PARSIPPANY, N.J. -- AUGUST 30, 1995 -- href="chap11.emerson.html">EMERSON
RADIO CORP. (AMEX Symbol: MSN) today announced that it has
successfully completed an $80 million refinancing package consisting
of renegotiation of its $60 million credit facility and $20 million
enhancement of its capital structure. The two part transaction
included an extension and revision of the terms of its current asset-
based working capital facility with Congress Financial, and the
placement of a new senior subordinated convertible debenture with a
group of institutional investors.
Under the revised terms of the asset based facility, Emerson
will receive the benefit of reduced interest costs and other fees
and expenses associated with the facility, and the term of the
facility will be extended an additional year to March 1998. In
addition, the lender has agreed to release the lien it has held on
the Company's trademarks since the Company's emergence from
bankruptcy reorganization in March 1994.
The convertible debentures carry an interest rate of 8 1/2%,
have a term of seven years, and are initially convertible into
common stock at $3.9875 per share. The debentures have been placed
exclusively with institutional holders in an offering not registered
under the Securities Act and may not be offered or resold in the
United States without registration or an applicable exemption from
registration requirements. The Company has agreed to register the
offering and resale of the debentures and underlying common shares
by December 21, 1995.
Commenting on the announcement, Gene Davis, President, said, "We
are extremely pleased with the enhanced opportunities represented by
the successful completion of this refinancing. The revisions to our
asset-based lines will significantly reduce the costs of capital
associated with our core business, while the new capital from the
debenture offering will help us exploit the potential of our
recently announced product line additions and extensions. The new
capital will also assist in our ongoing efforts to expand our
distribution base and further extend our relationships with the new
customers that we have developed this year."
Mr. Davis continued, "The refinancing releases the liens on our
trademark, our most valuable asset, and the key to our corporate
strategy of enhancing and exploiting our corporate franchise through
new products, licensing, and joint ventures. Also, we believe that
the placement of the debentures with sophisticated institutional
holders will further our goal of enhancing the Company's credibility
in the financial markets, thereby creating additional value for the
Company and its shareholders."
EMERSON RADIO CORP., founded in 1948, is headquartered in
Parsippany, NJ. The Company designs and markets, throughout the
world, a full line of clocks and watches, televisions, ready-to-
assemble furniture, home and personal security equipment, car audio,
home theater, video, audio and microwave oven products.
CONTACT: Eugene I. Davis Keith L. Lippert/Jeffrey Volk
President or Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates, Inc.
Emerson Radio Corp. 212/838-3777
201/884-5800
PARMA, Ohio, Aug. 30, 1995 -- City Auditor
Ronald M.
Mottl, Jr. today called upon the href="chap11.columbia.html">Columbia Natural Gas Transmission
Corp. to guarantee Parma residents that there will be no service
interruptions in light of the Company's filing for bankruptcy
protection in federal court in Delaware.
In a letter to Columbia's local manager Donald Bedillion, Mottl
stressed that Columbia ensure that all its customers are guaranteed
that there will be no gaps in service.
"With the cold winter months quickly approaching, it is
incumbent upon Columbia Transmission to assure its customers that
there will be no interruption of service," Mottl said. "The people
of Parma, and all of Columbia's service area, must be assured they
will not wake up shivering in the middle of the night."
News of Columbia's plight became public via a legal notice in
this morning's Plain Dealer. Columbia asked its creditors to agree
to a number of collection procedures related to claims against the
utility.
"While I am concerned about Columbia's financial well-being, I
am also concerned about customers, especially the elderly, who might
be affected by this situation," Mottl stated.
"Providing heat and fuel to families is not a luxury ... it is a
necessity," Mottl said. "At the very least Columbia Gas has to
inform its consumers if, indeed, there are serious financial
problems and how they will be solved.
"While customers may not be actual shareholders in the Company,
they do have a vested interest in the Company's financial management
practices."
/CONTACT: Ronald M. Mottl, Jr. of the City of Parma, Auditor's
Office, 216-885-8103/
WILMINGTON, Del., Aug. 30, 1995 -- The following was
issued by The Columbia Gas System
Inc. (NYSE: CG):
"If Parma City Auditor Ronald M. Mottl Jr. had waited for
Columbia to respond to his letter before issuing a press release
regarding his concern over gas service provided by Columbia Gas of
Ohio, he would have learned the following:
Throughout the four years that Columbia Transmission has been
operating under Chapter 11 there has been no problem with any of
its gas deliveries. It has not only maintained the highest
quality of service to its customers but announced a major
expansion program to begin in two years.
The legal advertisements that appeared in newspapers throughout
the nation published voting procedures established by the
U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware on the reorganization plans
filed by Columbia Gas Transmission and The Columbia Gas System,
Inc., in preparation for emerging from Chapter 11 protection
later this year.
/CONTACT: H.W. Chaddock, 302-429-5261, or home, 610-338-1984/