Buzz Aldrin is fighting back against an attempt by his children to become his guardians


Buzz Aldrin and two of his children are now engaged in a legal fight, with Janice and Andrew Aldrin asking to be appointed his co-guardians because he's in "cognitive decline," a charge he forcefully denies.
Buzz Aldrin, 88, told The Wall Street Journal he was blindsided by his children's request, made last month in a Florida court. The legendary former astronaut said his children and former business manager Christina Korp are trying to wrestle away control of his private company, Buzz Aldrin Enterprises, and his nonprofit, ShareSpace Foundation, by claiming he's being manipulated by strangers and experiencing paranoia and confusion.
Aldrin has agreed to undergo a competency evaluation this week by three court-appointed specialists, telling the Journal, "Nobody is going to come close to thinking I should be under a guardianship." Aldrin is also firing back with his own lawsuit, accusing Andrew Aldrin and Korp of elder exploitation, unjust enrichment, and converting his property for themselves, and Janice Aldrin of conspiracy and breach of fiduciary trust.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Aldrin says his son and Korp improperly transferred nearly $500,000 over the last two years from his savings account to Buzz Aldrin Enterprises and ShareSpace Foundation for their own personal use, and he was forced into attending events and taking endorsement deals he didn't want. For more on the Aldrin family saga, visit The Wall Street Journal.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
How China uses 'dark fleets' to circumvent trade sanctions
The Explainer The fleets are used to smuggle goods like oil and fish
-
Cracks appear in MAGA's pro-Israel front
IN THE SPOTLIGHT As the world watches a humanitarian crisis unfold across Gaza, some of Israel's most staunchly conservative defenders have begun speaking out against its actions in the occupied territories
-
5 cultural trails to traverse by car
The Week Recommends Leave the hiking shoes at home
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliable
speed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutiny
Speed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress code
speed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirement
speed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement