1) |
The product of (x) the difference between $22.11 (the
closing sale price of the common stock on December 31,
2004) and the aggregate exercise price of such options,
multiplied by (y) the number of unexercised options. |
Board Compensation
Directors currently receive an annual cash stipend of $15,000
for serving on the Board, and are reimbursed for reasonable
expenses incurred in attending meetings. In addition, the 2002
Plan provides for
11
each newly elected non-employee director to receive at the
commencement of his term an option to
purchase 10,000 shares of our common stock at their
then current fair market value, and for grants to our
non-employee directors: (i) on January 1 and July 1 of
each year of an option to purchase 7,500 shares of our
common stock at their then current fair market value, and
(ii) on January 1 of each year of 1,000 shares of
restricted stock. Options granted to a non-employee director
expire upon the termination of the directors services for
cause, but may be exercised at any time during a one-year period
after such person ceases to serve as a director for any other
reason.
The Chairman of the Audit Committee further receives an annual
cash stipend of $10,000 for serving in such capacity.
Employment Agreements and Related Matters
In March 2003 we amended and restated our employment agreements
with each of Messrs. Friedman, Bennett and Berman. The
following is only a summary of the material terms of our
employment agreements with these Named Officers. For a complete
description, copies of such agreements are annexed herein in
their entirety as exhibits or are otherwise incorporated herein
by reference.
A. Jack Friedman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Mr. Friedmans amended and restated employment
agreement, pursuant to which he serves as our Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer, provides for an annual base salary in 2005 of
$1,015,000. Mr. Friedmans agreement expires
December 31, 2010. His base salary is subject to annual
increases determined by our Board of Directors, but in an amount
not less than $25,000 per annum. For our fiscal year ended
December 31, 2004, Mr. Friedman received a bonus of
$1,980,000. For each fiscal year between 2005 through 2010,
Mr. Friedmans bonus will depend on our achieving
certain earnings per share growth targets. The earnings per
share growth targets for 2005 have been set, but the earnings
per share growth targets for subsequent fiscal years will be
determined annually by the Compensation Committee of our Board
of Directors. This bonus will be paid in accordance with the
terms and conditions of our 2002 Stock Award and Incentive Plan.
In addition, in consideration for modifying and replacing the
pre-tax income formula provided in his prior employment
agreement for determining his annual bonus, and for entering
into the amended employment agreement, Mr. Friedman was
granted the right to be issued an aggregate of
1,080,000 shares of restricted stock. The first tranche of
restricted stock, totaling 240,000 shares, was granted at
the time the agreement became effective, and the second and
third tranches of restricted stock, each totaling
120,000 shares (or 240,000 in the aggregate), were granted
on each of January 1, 2004 and 2005. In each subsequent
year of the employment agreement term, Mr. Friedman will
receive 120,000 shares of restricted stock. The grant of
these shares is in accordance with our 2002 Stock Award and
Incentive Plan, and the vesting of each tranche of restricted
stock is subject to our achieving pre-tax income in excess of
$2,000,000 in the fiscal year that the grant is made. Each
tranche of restricted stock granted or to be granted from
January 1, 2004 through January 1, 2008 is subject to
a two-year vesting period, which may be accelerated to one year
if we achieve certain earnings per share growth targets. Each
tranche of restricted stock to be granted thereafter through
January 1, 2010, is subject to a one-year vesting period.
Finally, the agreement provides Mr. Friedman with the
opportunity, commencing at age 67, to retire and receive a
single-life annuity retirement payment equal to $975,000 a year
for a period of 10 years, or in the event of his death
during such retirement period, his estate will receive a death
benefit equal to the difference between $2,925,000 and any prior
retirement benefits previously paid to him; provided, however,
that Mr. Friedman must agree to serve as Chairman Emeritus
of our Board of Directors, if requested to do so by such Board.
B. Stephen Berman, Chief Operating Officer, President and
Secretary
Mr. Bermans amended and restated employment
agreement, pursuant to which he serves as our President and
Chief Operating Officer, provides for an annual base salary in
2005 of $1,015,000. Mr. Bermans agreement expires
December 31, 2010. His base salary is subject to annual
increases determined by our Board of Directors, but in an amount
not less than $25,000 per annum. For our fiscal year ended
December 31, 2004,
12
Mr. Berman received a bonus of $1,980,000. For each fiscal
year between 2005 through 2010, Mr. Bermans bonus
will depend on our achieving certain earnings per share growth
targets. The earnings per share growth targets for 2005 have
been set, but the earnings per share growth targets for
subsequent fiscal years will be determined annually by the
Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors. This bonus
will be paid in accordance with the terms and conditions of our
2002 Stock Award and Incentive Plan. In addition, in
consideration for modifying and replacing the pre-tax income
formula provided in his prior employment agreement for
determining his annual bonus, and for entering into the amended
employment agreement, Mr. Berman was granted the right to
be issued an aggregate of 1,080,000 shares of restricted
stock. The first tranche of restricted stock, totaling
240,000 shares, was granted at the time the agreement
became effective, and the second and third tranches of
restricted stock, each totaling 120,000 shares (or 240,000
in the aggregate), were granted on each of January 1, 2004
and 2005. In each subsequent year of the employment agreement
term, Mr. Berman will receive 120,000 shares of
restricted stock. The grant of these shares is in accordance
with our 2002 Stock Award and Incentive Plan, and the vesting of
each tranche of restricted stock is subject to our achieving
pre-tax income in excess of $2,000,000 in the fiscal year that
the grant is made. Each tranche of restricted stock granted or
to be granted from January 1, 2004 through January 1,
2008 is subject to a two-year vesting period, which may be
accelerated to one year if we achieve certain earnings per share
growth targets. Each tranche of restricted stock to be granted
thereafter through January 1, 2010, is subject to a
one-year vesting period.
C. Joel Bennett, Executive Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer
Mr. Bennetts amended and restated employment
agreement, pursuant to which Mr. Bennett serves as our
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, expires
December 31, 2006. Mr. Bennetts annual base
salary in 2005 is $340,000 and is subject to annual increases in
an amount, not less than $20,000, determined by our Board of
Directors. For 2005, Mr. Bennett will be entitled to
receive a performance bonus depending on our achieving certain
pre-determined earnings per share growth targets. In addition,
as consideration for relinquishing the prior formula for
determining his annual bonus, and for entering into the amended
agreement, Mr. Bennett was awarded at the time his
agreement became effective 120,000 shares of restricted
stock, 60,000 of which vested on each of January 1, 2004
and January 1, 2005. This grant of restricted stock was in
accordance with our 2002 Stock Award and Incentive Plan.
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Termination of Employment Agreements |
Mr. Biancos amended and restated employment
agreement, pursuant to which he served as our Executive Vice
President and Chief Merchandising Officer, provided for an
annual base salary in 2004 of $725,000. Effective
October 13, 2004, we entered into a Termination Agreement
and General Release with Mr. Bianco (the Termination
Agreement), which had the effect of terminating such
employment agreement. The Termination Agreement further
(i) canceled all of the 222,279 unexercised stock options
(vested and unvested) held by Mr. Bianco,
(ii) included the waiver by Mr. Bianco of all claims
by him for future compensation under his prior employment
agreement, including the right to receive 288,000 shares of
restricted stock to which he was otherwise entitled to receive
between now and January 2007, (iii) revised the vesting
schedule of the 96,000 shares of restricted stock he
received in January 2004 to delay the vesting of 24,000 of those
shares from January 1, 2006 to January 1, 2007 and
(iv) provided for mutual general releases between us and
Mr. Bianco for all matters arising from his prior
employment agreement. Simultaneously with the Termination
Agreement, we entered into a Consulting Agreement with
Mr. Bianco (the Consulting Agreement). The
Consulting Agreement is effective until September 30, 2007.
Under the terms of the Consulting Agreement, Mr. Bianco is
to serve as a product development and marketing consultant for
us, in particular with regard to our product and marketing
activities at the annual Toy Fair held in New York City, for
which he will be compensated in the amount of $1,280,000 in the
aggregate. The Consulting Agreement also contains restrictive
covenants.
If we terminate Mr. Friedmans, Mr. Bermans
or Mr. Bennetts employment other than for
cause or if such Named Officer resigns because of our
material breach of the employment agreement or because we cause
a material change in his employment, we are required to make a
lump-sum severance payment in an amount equal to his base salary
and bonus during the balance of the term of the employment
agreement, based
13
on his then applicable annual base salary and bonus. In the
event of the termination of his employment under certain
circumstances after a Change of Control (as defined
in each employment agreement), we are required to make a
one-time payment of an amount equal to 2.99 times of the
base amount of such Named Officer determined in
accordance with the applicable provisions of the Internal
Revenue Code.
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Impact of Restatement on Compensation of Executive
Officers |
On March 31, 2005, we restated the financial statements
included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal
year ended December 31, 2003, which included our financial
statements for 2003 and 2002, to account for the acquisition of
Toymax, Trendmasters and P&M Products in accordance with
paragraph 39 of SFAS 141 (the
Restatement). Specifically, a portion of the
purchase price for each of these transactions has now been
allocated to acquired product rights and other intangible assets
other than goodwill. The Restatement had the effect of reducing
our income before provision for income taxes and minority
interest (pre-tax income) for both 2003 and 2002.
The bonuses paid to Messrs. Friedman and Berman in 2003 and
2002 were determined based upon our pre-tax income for those
periods. We are evaluating the impact that the Restatement and
the attendant reduction in our pre-tax income for 2003 and 2002
may have on the bonuses paid to Messrs. Friedman and Berman
for those years.
We sponsor for our U.S. employees (including the Named
Officers), a defined contribution plan under Section 401(k)
of the Internal Revenue Code. The plan provides that employees
may defer up to 15% of their annual compensation, and that we
will make a matching contribution equal to 50% of each
employees deferral, up to 5% of the employees annual
compensation. Our matching contributions, which vest equally
over a five year period, totalled $0.3 million,
$0.3 million and $0.4 million for 2002, 2003 and 2004,
respectively.
Compensation Committee Interlock and Insider Participation
Messrs. Glick and Miller are the members of our
Compensation Committee. None of our executive officers has
served as a director or member of a compensation committee (or
other board committee performing equivalent functions) of any
other entity, one of whose executive officers served as a
director or a member of our Compensation Committee.
14
Performance Graph
The graph and tables below display the relative performance of
our common stock, the Russell 2000 Price Index (the
Russell 2000) and a peer group index, by comparing
the cumulative total stockholder return (which assumes
reinvestment of any dividends) on an assumed $100 investment in
our common stock, the Russell 2000 and the peer group index over
the period from January 1, 1999 to December 31, 2004.
The companies included in the peer group index are: Acclaim
Entertainment, Inc., Action Performance Companies, Inc., Equity
Marketing, Inc., Hasbro, Inc., Mattel, Inc., Mega Bloks, Inc.,
RC2 Corp. and Russ Berrie and Company, Inc. We believe that
these companies represent a cross-section of publicly-traded
companies with product lines and businesses similar to our own
throughout the comparison period. These companies are identical
to those included in last years peer group index, except
that we have removed The First Years, Inc. (which was acquired
in 2004 by RC2 Corp.) and added RC2 Corp. and Mega Bloks, Inc.
As such, we have included a fourth line on the below graph
representing the performance of the old peer group index. The
historical performance data presented below may not be
indicative of the future performance of our common stock, any
reference index or any component company in a reference index.
Annual Return Percentage
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December 31, | |
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December 31, | |
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December 31, | |
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December 31, | |
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December 31, | |
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2000 | |
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2001 | |
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2002 | |
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2003 | |
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2004 | |
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JAKKS Pacific, Inc.
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(51.17 |
)% |
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107.68 |
% |
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(28.92 |
)% |
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(2.37 |
)% |
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68.15 |
% |
New Peer Group
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(13.94 |
) |
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38.37 |
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(1.74 |
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17.84 |
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(2.16 |
) |
Old Peer Group
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(13.51 |
) |
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36.53 |
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(3.39 |
) |
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17.12 |
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(3.48 |
) |
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Russell 2000
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(3.03 |
) |
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2.58 |
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(20.48 |
) |
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47.25 |
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18.33 |
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Indexed Returns
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January 1, | |
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December 31, | |
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December 31, | |
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December 31, | |
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December 31, | |
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December 31, | |
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2000 | |
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2000 | |
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2001 | |
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2002 | |
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2003 | |
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2004 | |
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JAKKS Pacific, Inc.
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$ |
100.00 |
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$ |
48.83 |
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$ |
101.40 |
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$ |
72.08 |
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$ |
70.37 |
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$ |
118.33 |
|
New Peer Group
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$ |
100.00 |
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86.06 |
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119.09 |
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117.02 |
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137.90 |
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134.92 |
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Old Peer Group
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$ |
100.00 |
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86.49 |
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118.09 |
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114.09 |
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133.62 |
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128.97 |
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Russell 2000
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$ |
100.00 |
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96.97 |
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99.47 |
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79.09 |
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116.47 |
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137.82 |
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15
COMPENSATION COMMITTEE REPORT
Overview
Our approach to employee compensation is grounded in our belief
that our most important resource is our people. While some
companies may enjoy an exclusive or limited franchise or are
able to exploit unique assets, proprietary technology or other
special properties or rights, we depend fundamentally on the
skills, energy and dedication of our employees to drive our
business. It is only through their constant efforts that we are
able to innovate through the creation of new products and the
continual rejuvenation of our product lines, to maintain
superior operating efficiencies, and to develop and exploit
marketing channels. With this in mind, we have consistently
sought to employ the most talented, accomplished and energetic
people available in the industry.
One of our key management principles is to operate with a lean
and effective executive staff. This allows for quick
decision-making and efficient operation, but also stresses
clearly delineated responsibilities and accountability for each
area of business. We believe that we have assembled an
outstanding management team and that this has been a primary
factor in our success to date. Accordingly, we have determined
that the paramount aim of our compensation policy should be to
attract and retain the most promising people available to work
for us and to motivate them so that they perform to their
maximum potential.
The compensation of our executive officers is governed by the
terms of their individual employment agreements.
Mr. Friedman and Mr. Berman generally determine the
compensation of other management employees, subject to oversight
by the Board of Directors. Management compensation, including
that covered by the employment agreements of our executive
officers, is generally determined based on a subjective
evaluation of an employees efforts and achievements, our
overall performance and the employees contribution
thereto. The role of our Boards Compensation Committee in
this process is to review our Companys compensation policy
for management employees, to recommend to the Board programs and
policies related to employee compensation and benefits, and to
administer programs and plans relating thereto, including our
Third Amended and Restated 1995 Stock Option Plan and our 2002
Stock Award and Incentive Plan.
Executive Compensation
Our executive compensation consists of several components:
The base salaries of Mr. Friedman, Mr. Berman and
Mr. Bennett are determined in accordance with their
respective employment agreements. We determine the base salary
of each of our other management employees on an annual basis.
Generally, we award a cash bonus to our management employees
based on their personal performance in the past year and our
overall performance. For each fiscal year between 2005 through
2010, Messrs. Friedmans and Bermans bonus will
depend on our achieving certain earnings per share growth
targets. The earnings per share growth targets for 2005 have
been set by the Compensation Committee and the earnings per
share growth targets for subsequent fiscal years will be
determined annually by the Compensation Committee. For 2005,
Mr. Bennett will be entitled to receive a performance bonus
depending on our achieving certain earnings per share growth
targets that have been established by the Compensation
Committee. Messrs. Friedman, Berman and Bennett may also
receive additional discretionary bonuses.
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Stock Option and Restricted Stock Award Grants |
We believe that an important element of our compensation policy
is to align the interests of our management employees with the
long-term interests of our stockholders. The most direct way to
accomplish this is by giving our employees an equity stake in
our Company, which we do by granting to our employees as a
non-cash component of incentive compensation (i) stock
options under our Third Amended and Restated
16
1995 Stock Option Plan (the 1995 Plan) and the 2002
Stock Award and Incentive Plan (the 2002 Plan, and
collectively with the 1995 Plan, the Plans), and
(ii) shares of restricted stock under the 2002 Plan.
Options and shares of restricted stock may be granted by the
Board of Directors or Compensation Committee, based on the
recommendations of management (except that management does not
participate in determining their own option grants).
To date, the exercise price of each option granted under the
Plans was equal to the Nasdaq closing price of our common stock
on the date of grant (except where a higher exercise price was
required in order for the option to qualify as an
incentive stock option under the Internal Revenue
Code when the option is granted to a 10% stockholder), and we
intend to continue this practice in general. Beginning in 1999,
we have provided for all options granted under the Plans to
employees to vest in increments of 15%, 15%, 15%, 25% and 30%
over the five-year period beginning on the first anniversary of
the date of grant, and to terminate six years after the date of
grant. We believe that the relatively long and back-end weighted
vesting period encourages a long-term commitment to us by the
option grantee.
Messrs. Friedman, Berman and Bennett have been issued
shares of restricted stock under the 2002 Plan in accordance
with their respective employment agreements.
Messrs. Friedman and Berman will continue to be issued
shares of restricted stock thereunder through the terms thereof
(see Employment Agreements and Related Matters
Employment Agreements). The vesting of these shares of
restricted stock is (or was, for previously issued shares)
subject to our achieving certain pre-tax income levels, a
portion of which may be accelerated if we achieve certain
earnings per share growth targets. We believe this encourages
our executives to perform to the best of their abilities to
ensure that the relevant benchmarks are achieved.
We provide customary employee benefits, such as medical and
hospitalization insurance, paid vacation and a 401(k) retirement
savings plan, to all our full-time employees. In addition,
certain of our management employees are entitled to perquisites,
such as an automobile allowance.
Chief Executive Officer Compensation
In 2004, Mr. Friedman, our Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer, and Mr. Berman, our President and Chief Operating
Officer, each earned a base salary of $990,000 and a bonus of
$1,980,000. Mr. Friedman and Mr. Berman are subject to
employment agreements which require us to increase their salary
each year by an amount not less than $25,000 and which provide
for formula-based bonuses and grants of restricted stock (see
Employment Agreements and Related Matters
Employment Agreements).
We believe that our success to date has been to a significant
extent attributable to the personal efforts of Mr. Friedman
and Mr. Berman. They founded the Company, established our
business philosophy and operating structure and were the driving
force behind our central theme of focusing our business on
evergreen products. In his nearly four-decade-long
career in the toy industry, Mr. Friedman has established an
important network of relationships that we have been able to
exploit in product acquisition, production and sales. Both
Mr. Berman and Mr. Friedman embody our management
philosophy with a hands on approach in all areas of
our business. In addition to their general supervisory
functions, they are directly involved in license acquisition,
product design and development, production, and sales and
marketing, as well as our financing and acquisition efforts.
Their efforts have resulted in our identifying and securing
desirable licenses and properties, the rapid expansion of our
product lines, our achieving significant production efficiencies
and the development of a loyal and growing customer base.
17
Considerations with Respect to Tax Deductibility
The deductibility of compensation payments in excess of
$1,000,000 to each of our Chief Executive Officer or four other
most highly compensated executive officers is subject to certain
limitations under Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue
Code. The Board of Directors and the Compensation Committee take
into account the effect of the loss of deductibility of
executive compensation that exceeds $1,000,000 as one factor in
its consideration of the appropriate manner and level of
compensation for our executives. While they seek to minimize any
adverse impact of these limitations, they may not confine
compensation to the $1,000,000 limit in order to maintain
flexibility to award greater compensation where appropriate.
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COMPENSATION COMMITTEE |
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Robert E. Glick, Chairman |
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Michael G. Miller |
18
REPORT OF THE AUDIT COMMITTEE ON THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The Audit Committee has (i) reviewed and discussed with
management our Companys audited financial statements for
2004; (ii) discussed with PKF, our Companys
independent auditors, the matters required to be discussed by
Statement on Auditing Standards No. 61, Communications
with Audit Committees, as amended by Statement on Auditing
Standards No. 90, Audit Committee Communications;
(iii) received the written disclosures and the letter
from the independent auditors as required by Independent
Standards Board Standard No. 1, Independence Discussions
with Audit Committees; (iv) considered whether the
non-audit services provided by the independent auditors, if any,
are compatible with maintaining the auditors independence;
and (v) discussed with the auditors the auditors
independence. The Audit Committee further approves our
Companys engagement of independent auditors prior to the
rendering by such auditors of any audit or non-audit services.
Based on the review and discussions outlined above, the Audit
Committee recommended to the Board of Directors that the audited
financial statements for 2004 be included in our Companys
Annual Report on Form 10-K for such fiscal year.
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AUDIT COMMITTEE |
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David C. Blatte, Chairman |
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Robert E. Glick |
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Michael G. Miller |
19
RATIFICATION OF THE APPOINTMENT OF
INDEPENDENT CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
(Proposal No. 2)
Upon the recommendation of our Audit Committee, our Board of
Directors has appointed the firm of PKF, Certified Public
Accountants, A Professional Corporation, as our principal
independent auditors for the fiscal year ending
December 31, 2005, subject to ratification by the
stockholders. This firm has served as our independent auditors
since our inception in 1995. If the appointment of this firm is
not ratified or if it declines to act or their engagement is
otherwise discontinued, the Board of Directors will appoint
other independent auditors. Representatives of the firm are
expected to be present at the Annual Meeting, will have the
opportunity to make a statement at the Annual Meeting, if they
so desire, and will be available to respond to appropriate
questions from stockholders.
Before PKF is engaged by us to render audit or non-audit
services, where required by the rules and regulations
promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission and/or
Nasdaq, such engagement is approved by the Audit Committee. The
following are the fees billed us by PKF for services rendered
thereby during 2004 and 2003 (all of which having been
pre-approved by the Audit Committee):
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2004 | |
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2003 | |
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Audit Fees
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$ |
415,635 |
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$ |
656,792 |
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Audit Related Fees
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|
|
122,483 |
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|
85,185 |
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Tax Fees
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|
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260,949 |
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205,673 |
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All Other Fees
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191,778 |
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56,811 |
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Audit Fees consist of the aggregate fees billed for
professional services rendered for the audit of our annual
financial statements and the reviews of the financial statements
included in our Forms 10-Q and for any other services that
are normally provided by PKF in connection with our statutory
and regulatory filings or engagements.
Audit Related Fees consist of the aggregate fees billed
for professional services rendered for assurance and related
services that were reasonably related to the performance of the
audit or review of our financial statements and were not
otherwise included in Audit Fees.
Tax Fees consist of the aggregate fees billed for
professional services rendered for tax compliance, tax advice
and tax planning. Included in such Tax Fees were fees for
preparation of our tax returns, consultancy and advice on
international and domestic tax structures and tax planning
relating to our acquisition efforts.
All Other Fees consist of the aggregate fees billed for
products and services provided by PKF and not otherwise included
in Audit Fees, Audit Related Fees or Tax Fees. Included in such
Other Fees were fees for services rendered by PKF in connection
with our private and public offerings conducted during such
periods, as well as reviews related to our acquisition efforts.
Our Audit Committee has considered whether the provision of the
non-audit services described above is compatible with
maintaining PKFs independence and determined that such
services are appropriate.
BOARD RECOMMENDATION
The Board of Directors believes that the approval of the
foregoing two proposals is in the best interests of our Company
and its stockholders and, therefore, recommends that the
stockholders vote FOR such proposals.
2006 ANNUAL MEETING
We must receive a stockholder proposal (and any supporting
statement) to be considered for inclusion in our proxy statement
and proxy for our annual meeting in 2005 at our principal
executive offices on or before April 7, 2006. Any other
proposal that a stockholder intends to present at that meeting
may be deemed untimely unless we have received written notice of
such proposal on or before July 26, 2006. Stockholders
20
should send proposals and notices addressed to JAKKS Pacific,
Inc., 22619 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu, California 90265,
Attention: Stephen G. Berman, Secretary.
OTHER MATTERS
We have not received any other proposal or notice of any
stockholders intention to present any proposal at our
annual meeting, and we are not aware of any matter, other than
those discussed above in this Proxy Statement, to be presented
at the meeting. If any other matter is properly brought before
the annual meeting, the persons named in the attached proxy
intend to vote on such matter as directed by our Board of
Directors.
We will bear all costs of solicitation of proxies. In addition
to solicitations by mail, our directors, officers and regular
employees, without additional remuneration, may solicit proxies
by telephone, telegraph, facsimile, mail and personal
interviews, and we reserve the right to compensate outside
agencies for the purpose of soliciting proxies. We will request
brokers, custodians and fiduciaries to forward proxy soliciting
material to the owners of shares held in their names and we will
reimburse them for out-of-pocket expenses incurred on our behalf.
We will provide, without charge, upon the written request of
any person from whom proxies for this meeting were solicited, a
copy of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year
ended December 31, 2004, including the financial statements
and financial statement schedules. Anyone requesting such
document shall submit the request in writing to: JAKKS Pacific,
Inc., 22619 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu, CA 90265, Attn.: Joel
Bennett, Chief Financial Officer.
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By Order of the Board of Directors, |
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STEPHEN G. BERMAN, Secretary |
August 5, 2005
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS HOPES THAT STOCKHOLDERS WILL ATTEND THE
ANNUAL MEETING. WHETHER OR NOT YOU PLAN TO ATTEND, YOU ARE URGED
TO COMPLETE, DATE, SIGN AND RETURN THE ENCLOSED PROXY IN THE
ACCOMPANYING ENVELOPE. STOCKHOLDERS WHO ATTEND THE ANNUAL
MEETING MAY VOTE THEIR SHARES PERSONALLY, EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVE
SENT IN THEIR PROXIES.
21
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Proxy for Annual Meeting
of Stockholders to be held September 9, 2005 |
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JAKKS Pacific, Inc. |
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Know all men by these presents, that the
undersigned hereby constitutes and appoints Jack Friedman and Stephen
Berman and each of them, the true and lawful attorneys, agents and
proxies of the undersigned, with full power of substitution, to
represent and vote with respect to all of the shares of the common
stock of JAKKS Pacific, Inc., standing the name of the undersigned at
the close of business on July 18, 2005, at the Annual Meeting of
Stockholders of the Company to be held on September 9, 2005 at
the Sherwood Country Club, 320 West Stafford Road, Thousand
Oaks, California 91361, at 9:00 a.m. local time, and at any and
all adjournments thereof, with all the powers that the undersigned
would possess if personally present, and especially (but without
limiting the general authorization and power hereby given) to vote
as follows. |
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This proxy is solicited by the Board of
Directors of the Company. |
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(Continued to be signed on
the reverse side.) |
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6 DETACH
PROXY CARD HERE 6
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4 |
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1. Election of Directors |
JAKKS PACIFIC INC |
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FOR all nominees listed below (except as indicated to
the contrary below). |
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AGAINST |
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Director Nominees: Jack Friedman, Stephen G.
Berman, Dan Almagor, David C. Blane, Robert E. Glick, Michael G.
Miller and Murray L. Skala |
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(Instructions: To withhold authority to
vote for any individual nominee, write that nominees name in the
space provided below.) |
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EXCEPTIONS |
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2. Approval of appointment of the firm of PKF, Certified
Public Accountants. A Professional Corporation, as the Companys
auditors. |
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FOR |
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AGAINST |
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ABSTAIN |
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FOR |
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AGAINST |
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ABSTAIN |
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The shares represented by this proxy will be voted in the
manner indicated, and if no instructions to the contrary are
indicated, will be voted FOR all proposals listed above. Number of
shares owned by undersigned |
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Signature(s): Date |
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Signature(s): Date |
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IMPORTANT: Please sign exactly as your names are printed here.
Executors, administrators, trustees and other persons signing in a
representative capacity should give full title. |
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6 |
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