Mario Gabelli, the longtime value investor and money manager, is the largest non-Shari Redstone owner of Paramount Class A shares—the rarefied class of stock that allows holders, theoretically anyway, to vote on the future direction of the company. And Mario has been hanging around this hoop for a very, very long time, presumably because he expects to receive a payoff at some point. So far, he has been unlucky, and his prospects for success are dim, indeed. In the last quarter of 2023, he even increased his stake in Paramount voting stock from 4 million shares to 5 million, presumably to maximize his leverage and ensure he doesn’t get screwed in an unsavory takeover bid.