Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Nicolas Cage brought about his own financial ruin with a spending spree that included two castles, 15 palatial homes, a flotilla of yachts and a squadron of Rolls Royces, his former business manager said. Samuel Levin, responding to a lawsuit Cage filed against him, said he warned the Oscar-winning actor that he could face bankruptcy unless he scaled back his lavish lifestyle. Cage, one of Hollywood's highest-paid movie stars, sued Levin in October, charging that he "lined his pockets with several million dollars in business management fees while sending Cage down a path toward financial ruin."
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Samuel Levin responds to a lawsuit actor Nicolas Cage filed against him
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Cage bought 2 castles, 15 homes, yachts, Rolls Royces, against advice, Levin says
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Cage should have known about his debt because he signed the checks, Levin says
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"Cage discovered that he is now forced to sell major assets and investments at a significant loss and is faced with huge tax liabilities because of Levin's incompetence, misrepresentations and recklessness," @placeholder's lawsuit said.
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The filing also argued that @placeholder was "deeply in debt" when he started working for him in 2001 because Cage had "already squandered tens of millions of dollars he had earned as a movie star."
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The filing also argued that Cage was "deeply in debt" when he started working for him in 2001 because @placeholder had "already squandered tens of millions of dollars he had earned as a movie star."
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Levin's filing claimed that starting in 2005 and then "with increasing urgency" over the next two years, he "implored Coppola to stop buying real estate and urged him to reduce his real estate holdings, warning @placeholder that the financial press was filled with references to a 'real estate bubble.'
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He countered @placeholder's claim that the actor was left in the dark about his finances.
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"Levin repeatedly warned Coppola that he was living beyond his means, urged him to spend less, and warned him that financial disaster loomed if he continued to spend uncontrollably," @placeholder's filing said.
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"Instead of listening to @placeholder, cross-defendant Coppola spent most of his free time shopping for high ticket purchases, and wound up with 15 personal residences, most of which were bought against Levin's advice," Levin's complaint said.
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Levin's warnings that Cage was living beyond his means were not just ignored, but "at times @placeholder was rebuked for trying to restrain the outflow of cash," he said.