High life
Heartbreak hotel
Taki
To paraphrase Grouch() Marx, I never enjoy hearing someone's got a financial problem, but in the case of the Aga Khan I think I will make an exception. But first I must declare an interest. The Aga and I have disliked each other since a certain dif- ference of opinion in 1958. He has never forgotten or forgiven, which is probably the only reason one should compare him with the Bourbons.
Apart from his wealth, that is. He has hundreds of thoroughbreds, thousands of horsepower driving his three yachts, more private aeroplanes than, say, Bosnia, and luxury pads spread around the world. He also has a long-suffering English wife, an extremely nice uncle, Sadruddin, a nice brother, Amin, and 15 million followers who have kept the family in the style none of us — not even most English dukes — are accustomed to.
Muslim spiritual leaders can do just about anything they wish, which is why many of them are under constraint to behave in a frugal manner. Not so Karim Aga Khan. His grandfather was a terrific spender, and so was his father, Ali Khan. His uncle Sadri is one of the few of his family ever to find useful employment and, having worked very hard for refugees in the UN, Sadruddin got the royal shaft when Boutros Ghali was elected head of the United Nations.
Nine years ago, during the 40th anniver- sary of the Normandy invasion, the Aga was invited on to the VIP stand and took the salute of those brave men who had landed. I took umbrage because the Ger- mans who had fought gallantly were not represented. So I did a Taki and described Karim in terms which were to say the least extremely libellous. The Aga sued and it looked like curtains for the poor little Greek boy.
I was nevertheless eager to have my day in court, but my then editor Charles Moore decreed that I would be ruined and asked me to settle. I did by telephoning Gianni Agnelli and throwing myself on his mercy. Gianni is a friend of the Aga's, and did reach a deal. I then got a bill from Karim's solicitors which may or may not have equalled the cost of the Gulf war. I have always been of the opinion that it would have been cheaper to fight the case and lose, but then maths is not exactly my strong point.
Now the Aga has hit the headlines, and not for his racing, nor for his lifestyle. Creditor banks moved last week to seize the assets of his publicly traded Italian holding company after it failed to service its mounting debt. For a man who is almost a state on his own, this is an extraordinary public humiliation. It has come about through a series of bad investments in luxu- ry hotels, the Ciga chain, which now owes $680 million, about double its annual sales.
Certainly, when the Grande Bretagne hotel here in Athens was sold three years ago to Ciga, I was amazed to hear rumours that it went for more than $100,000 per room. My own hotel, the Caravel, built 50 years later and with double the capacity, could not fetch $30,000 per room. The Aga Khan himself, of course, is not exactly hurt- ing. His own fortune is estimated at 1.4 bil- lion greenbacks. But in the meantime, if any of you out there need a hotel, come to Taki.
On a much lighter note, the Speccie's High life correspondent has triumphed in the Greek national veterans tennis compe- tition, a feat not unlike landing in Nor- mandy under fire and prevailing.
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