High life
Success story
Talc'
New York Although some of you might be surprised to hear this, Anthony Haden-Guest is alive, well, and living in New York. I say this because there are many English people who believe Anthony to be a figment of Lord Gnome's imagination: a mythical figure of fun created by Private Eye to amuse an Otherwise battered and strike-shocked Public. As described by the Eye, Anthony, a gifted magazine writer, has caused dozens of publishers to end up in the poorhouse because of his expense accounts. Because of his gift for spending other Peoples money, Anthony hangs around expensive restaurants and bars, places never associated with hacks, especially English ones. And because of it he stumbled across a story that is about to make him a very rich man. But before any of his creditors start flying over, let me explain: there Will be money, lots of it, if and when Anthony finishes writing the book about a triangle that ended up in murder. His treatment of it has already attracted the attention of those greedy characters one associates with the movie business.
Needless to say, attracted is an understatement. The Hollywood jackals have smelled mannah and are hovering around Anthony like vultures. He, of course, is not used to all this attention. 'I really don't know who my friends are any longer', he sobbed to me the other night. 'At least with you I am sure. But what about so many others who now speak to me and offer to buy me drinks? Some of them I remember putting on masks when I would walk into a place.'
How did all this come about? Easy. Anthony always ended up for a nightcap at Nicola's, a chic Italian restaurant-bar on East 84th Street. It's a place frequented by writers and socialites that have fought with Elaine, the lady who owns and runs the other watering place in New York where writers take precedence over the jet-set. Nicola used to be a waiter at Elaine's until he, too, fought with her. He opened his own place and invited everyone who disliked Elaine over. Nicola likes 'Tony', as Anthony is referred to here, because he could get some digs in against Elaine in Anthony's magazine. 'Tony' liked Nicola because he could sit in a corner spot at the bar and not be seen by the bartender while he pinched drinks. One night, a curly-haired, mustachioed, shaggy man called Buddy Jacobson observed Anthony drinking 'on the house'. He warned him about the dangers of breaking the law. Anthony laughed, saying that Nicola was a friend. Jacobson insisted. Finally they both got very drunk together. That is when Anthony got lucky. It seems that that night was the only time Jacobson was without a girl. And that was because he had just murdered a man. When he was picked up the next day, Anthony got to speak to the _police, to his girlfriend and his family. He did more than just speak. Having lived over here for four years now, he reacted like an entrepreneur. He signed everyone up, with a contract. The witnesses wouldn't even speak to the police until they got Anthony's approval.
Jacobson was a well-known trainer, businessman and man-about-town. His girlfriend was a top model. His circle of friends were mostly jet-setters. He murdered, and then burnt the body of, a nice Irishman that his girlfriend had left him for. Being rich, it was easy for Jacobson to get bail. At pre sent, he is every night at Nicola's having drinks with Anthony. In the meantime, Anthony has also become friendly with the Irish friends of the victim who are waiting to get Jacobson. Whatever the outcome, and no matter who gets killed and by whom. Haden-Guest has the story.
Previous page
