sean_womack_bio_x

NORTHWESTARKANSASBACKGROUND:
A little backgroundon the areaknown as northwestArkansas(NWA) is useful in
understandingthe climate that SeanWomack grew up in. Regardingthe cities, the core of
NWA is a north-southcorridor comprisingBentonville(population30,000),Rogers
(49,000),Lowell (7,000),Springdale(60,000),and Fayetteville(67,000),with Bentonville
and Rogersclusteredat the north end and Springdaleand Fayettevilleclusteredat the south
end with a 30 minute drive connectingthem. Also, a 30 minute drive directly west of
Springdaleis Siloam Springs(population13,600).Bentonville,Rogersand Siloam Springs
are locatedwithin Benton County, the other towns within WashingtonCounty. Benton
County is a dry county. Having said that, I don't want to createthe impressionthat there are
only uptight teetotalersin Benton County. Far from it, at all the social eventsand
fundraisinggalasthere the liquor flows and people are enjoying themselves.At the lake in
the summer,people are lubricated.The Wal-Mart (WMT) vendor community lives pretty
fast. If one had to guess,'just from observations,one wouldn't guessthat Benton County is
dry. Fayettevilleis the home of the University of Arkansas.It's in WashingtonCounty,but
all of NWA comesthere for university football and basketballgamesand liquor is
abundantlyconsumed.
However in Siloam Springs,they area little more strident,as that is where John Brown
University is located.JBU is an inter-denominationalChristian university with L,200
studentsattendingin 2007. They have strict policies on smoking, drinking, dancing,etc.
This past Decemberthey finally broke down and allowed a danceto take place, for the first
time in 90 years.Needlessto say they, and the surroundingSiloam Springscommunity, are
a conservativegroup.BesidesJBU, religiousinfluencein the region is exertedby the pastor
of the First Baptist Church in Springdale,Ronnie Floyd. Ronnie is straight out of central
castingfor a televangelist.Even with a largeflock basedin Springdale,he recently
completeda secondchurch near the moneyedcrowd in the Bentonville/Rogersareaat a cost
of $23 million. After he finisheswith his Sundayservicesin Springdale,he takesa short
helicopterride to presideover servicesat his new church.He was runner-up last year in the
determinationfor who would lead the SouthernBaptist Convention,which is the mother of
all gigs for a SouthernBaptist preacher.The last big religious force in the areais the
FellowshipBible Church in Lowell. This is a non-denominational
churchthat has a large
amountof A-list NWA people,as well as wannabes,asmembers.It is equalparts
church/religiousexperienceand nefworking. So thereis a strong strain and influence,but
not necessarilya completedomination,of religiosityherein NWA.
Now on to the businessand financial influences.As everybodyknows Bentonville is the
home of WMT ($300billion in revenue).Springdaleis the home of Tyson Foods($2S
billion inrevenue)and Lowell (locatedslightlynorth of Springdale)is the home of JB Hunt
Transportation($2 billion in revenue).ObviouslyWMT's impact is much more oversized,
but the other two companieshave grown well theselast l0 yearsbringing in extra
employees,wealth, etc. WMT had a long standingpolicy of keeping vendorsat arns length,
but I believe roughly six to eight yearsago they changedpolicies and required all vendorsto
haveoffices in Bentonville,so as to betterbe at WMT's beck and call. Needlessto say,you
can imaginethe relocationof many thousandsof peopleand the accompanyingimpacton
land and home prices, etc. in the area.Then throw on top of that the fact that WMT itself
was growing,was hiring, and was relocatingmorepeople,plus the stockpricesof the
companieswere going up and you can envision the huge prosperity and wealth creation
showeredon NWA theselast ten yearsor so.
Now on to the combining of the two. Religion and businessintertwine in Siloam Springs.
The headquarters
of DaySpringCardsarelocatedthere.The companywasstartedinl97l,
and remainedindependentuntil Hallmark bought the niche Christian greetingcard company
in 1999.DaySpringcuffently has450 employeesand broke groundin February2006on a
new $5 million, 36,000s.f. corporateheadquarters.
Religion and businessmixed in a big way in the late 1990s.John Tyson,the heir to the
Tyson Foods fortune, had ascendedto the throne.Earlier in his life he had abused
substances
but he cleanedup his act.He got religion in the early 1990s,finding a counselor
in the aforementionedRonnie Floyd. Then in late 1998,the companyintroducedmany
spiritual options in its corporateofferings for employeesincluding bible study groups,
chaplainservicesat its plants,etc.
This backgroundabout Siloam Springs,JBU, Dayspring Cards,the religious influencein
NWA, Tyson getting religion, and the massivewealth creationin NWA will help you
understandwhat SeanWomack was living amongst.
It should be mentionedthat all of the information found in the following biography of
Sean,exceptfor one instance,was retrievedfrom open,public sources,thosebeing: county
recordsfor real estatetransactions,marriages,divorces,and legal proceedings,Internet
databases,
Internetwebsites,newspaperarchives,and statewebsitesfor business
incorporations.
SEANLEE WOMACK:
SeanLee Womack was born February 10, I 969 to Betty Lou Womack and Jack Eugene
Womack II. At the time of Sean'sbirth, Betty Lou was one month shy of 19 yearsold,
while Jackwas two monthsshy of 20.In either 1976or 1977Sean'sonly other sibling,a
brother,Aaron, was born. Jack and Betty Lou would not officially marry until August 12,
1983,at which time Seanwas l4 yearsold.
Countyrecordsindicatea $3,862.99judgrnentagainstJackE. Womack II on June28,2006.
SimmonsFirst National Bank was the plaintiff and it hasnot yet been satisfied.There is
alsoa $9,641.20judgmentplus all costs,attorneyfeesand interestagainstJackE. Womack
from October30,2002 that is owed to a collectionagency,PinnacleCredit Services.As of
April 2007 it had not been paid. It could not be determinedif this is Jack E. Womack II,
with the designation"II" missingfrom the documentor whetherthis personis Jack
Womack Sr., who would be Sean'sgrandfather.It is not known if JackWomack Sr.'s
middle namestartswith the letter"E".If it is JackWomack Sr., his agein 2002,when this
judgment was issued,would be approximatelyin the mid to late 70s, making his currentage
approximatelysomewherearound 80.
Seangraduatedfrom Siloam SpringsHigh Schoolin 1987and then got a Bachelorof Arts
degreefrom JohnBrown University locatedin Siloam Springs.JBU is a small
interdenominationalChristian collegewhich in 2007 had 1,200 studentsenrolled.
CuriouslySeandid not mentionin a 1999newspaperarticle abouthim, what field he got his
degreein. His mother worked in the creativedepartmentat DaySpring Cards,a Christian
greetingcard companyheadquarteredin Siloam Springs,and he got a job there sometime
after college as a designmanager.While at DaySpring, Seanmet Andy Murray. Murray
arrived in northwestArkansasin 1992as a relocatedtech employeewith Proctor and
Gamble,which has a large office in nearbyFayettevillethat servicesthe Wal-Mart account.
In an odd turn for a personwith a degreein computerscience,Murray joined DaySpringin
1993and stayeduntil 1996,working as their VP in marketinghandling product
development.Murray would leaveto starthis own marketinglbrandfirm Brand Works in
1997,which mergedwith anothermarketingfirm in 1999to form ThompsonMurray,which
was ultimately bought by Saatchiin June 2004,thus forming SaatchiX.
SeanmarriedShelleyJeanHill on May 28, 1994.Shewas born April 19, t 971, the
youngestof threegirls. Although Sean'swork history from l99l to 1998is not easyto
discern,it can be deducedthat he was at leastat DaySpring sometimewhen Murray was
there(1993-1996).SeanattendedFellowshipBible Church(FBC) in Lowell, AR, which is a
thirty minute drive from Siloam Springs.It is a non-denominationalchurch with many
prominentnorthwestArkansasparishioners.Through this church in the mid to late 1990s,
Seannetworkedhis way to his next job, that beingjoining Tom Addington and Steve
Graveswho had founded CornerstoneConsultingGroup in 1990.Addington,52 yearsold
in2007, has quite an interestingeducationalbackgroundin that he has a bachelor'sdegree
in political sciencefrom the U. of Minnesota,a master'sdegreein theologyfrom Trinity
EvangelicalDivinity School, and a PhD in communicationsfrom Penn State.Graveshas a
PhD, gettinga doctoratein theologyfrom the DallasTheologicalSeminary.Cornerstone
Consultingis a consultingbusinesswhoseaim is to integrateBiblical wisdom with business
excellence. Companiesand organizationspay them for consulting,running workshops,
doing seminars,coachingexecutives,etc.wherethey relateBiblical lessonsand wisdom for
businesses,
executives,and peoplein leadershippositions.Gravesand Addington also
attendedFBC when they met Womack. Addington and Gravesalso knew Andy Murray,
who attendedFBC. Addington and Gravestook a liking to Womack, perhapswith a
recommendationfrom Murray, and brought Womack on as a partner in late t 997, early
1998.Womackwas to headup a new division of Cornerstonethat would publish a glossy
bi-monthly magazinecalled Thelife@Work which would focus on a single topic such as
leadership,strategy,or ethicsin eachissueand "blend biblical wisdom and business
excellence",aswell as have interviewswith high profile executives,book reviews,etc.
Addington and Gravesfelt that amagazinewould give businesspeople somehandson tools
and showcaseexamplesof successful,respectedbusinesspeoplewho were finding practical
ways to integratefaith into work. In Octoberof 1997the PromiseKeepers,an international
Christian organrzationfor men, held an open air gatheritrgat the National Mall in
WashingtonD.C. that televisionchannelC-SPAN carriedlive. Over one million men
participatedin it. After seeingthe turnout at that event,Addington, Graves,and Womack
must havethought they were doing the right thing at the right time, and had high hopesfor
their new endeavor.
In joining CornerstoneConsulting, Seanwould move to Fayettevillewhere the group was
located.He purchaseda houseon March2, L998for $185,000.His daughterZoe, who was
born rn 1997,would soonhave a little brother. The Womacks immediately celebratedtheir
new environmentand moving up in status,as approximatelynine months after the home
purchase,in December1998or January1999,their son Ian was born.
At this time in northwestArkansas,John Tyson, the heir to the Tyson Foods (headquartered
in Springdale,AR which abutsFayetteville,AR) throne,had ascendedto the position of
CEO. Earlier in his life he had abusedsubstances
but cleanedup his act, getting religion in
the early 1990s.Then in late 1998,Tyson Foodsintroducedmany spiritualoptionswithin
its corporateofferings for employeesincluding bible study groups,chaplain servicesat its
plants,etc. So for any consultingcompaniesthat offereda melding of religiosity and
business,Tyson Foodswas readyto listen and a potentialgoldmineof a client. An October
1999BusinessWeek cover story noted that incorporatingreligiosity into businessand
corporateways was a growing nationwide trend. Even with the aforementionedpositive
factorsin its favor, The Life@Work magazinewas not a guaranteedsuccess.It was
constructedwith an upscalebent, as a local newspaper'scommentson it said it usedheavy
paperstock, crisp photographyand an airy layout. The debut issuecame out in May/June
1998and was 42pages.The magazinegrew to having pressruns of 55,000 at the start of its
secondyear. It was a bi-monthly magazineand incredibly it did not have advertisingwithin
its pages.After two yearsof this approach,they changedtheir mind and in July of 2000,
The Life@Work hired an outside firm, SalemCommunications,to solicit and secure
advertisingfor the magazine.Given that Addington, Graves,and Womack were regular
writers in the magazine,it appearsthat their businessmodel may have been to use the
magazineas a loss-leader,with it being a de facto advertisingbrochure for Cornerstone
Consulting,with the idea that after having read it, some organizationsand businessesmight
then hire Cornerstonefor consulting,executivecoaching,etc. and the profits from these
activitieswould more than make up for the costsof the magazine.In a cryptic,yet revealing
quote from a brief newspaperprofile in June 1999,Womack describedthe worst obstaclehe
ever faced,"A year into this business(the magazine),therewas a coursecorrectionin the
business.I was trying to balancethe amountof risk that I was willing to live with while
going through the first, second,and third stagesof capitaltzation." Translatedinto English,
it soundslike things didn't go as plannedwith the magazine'sfinances(perhapsthe fwo
main Cornerstonepartners,or an initial outsidefinancer(s)were tired of writing checksand
stoppedor reducedtheir financial supportof the magazineafter ayear), Seanthen had to
stepup (or was forced to stepup) and personallyabsorbmore of the magazine'scoststhan
he caredto do, and he had somedifficulties in obtaining additional outside financing for the
magazine.Undoubtedly this poor cashflow situationled them to switch their approachto
being an advertiser-supportedmagazine.Also at this time the group was writing books,with
a handful being published during 2000 through the spring of 2001. The books' topics
mirrored the theme of the magazine.Besidesputting the magazineout, writing articlesfor
the magazineand contributing to the books, Seanwas also busy speakingat various
religious/business
Nonetheless,sometimeduring 2000
conferencesand other assemblages.
or early 2001, afteronly having beenwith Cornerstonefor two to three years,Seanconfided
to his businesspartnersthat "I think God is calling me to pursuea careerin film." So Sean
and his family packedup and moved out to Los Angeles,after he was acceptedinto USC's
graduatefilm school.The Womackssold theirhousein FayettevilleonNovember 29,2001
for $203,000,yielding al}oh return after 3 3/nyears
of ownership.On a sidenote,the
gentlemanwho bought it from them would sell it after three yearsof ownership for
$468,000,or a L30%return.
While in California, the Womacks lived in Pasadena.Seanstartedfilm graduateschoolin
the fall of 2001 and graduatedin the spring of 2003. Seangot financial assistancein paying
for schoolby being awardeda Harvey Fellowship in the year 2002. The Harvey Fellows
Programseeksto encourageChristian graduatestudentsto integratetheir faith and vocation
and pursueleadershippositions in strategicfields where Christianstend to be underrepresented.They provide financial supportto Christian graduatestudentswho possessa
uniquevision to impact societythrough their fields and who are pursuing graduatestudiesat
premierinstitutions(top five) in their disciplinesin the U.S. or abroad.The Womack's stay
in L.A. was short, as they ultimately moved back to northwestArkansasin early 2004 so
Seancould work as CreativeDirector for Andy Murray, who was now a partner in a
growing and prosperingadlmarketingfirm ThompsonMurray,whose specialtywas in-store
marketing,primarily at Wal-Marts, for packagedgoodscompanies.Cornerstonesold off
The Life@Work division to anothercompany,Injoy, tn2004.It is worth mentioning that
Cornerstonehas clients all over the country and is well respectedwithin the business
community in northwestArkansas,with many local high profile executivesin newspaper
and magazinearticlesover the yearshaving named SteveGravesand Tom Addington as
beingpositiveinfluenceson them, their leadershipskills, or their organizations.
Upon returning to northwestArkansas,the Womacksbought a houseand three acresof
denselywooded land in a remotepart of Fayetteville,locatedat 430 CanvasRoad, on
January30,2004 for $232,000.Hollywood was still on Sean'smind at this time as on
February27,2004 he registereda company,CanvasRoadProductionsLLC, with the state
of Arkansas.However nothing would ever materializewith his film/producingAlollywood
career.Multiple databasesearchesturned up no mention of any activity of any kind by
CanvasRoad Productions.In a February 2007New York magazinearticle, Seanclaims to
have tried to be a Hollywood producer,and also that he was involved with the movie
NapoleonDyramite at an early stage.Given that he moved back to Arkansasto work in a
non-film relatedindustry only eight months after graduatingfrom film school,both claims
would appearto be significantly overstatingwhat might have occurred,if anything evendid
occur.In Juneof 2004 Saatchibought ThompsonMurray,turning it into SaatchiX, with
Seanbeing namedGlobal CreativeDirector.On a sidenote,in October2004,Sean's
brother,Aaron, and his wife would file for divorce, althoughone was never granted. In
June2005,aUSC film graduateschoolalum from 2001,JasonTodd Ipson,setup Asgaard
Entertainment.Seanwas mentionedin an article as a founder,but Asgaard's websitein
2007 doesnot mention him, so while perhapsSeaninitially participatedin someway, the
associationwas dropped. Even while at SaatchiX, and as recentlyas October2005,Sean
was still working the religious seminarsand conferencescircuit. He gave,in one attendee's
eyes,a long, rambling,uninspiring("he appearedto be talking as if herwere rnamaze,
going down every path exceptthe one to "finish"") sixty minute workshop aboutmarketing
churchesand religion at a conferencein Atlanta. In December2005 Sean,still with Saatchi
X, went to work for Wal-Mart on a contractbasis,as their CreativeDirector was on
maternity leave.In January2006 Wal-Mart hired Julie Roehm as Sr. VP of Marketing
Communications,and on June 1, Seanwas hired as VP of CommunicationsArchitecturefor
Wal-Mart.
So as to be closerto companyheadquarters,
Seanand his wife bought a houseat 1607
ChapelHill Lane in Bentonville,on August2,2006 for $460,000.The Womacksinitially
put their Fayettevillehouseon the marketfor $255,000but it did not sell, so they withdrew
it. lnterestingly,three days after the Bentonville home purchase,August 5, was the
infamousdinner and drinks with Wal-Mart ftiends, where a colleaguecame acrossSean
pinning Julie in an intimate pose againstthe wall of the corridor leading to the restroomsat
a Fayettevillerestaurant.On September 7, ShelleyWomack found intimate e-mailsto Julie
Roehmin Sean'ssecretGmail account.On December4,2006 Wal-Mart terminatedSean
Womack and Julie Roehm. Seanand Shelleyhave separatedand the housein Bentonville is
currently on the market for $474,900. The Womackshave a third child that was referredto
as a toddler in the recent March 2007 New York Post article.
In Decemberof 2006,Julie and Seansetup profiles on a businessnetworkingwebsite
known as the MySpace for the businessschool set.Both are looking for work in the New
York City area.On his bio, Seanlists his work history as consistingonly of his stintsat
Wal-Mart and SaatchiX. He also lists his educationalbackgroundas only consistingof his
degreeat USC.
After being fired, Julie filed a suit againstWal-Mart claiming that they had failed to pay
compensationshebelievesis still owed her. On March 19, 2007Wal-Mart filed a
counterclaimproviding a long, detailed,and damninglist of eventsand communications
that involved significant ethics and policy violations that occurredover severalmonths
involving Roehm and Womack.The Womack's home in Fayettevillecameback on the
market in late March or early April 2007 with an askingprice of $284,900but was takenoff
the market in mid-April. PerhapsSeanwas hoping to sell it in late March, but becausehe
couldn't find work in New York City, decidedto withdraw it from the market and live in it
while he waits for work to materiahze,as well as waits for the court proceedingsrelating to
Julie's lawsuitwith Wal-Mart to run its course.
COMMENTS AND OBSERVATIONS:
From GeorgeParker'swebsite,www.adscam.com,
a posterwith the name"redshoes"
postedthis summaryof SeanWomack's work career..."He'satotal hack. A few yearsago
he worked for a Christian greetingcard companyin Siloam Springs,AR. It was therehe
met one Andy Murray (who would later move on to found ThompsonMurraywhich would
be purchasedby Saatchi).But that info comeslater. Not surewhen that whole "Life At
Work" thing was founded,but that was him. I believe it was a short-lived magazineof sorts.
Not a lot of info on that. Anyway, at somepoint he decidedhe wanted to move to
Hollywood, so he pursueda film degree.As for his "work" on Napoleon Dynamite, he was
invited to work on the production,but declined,to go to work for his old buddy Andy in
Arkansas.It was there where Sean,who hasnever actually worked in a creativedepartment
but has the spikey hair and "hip" clothing, weaseledhis way into a creativedirector role
(mainly becauseMurray, who knows little aboutwhat makesgreatcreativewas wowed by
Sean'sability to talk the talk). As CD at ThompsonMurray,Seanwas laughableat best.His
departmentcould seeright through his lack of abilities and total ignoranceto the creative
process.He's readplenty of books aboutit, but readingdoesn'tmake up for a lack of
ability. As ThompsonMurraywas purchasedby Saatchi,Seanwas bumped to someGlobal
CreativeOfficer role. However, tired of his ignoranceand utter disregardfor his people,the
creativedepartmentmore or lessheld mutiny and Seanwas moved on to other tasks. As for
how he moved in to the Wal-Mart beast...hewas simply askedto fill in as an interim
creativedirector while the existing Wal-Mart CD was on pregnancyleave. That eventually
moved into a full time slot (it was always speculatedthat Saatchiwas more than willing to
allow this to happen.By this time, his arroganceand ignorancehad been sniffed out at the
top). The rest,as they say,is history. As for the speculationsaroundhis firing, I can only
saythat if Wal-Mart also finally sniffed out his lack of ability, I'm not surprised.And from
rumors floating around Saatchiduring his tenurethere,news of his infidelity comesasno
surpriseeither. Regardless,that article in New York magazinepainted entirely too
flatteringof apicture of Sean.He's ignorantto the business.He can talk the talk, but can do
little to deliver.Few ideashe has arehis own. He's an affogantweaselwho has absolutely
turned everyonewho has ever worked with him againsthim. Pardonthe long post, but I
refuseto let a few articles such as that one paint him in any light other than the dim bulb he
truly lives under."
OTHER COMMENTS AND OBSERVATIONS:
Seanhas displayedthroughouthis careeran ability to be weaselywith words. Whether
tryrng to minimize somethingthat is bad, overstatesomethingthat was good, or in general
mischaracterrze
somethingthat has or hasn't happened,his primary motivation is to
deceive,while simultaneouslypuffing himself up and making himself look betterthan the
factsallow. Combinedwith that elementis his behaviorwhile at Wal-Mart, which was
revealedto be abrazenbetrayalon a tremendousscale.So I think it is worth noting that
during the late 1980sand early 1990stherewere two huge televangelistscandals(Jim and
Tammy Faye Bakker and Jimmy Swaggart),and then during Sean'sformative business
years,1992-2000,he had a slick talking, narcissistic,philanderingtutor, whom it appearshe
hascometo mimic, in Bill Clinton. If Bill providing a textbookexampleon how to
linguisticallydeceive,as well as comportoneselfas a charmingrogue,during thoseeight
yearswasn't schoolingenoughfor Sean,he then got more of it by going to graduatefilm
schoolin L.A. in the fall of 2001, where he was immersedin that similarly sleazyworld and
culture for almost three years.Having learnedhis lessons,he then worked his much more
polishedcharm of being able to talk the talk, and convincedAndy Murray into giving him a
job as creativedirector, which launchedSeanWomack and led to his inner Bill Clinton
completelytaking over his personalityand identity. In three short yearsafter being hired by
Murray, Seandestroyedalmost everythinghe was connectedto: his wife, his threechildren,
their home in Arkansas,his careerand employability,his finances,his good name,the WalMart ad agencyreview, Julie Roehm, (althoughJulie aidedin her own downfall). SaatchiX
avoidedthis fate, as after having experiencedSeanup close and personalfor two years,they
pawnedhim off on Wal-Mart.
The last nine yearsof Sean'slife arevery interesting.His work history has a repetitive
patternof Seansweettaking his way into a job beyondhis talentsand abilities, only to leave
after a short stay, most likely as his lack of talentsand ability to producebecomeapparent.
Also, Seanhas not been able to make a relationship,in one place or with one company,last
more than three years. Seanwas able to sweettalk the CornerstoneGroup into letting him
producea magazine,althoughhe had no previousexperiencewhatsoever.After three years
with them, therewas a parting of the ways. This lead to three yearsout in L.A., before he
left there.He sweettalked Andy Murray into letting him be a creativedirector at
ThompsonMurray(and riding that to the creativedirector role at SaatchiX), althoughhe
had no previous experiencewhatsoever.After two yearswith them, there was a parting of
the ways. He sweettalked Julie Roehm into letting him be a VP of Marketing
CommunicationsArchitecture,(whateverthat is) althoughhe had no previous experience
whatsoever.This time insteadof a parting of the ways after two to three years,he and Julie
self-destructedafter only one year. Another interestingsub-plotto Sean'slast nine yearsis
that thereis the recurring theme of somebodyelsepaying the money for his endeavors,
a.k.a.being a sugardaddy,or a parent,with Seanin the role of the adolescentteenager.At
The Life@Work magazine,somebodyother than Sean(most likely Sean'sother partners)
was writing checksexclusively that first year,before Seanhad to carry someof the financial
burdenin the secondyear. The magazineultimately couldn't sustainitself, Seanprobably
felt the heat and decidedto go off to grad school,while the partnersultimately felt that the
division was expendableand sold it. In graduatefilm school,he utilized a fellowshipfrom a
Christian organrzationto help pay his bills althougheight months after graduating,Seanleft
the L.A. area,never to pursueanything in film. While at SaatchiX he claims to have had a
hand in helping set up their far flung offices aroundthe world. If true that meanshe got to
travel and enjoy the world on Saatchi'sdime. At Wal-Mart he led a fast life with lots of
travel and had others(Wal-Mart, Draft) pay for his fun. I think his descriptionof himself
and Julie, in the February 2007 New York magazinearticle as "two crazy kids" sumsit all
up. He especiallyis an adolescentwho can't self-sustaina job, a relationship,an endeavor,
or his lifestyle, and as such he's looking for a parent/sugardaddy to milk for money.
Looking at Sean'swork history, his housingpurchases,and the fact that he has a wife and
threechildren, makesme concludethat he has very little money. I'm going to guessthat
working as a designmanagerfor a few yearsat a Christian greetingcard companyisn't
going to fill one's coffers.His wife might haveworked somewherein the early to mid
1990swhich would havehelpedout. It soundslike he had to pony up somecashto cover
the costsof the magazinein the late 1990s.When they moved out to L.A. for film school
they sold their Fayettevillehousebut onlymade $18,000profit on that. He utilized financial
assistancewhile in grad school.The big questionis whetherthey bought a housein
Pasadenawhile out there, or if they rented.If they bought a housethey might have made
somedecentmoney,purchasingin the summerof 2001 and then selling it in the springof
2004.If they rentedthey just threw their money away. I suspectthat Seanfinally made a
decentsalarywith his ThompsonMunly, and then SaatchiX gigs. He did make a nice
salaryat Wal-Mart, courtesyof Ms. Roehm, althoughnow he will probably soonhave an
ex-wife and three children he'll be paying money to. Sincehe bought an expensivehousein
Bentonville two months after being hired at Wal-Mart, he is currently paying two mortgages
(his previoushousein Fayettevillenever sold and is still ownedby him) which I calculated
arecostinghim, with propertytaxesand insuranceincluded,roughly $55,000 ayear.When
you throw in legal feesrelatedto the Wal-Mart lawsuit and the pending divorce, as well as
the fact that his employabilityhasbeensignificantlyharmed,Sean,who most likelyjust
startedto accumulatesomemoney during 2004 and 2005, has put himself in financial peril.
He hasmaximizedhis costs,while he simultaneouslyhasminimized his income.
I suspectthat Seanwill not be able to find work in the greaterNew York City areaas there
arethousandsof peoplelike him (dimwit, talentlesspeoplewith spikyhair, hip clothes,and
smoothtalk who are running away from their past and trying to forge a new identity in the
adlxeative/marketingbusiness)alreadyoccupyingjobs or scroungingfor work. I also
suspectthat after a while Julie will reahzethat Seanaddsnothing beneficial to their team,
andjust as GeorgeMichael shedhis partnerin their duo, the 1980's pop band Wham lIK,
revealingwho the real talent was, so too will Julie ultimately drop Seanas both know who
the staris. Given that Seanhasn't beenableto make any relationshipsfrom thesepastten
yearslast more than three years,I would say that Julie, who met him in January2006,
dumpshim at leastby January2009,probably sooner.In fact I think it'll be like the
ThompsonMurray/Saatchigig. Julie will startto seethe light after two yearswith Sean,so
he'll get the boot aroundJanuary2008. One option Seanmight ultimately have to pursueis
to try and run a con game on the religious $oups he usedto comport with. He'll have to
portray things as him being the Prodigal Son returning home, and then also maybemix in
that Julie was the snakein the garden,and he was Adam and shetemptedhim to take a bite
of the Big Apple, and he fell for her evil seductivecharms,but now he has realizedhis
mistake,learnedhis lesson,and asksfor forgiveness,etc. etc. I would hope that if this
scenariocameto passthat the religious groupswouldn't fall for it and insteadwould tell
Seanto take a hike. Still there a lot of suckersout therein the religious world, so if it came
to this, Seanvery well could get away with it.
On the topic of running away from one's past. Seanwas born when his parentswere teens.
They didn't maffy until 14 yearslater,andhe was raisedin a small religiouslyconservative
Arkansastown, ultimately going to its small religiously conservativecollege. If that isn't a
recipe for someoneto have a natural inferiority complex, I don't know what elseis missing,
perhapsa really successfulolder brother.All his hip clothing, hip phrases,smoothtalk, fast
living, etc arejust one huge overcompensation,
much like an ugly prostitutewith way too
much make-upslatheredon, trying to concealthe awful truth.
One of the big questionsstill left unansweredin my mind is...was Seanreally sincerein his
religiousbeliefs all thoseyears(1990sup to 2005),or was he really a phony that didn't
believe any of it, a con man looking to say whateverneededto be said to exploit peopleso
he could improve his station in life? Did he really believe that God was calling him to have
a careerin film, or was that a convenientlie which let him leave The CornerstoneGroup
and the messthat the magazinestart-uphad become?Did he really plan on incorporating
Christianthemesin movies he might be involved with, or was that anotherconvenientlie
just to get someoneelseto help pay his schoolbills? Is it that he really is religiousbut after
glomming on to Julie Roehm, he realizedhe'd needto jettison his religious past to hang
with her, or did hooking up with her allow him to revealthe real him, the until now, hidden
smafiny unethical,serial betrayer? Or evenmore complex yet, could it be that perhapshe
oncewas religiousbut over time becamemore cynical,weasely,ambitious,narcissistic,and
amoral?Could seeingthe televangelistscandalsof the late 1980sand early 1990s,andthen
Bill Clinton on display for eight years,and then going out to Hollywood for three years
havebeen contributing factors in a transformationover time turning him into the lowlife
that he hasbecome?That to me is the big mystery. Was he a phony all along, or was he
really sincerebut living the fast life with Saatchiand then Julie ruined him, or did he start
out sincerebut changedfor the worse over time, pre Saatchiand pre-Julie?That's all a
small footnotenow. as he has shown who and what he really is.