A recent event meant to gather top minds in Los Angeles turned out to be a flop – one that industry insiders and social types can’t stop gossiping about, Variety has learned.
TEDx Beverly Grove was held on March 14, billed by organizers as a “rare L.A. moment when a room full of strangers agrees to do the hardest thing: pay attention. Because attention is where change begins.”
Hosted through the grassroots organization TEDx, a licensed offshoot of the thought leadership tank TED, the Bevely Grove event promised high-wattage figures including real estate mogul Rick Caruso and Michelin star chef Aitor Zabala. For $154 a ticket, attendees were invited to watch a day of talks presented by sponsors including Los Angeles Magazine. Promotional materials set West Hollywood as the backdrop, touting the city’s outsize cultural and economic impact, alongside soaring photos of landmarks like the Pacific Design Center (pictured) and shopping hub the Beverly Center. The event was preceded with an article on its bona fides in The Hollywood Reporter. None of it, according to several attendees and numerous sources familiar with the situation, was what it seemed.
The event was held in a black box theater on Santa Monica Blvd. next to a 7-Eleven. Boxed lunches were catered from grab-and-go café Mendocino Farms. Caruso didn’t show up (per a spokesperson, Caruso never RSVP’d to speak and requested several times to have his image removed from the TEDx Beverly Grove website. His photo eventually came down on Tuesday, 10 days after the event). Despite being listed online as “sold out,” two witnesses said the room barely cracked 25 attendees and speakers (as most of those present were volunteers, sources added).
The most dramatic moment of the day, however, centered around TEDx Beverly Grove organizer and former film producer Marvin V. Acuna – who, per two sources, was served with legal papers by a process server before he took the stage for opening remarks. Acuna would not physically accept the documents, another source added, forcing the process server to drop them on the floor. The scene caused Los Angeles Magazine publisher Christopher Gialanella to flee the event with promotional copies of the monthly under his arm, said a source. Acuna did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
“We regularly attend community events to support former contributors and engage with local leaders. My attendance at TEDx Beverly Grove was in that spirit, to support what was presented as a community-focused gathering. I departed once my scheduled speaking window had passed, as I had a prior commitment,” Gialanella told Variety in a statement.
In the days following TEDx Beverly Grove, attention has zeroed in on Acuna and his ties to the town. His credits as a movie producer include Amanda Seyfried’s “Lovelace” and Jenna Elfman’s “Touched,” as well as the Bravo singing competition series “Platinum Hit.” Acuna’s show business resume tapers off in the mid-2010’s, according to IMDB. According to legal filings reviewed by Variety, Acuna later moved into the retail food space with a plant-based pizza startup. He was later sued for embezzling millions from investors. Acuna denied the allegations, but money a judgment was later issued against him totaling almost $1 million. Concurrently, Acuna filed for bankruptcy. An official website for Acuna now contends he’s the founder of the startup MoBal, a fitness company billed as a “leadership incubator powered by physical mastery.”
Some in L.A. power circles have questioned Acuna’s proximity to the figures he allegedly booked (one person familiar with Caruso said the developer does not know Acuna). It’s also unclear what sponsors were charged to participate in TEDx Beverly Grove.
Gialanella did not comment on the nature of Los Angeles magazine’s sponsorship. A representative for Chef Zabala said neither he nor his red-hot restaurant Somni paid for inclusion. The chef added that he was “not aware of the situations” described in this story, and that his involvement was “limited to preparing and delivering my talk. It was my first time speaking publicly in the U.S., and I was focused on sharing something personal about my journey.”
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