I met Reith "Priest" Weems because i am a playwright and needed someone to help me promote my business. Priest (as he calls himself) claimed he knew and had worked with lots of famous people in the industry. You would have thought he knew the whole Hollywood scene. Anyway, I was looking for someone who could get megachurches a proposal to let my cast do plays at their church. Priest claimed that he had gone to school and majored in marketing and he has hosted big events for T.D. Jakes and others successfully.
So, we did a contract. I paid Priest the majority of his money upfront ($1500.00 of the $1800.00) Months past and he had excuses why he was not getting gigs. My actors were practicing and still we had no show date. Priest had the nerves to ask for the remainint $300 that I owed him. I told him that I was not going to give it too him yet because it has been months (Nov - Feb) and he has not done anything for me and my cast is getting impatient. So, a week later he claim that he had a show line up for me at a Mega church. He came to my house in front of me and all the actors and said that we will be doing a show in March. So, I paid him. Then a couple of days later he claim that the deal fell through. I was upset because he told me that just to get that remaining $300.00 and still he had nothing. (Now I am out of a total of $1800.00)
I went ahead and booked my own show at a church theater and paid for it, just so my actors would be able to perform since they had worked so hard. Priest, claim that he would promote that show for me and pass out flyers, etc. But, he did not even do that. We had 10 people that showed up for the play which he claim that he promoted. And, we knew all 10 people that were there, they were either family or friends of myself or the cast.
I confronted Priest, he said that he would give me some of my money back and find some pictures I had given him of my previous cast to post on my website that he lost. Now, it is May. He has not reimbursted me a penny of my money and is has also stopped answering his phone.
I am a single parent mother just trying to live my dream as a playwright. Priest took advantage of me. I was shocked when I tried to pull up his facebook page and it directed me to usacomplaints.com because he had ripped someone else off for thousands of dollars. I want and need my money back. I am reporting him in hopes that no one else become a victim. We are in a recession and this is absolutely criminal what he has done to myself and atleast one other person that I know of.
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