BRONFMAN WANTS BACK IN

Despite losing a tremendous amount of his family’s fortune, Edgar Bronfman Jr. says he's willing to take another crack at the entertainment market.

Bronfman said he won't rule out making a second try at buying Universal and other entertainment assets to vindicate himself and regain the family fortune he lost the first time out, the New York Post reports

Two years ago, he convinced the Bronfman family to sell their show business assets to Vivendi for $6.5 billion in stock, which has tumbled by nearly half since his decision to sell.

"I went in with my eyes wide open, but it turned out to be a disaster," Bronfman told Forbes.

The Post reports that an article in the current issue of the business magazine says Bronfman wants a crack at vindicating himself over the flop, and he wants to try restoring some of the family's lost billions—by buying back the U.S. entertainment assets from Vivendi.

To help finance his encore, Bronfman may team up with Barry Diller, who's chairman of Vivendi Universal’s entertainment assets, and cable billionaire John Malone, Forbes reports.

Their aim would be to buy back the entertainment assets from Vivendi as cheaply as possible.

"I'm open to any possibility," Bronfman told the magazine.

Bronfman, 47, is vice chairman of Vivendi. His family is the largest individual shareholder in Vivendi, with a 4.9% stake.

"I represent the largest shareholder in Vivendi, and nobody else on the board is as familiar with the U.S. media assets," Bronfman said.

According to the Post, Bronfman's quest to enter the entertainment industry began a decade ago when he talked his father and uncle into selling the family's DuPont stake for $8.8 billion (which would be worth $13.5 billion today) and invest another $15.9 billion to acquire MCA's Universal studios and PolyGram music. Vivendi bought the assets last year for $6.5 billion in its stock.