Chicago magnate may bid for Tribune

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Chicago real estate magnate Sam Zell has emerged as a potential bidder for Tribune Co., several people close to the matter said Tuesday, the Los Angeles Times reports.


Zell, whose Equity Office Properties Trust is the target of one of the biggest bidding wars in Wall Street history, has approached the Chicago-based media company that owns the Los Angeles Times with a complicated proposal that may include taking an equity stake while adding debt to fund a large dividend for shareholders, these people said.


One person said Zell had spoken with Tribune’s second-largest shareholder, the McCormick Tribune Foundation, about his interest in trying to structure the deal. Zell probably would need the foundation’s support to make a deal work. The foundation is run by current and former Tribune Co. executives, including former Chairman and Chief Executive John Madigan and current Chairman and CEO Dennis FitzSimons.


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