Man claims car he bought from comedian is a lemon


Man claims car he bought
from comedian is a lemon

PAWTUCKET, R.I. — Comedian Jim Belushi is being sued by the 78-year-old father of his former driver, who accuses him of selling a used 2001 Land Rover that turned out to be a lemon. Ted Lewandowski worked as Belushi’s driver when the star was filming the Walt Disney movie “Underdog” in Providence. He claims the SUV needed more than $6,000 in repairs — and he demands that Belushi pay. “The claim is false and frivolous,” Belushi’s Los Angeles attorney, Brian Wolf, said Thursday. “The exact claim for the same repairs to the same vehicle has already been adjudicated.” Wolf said a Los Angeles small claims court found in February that Belushi did not owe Lewandowski any money, and the new action amounts to harassment of his client. While driving Belushi last year, Lewandowski mentioned that he wanted to buy a car for his father Jan Lewandowski, said Steve VanderPyl, a private investigator for Lewandowski. He said Belushi suggested his old Land Rover and referred Lewandowski to a listing for the vehicle posted on the Internet auction site eBay. “He told him it was in perfect mechanical condition,” VanderPyl told The Associated Press. “He thought being a movie star, the guy’s not going to lie to me about it.” He said Lewandowski sent an $11,500 payment to Belushi’s representatives in California, then flew to the West Coast to retrieve the SUV. On the way home, the Land Rover broke down in Arizona because it needed a new fuel pump, VanderPyl said, and still requires a new water pump, a radiator and other work totaling about $5,000.

Today’s birthdays

Jazz singer Cleo Laine is 80. Actress Joan Plowright is 78. Musician-songwriter Charlie Daniels is 71. Actress Jane Alexander is 68. Singer Curtis Lee is 66. Actor Dennis Franz is 63. Pop singer Wayne Fontana is 62. Actress Telma Hopkins is 59. Olympic track and field gold medalist Bruce Jenner is 58. Actress Annie Potts is 55. Microsoft chairman Bill Gates is 52. Rock musician Stephen Morris (New Order) is 50. Actor Mark Derwin is 47. Actress Daphne Zuniga is 45. Actress Lauren Holly is 44. Olympic silver medal figure skater Paul Wylie is 43. Actress Jami Gertz is 42. Actor-comedian Andy Richter is 41. Actress Julia Roberts is 40. Country singer-musician Caitlin Cary is 39. Actor Jeremy Davies is 38. Singer Ben Harper is 38. Country singer Brad Paisley is 35. Actor Joaquin Phoenix is 33. Singer Justin Guarini (“American Idol”) is 29.

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