La Jolla’s Ernest Rady Called ‘Uncle Furnace’ by Niece in Court Case Profile

La Jolla philanthropist Ernest Rady—known for his $60 million donation to Rady Children’s Hospital—is depicted as “Uncle Furnace” in a 1,300-word report on the recent family feud that case published Saturday in U-T San Diego.

“I called him Uncle Furnace, because he was full of hot air,” Rady’s niece Gail Wagner was quoted as saying in a front-page article. “And I was Gail the Pail because I was all wet.”

As Patch reported here, a jury unanimously ruled March 21 that Rady, 74, owed nothing to his relatives.

But the U-T added that on March 26, “Rady and a larger family group — the original seven plaintiffs, plus three others — privately settled a separate action over [his] American Assets’ $500 million balance.”

American Assets lost more than $1 billion in the 2008 crash, the U-T said, and as the largest shareholder, Rady lost the most.

“I remember going to an ATM that rejected my card,” Rady was quoted as saying. “I was struggling to survive—it was the most difficult time of my life.”

Forbes, which earlier that year ranked Rady the world’s 743rd-richest person, later noted him in a headline:  “America’s Biggest Billionaire Losers of 2008.”