Billionaire Bill Gross’ Legal Spat With Neighbor Takes Bizarre Turn to Kenny Loggins Concert
IT GETS WEIRDER
Lucy Nicholson/Reuters
Billionaire Bill Gross’ legal spat with his neighbor Mark Towfiq took an even weirder turn on Thursday, with Gross revealing that his relationship with the tech exec soured when Towfiq rented out his oceanfront home to film the HBO series Ballers in 2019. The Laguna Beach neighbors have filed dueling lawsuits against each other—Towfiq claims Gross blared loud music on repeat, including the theme tune to Gilligan’s Island, to intimidate Towfiq into dropping a complaint about an intrusive glass sculpture on Gross’ property. Gross, in turn, has accused Towfiq of being a “peeping Tom” who spied on him and his girlfriend.
On the witness stand on Thursday, Towfiq said that Gross never complained about the Ballers film crew blocking the street and actually staged his own backyard concert around the same time, featuring 1970s pop star Kenny Loggins. Even though equipment for the concert went through his property, Towfiq said he loved the concert. “My wife and I liked [Loggins]. We grew up with that kind of music,” he said. On Wednesday, Gross’ lawyer suggested that a property manager was the one who blared some of the loud music.