Kerkorian getting the brush

What is it with L.A. billionaires trying to buy companies? First the B&B Dudes got turned down by the Tribune boys in favor of their home-grown hero, Sam Zell, and now Kirk Kerkorian is getting nowhere fast in pursuit of Chrysler. Of course, offering a paltry $4.5 billion - by some estimates 50 percent below the automaker's value - doesn't exactly help. He's being shut out of meetings that DaimlerChrysler is having with the other bidders, and Canadian Auto Workers President Buzz Hargrove told the Detroit Free Press, "I am not interested in Kerkorian’s style. His whole history has been to make money by taking advantage of throwing a lot of people out of work." Deal Journal's Dana Cimilluca chronicles the chilly reception. (By the way, has anybody heard from Broad and Burkle on the Tribune deal?)