Important message about Ken Whitman

I don't know Ken Whitman. I had never actually heard of him, but I have quickly become wary of this individual's reputation. A bad one that seems well earned. My wife and I have invested in two Kickstarter projects from Mr. Whitman's d20 Enterainment. Both are in jeopardy, the Pencil Dice and the live action Knights of the Dinner Table series. Right now it looks like neither will be done.

The aptly named Don't Fund Ken Whitman or d20 Entertainment blog covers the ins and outs of the problems, getting quotes from Mr. Whitman's forum, Facebook and blog entries.

From what I see, if true, is that there is major mismanagement. Yes, he bought a car and took a cruise which may or may not have come from the Kickstarter funds. However, it does looks like he did not keep the funds for the projects separate. Going in he knew the budget he needed, so where did the money go? This seems to show that there is a mixing of funds, which is highly unethical:

Click to make bigger.

So he squandered the money on a movie. Was it because the money in Knight of the Dinner Table dried up? Or one of his other projects like Spinward Traveller.

In any case, I think a lawsuit is coming. I understand he is not incorporated, so the lawsuit will be against him directly. Even if he was incorporated, he would be directly sued if mismanagement and embezzlement is proven. Although, he doesn't sound too solvent, and you can't get blood from a stone.

Also, I saw part of the first episode of Knights of the Dinner Table, and while it looked pretty good (could have used some filmizing), a was disappointed by the audio. It sounded amateurish, with everyone distant from the mic. Was there a boom problem? Was there a boom? What about lavaliere mics? Whatever, sound is a big thing to me. If you have seen it, compare the audio to other productions. It really is not that hard to make great.

In any case, until all this is settled, beware of d20 Entertainment.