Billionaires unite to buy Tribune Co.

As a follow-up to the item below, a couple rich guys are apparently planning to buy Tribune Company:

Two Southern California billionaires who had signaled interest in buying the Los Angeles Times instead joined forces Wednesday in a surprise bid for the entire Tribune Co., the Chicago-based parent of the Times and other media properties.

The offer came from Eli Broad, a philanthropist who made his fortune in housing construction and investment services, and Ron Burkle, whose billions came from owning supermarket chains, according to a person familiar with the offer who was not authorized to publicly discuss it.

Further details were unavailable on the amount of the bid and whether the potential buyers would break up the company that owns 11 newspapers, including the Chicago Tribune, 25 television stations and the Chicago Cubs baseball team.

I was invited to join in the buyout, but unfortunately all my spare cash is currently tied up in paying my kids' tuition.