Empty Mansions
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41 AT A PRICE OF $50,000: Correspondence from G. T. Marsh and Company is in HMC papers and exhibits to Caterina Marsh, testimony, July 2, 2012, Depositions.
42 “I NEVER SAW HER UNHAPPY”: Sattler deposition.
43 “SHE LIKED TO HAVE”: Ibid.
44 “BECAUSE SHE LIKED”: Ibid.
45 “BELIEVE ME”: Ibid.
46 “LIKE A DAY AT THE RACETRACK”: Sattler deposition.
47 “SHE LOVED THE AUCTIONS”: Ibid.
48 CHRIS SAID HE COUNTED: Ibid.
49 “MRS. CLARK DIDN’T LIKE IT”: Ibid.
50 “WAS NEVER ABLE TO FIGURE”: Ibid.
51 “SHE WAS,” CHRIS SAID: Ibid.
52 STUDYING DANCE IN THE 1920s: Ninta Sandré is listed in The New Yorker, April 14, 1928, as presenting a dance recital with Michio Ito at the Princess Theatre, and her debut at a Broadway theater was reviewed in “Ninta Sandre Offers Program of Dances,” The New York Times, May 3, 1931.
53 ONE EVENING IN JANUARY 1987: Ninta’s later years were described by Lyn Strasheim, who worked for Dr. Myron Wright, in an interview with Dedman, July 5, 2012.
54 $329,000 A MONTH: The authors compiled Huguette’s expenditures for these months from regular reports made to her by attorney Donald Wallace, HMC papers.
55 “MRS. CLARK WANTED EVERYTHING”: Strasheim interview with Dedman, July 5, 2012.
56 “LOOKED LIKE A BAG WOMAN”: Ibid.
57 A LAWYER SHOWED UP: Gwendolyn Jenkins described Don Wallace’s visit in an interview with Dedman, May 29, 2012.
58 “EVERY YEAR SINCE”: Don Wallace to HMC, letter, September 30, 1994, HMC papers.
59 CAREFUL WITH HER CHECKING: Copies of Huguette’s bank books, HMC papers.
60 OVERDRAFTS HAD STARTED: A Don Wallace letter to Huguette Clark, in February 1985, warned about overdrafts and asked her to warn him whenever she wrote a check over $5,000, HMC papers.
61 MOST OF HER INCOME: Huguette’s tax returns, HMC papers.
62 HUGUETTE’S BALANCE IN THAT ACCOUNT: Repeated letters from Summit Bank and Huguette’s advisers urging her to move the money into an interest-bearing account are in HMC papers.
63 HUGUETTE RECEIVED A PLEA: Letters from the Paul Clark Home are in HMC papers.
64 AS A MEMORIAL: The Paul Clark Home gave the authors copies of documents on its early days, and the authors toured the home.
65 HUGUETTE RECEIVED SIMILAR LETTERS: HMC papers.
66 HUGUETTE WAS A BIDDER: Letters informing Huguette about this auction and many others in which she won the bid are in HMC papers.
67 TWO ANTIQUE FRENCH DOLLS: These two dolls are in the Sotheby’s catalog Important Dolls, Teddy Bears, Toys and Automata, London, Tuesday 18th May 1993 (London: Sotheby’s, 1993), lots 219 and 244.
68 “SHE REALLY IS ADORABLE”: Huguette Clark to Doris Styka, December 29, 1944, exhibit to Styka deposition.
69 “IT HAS BEEN SO VERY LONG”: Doris Styka to Huguette Clark, July 23, 1948, Styka deposition exhibit.
70 “AS WE THINK OF WHAT”: Doris Styka to Huguette Clark, August 19, 1948, Styka deposition exhibit.
71 ART CURATOR AND ARCHIVIST: Wanda was for many years the archivist at Chesterwood, the Massachusetts country home, studio, and gardens of sculptor Daniel Chester French, best known for The Minute Man in Concord, Massachusetts, and the seated Abraham Lincoln at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.
72 “MOTHER AND I SEND STREAMS”: Styka deposition exhibit.
73 WANDA TRIED TO CALL HUGUETTE: Wanda Styka told this story in her testimony, August 1, 2012, Depositions.
74 “WELL, THEN DON’T”: Ibid.
75 “IF THERE EVER WAS ANYBODY”: Sattler deposition.
76 HUGUETTE’S GIFTS TO HER NURSE: The gifts to Hadassah Peri are detailed in the petition of the New York County Public Administrator’s Office to recover gifts made from Huguette’s accounts. An amended petition was filed on November 30, 2012, in Surrogate’s Court of the State of New York County, County of New York, case 1995-1375A. (Referred to hereafter as “public administrator’s petition.”) This petition is available online at http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Sections/NEWS/clark_petition_for_clawback.pdf. Many of the same documents are included in HMC papers.
77 “VULNERABLE TO THE INFLUENCE”: Public administrator’s petition.
78 “MADAME, YOU HAVE GIVEN US”: Hadassah Peri deposition.
79 “SOMETIMES I WOULD SAY”: Hadassah Peri deposition.
80 HUGUETTE’S GIFTS FOR THE YEAR 1991: Her gifts are listed on her federal gift tax return for 1991, HMC papers.
81 HUGUETTE ALSO KEPT BUYING: Public administrator’s petition.
82 “I TOLD MADAME I HAVE MANY”: Hadassah Peri deposition.
83 “TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH”: Hadassah Peri deposition.
84 “DEAREST MADAME, I WOULD LIKE”: Abraham Peri to HMC, birthday card, 2001, HMC papers.
85 HUGUETTE’S GIFTS TO THE PERIS: Public administrator’s petition.
86 “MY GRANDMOTHER FELT”: Cruz deposition.
87 THE BOY WAS SO CUTE: Cruz described this apartment purchase in her deposition.
88 MORE THAN $1 MILLION IN GIFTS: Coffey deposition.
89 “I RESPECTED HER VERY MUCH”: Coffey deposition.
90 “THERE WAS VERY LITTLE NURSING”: Coffey deposition.
91 “CERTAIN QUESTIONS WERE NOT ASKED”: Wallace Bock, testimony, March 22 and 23 and July 24–26, 2012, Depositions.
92 “SOMEBODY WOULD COME IN”: Ibid.
93 “SOMETIMES SHE GIVES YOU CHECKS”: Hadassah Peri deposition.
94 “FOR TWENTY YEARS”: Ibid.
95 WITH THE MONEY HIS WIFE WAS MAKING: Daniel Peri, testimony, September 24, 2012, Depositions.
96 “FAILED TO UNDERSTAND THE CONSEQUENCES”: Public administrator’s petition.
97 “PLEASE BELIEVE ME”: Dr. Jules Pierre to Huguette Clark, March 8, 1992, letter, HMC papers.
98 THE FULL $10 MILLION: The gift to Suzanne Pierre is described in HMC papers and in Suzanne J. Pierre v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, U.S. Tax Court, 2010, which Madame Pierre won. See http://www.ustaxcourt.gov/InOpHistoric/pierre.TCM.WPD.pdf. As though it were an everyday occurrence, documents say, “Petitioner had been a widow for many years when she received a $10 million cash gift from a wealthy friend in 2000.”
99 TALKING ABOUT HUGUETTE: Pierre interview.
100 “SHE TOLD ME TO HOLD IT”: Hadassah Peri deposition.
101 “IT JUST SNOWBALLED”: Sattler described the opening of the safe and the distribution of the jewelry in his deposition. The gifts are detailed in public administrator’s petition.
102 “AND MADAME SAID, SOMEDAY”: Hadassah Peri deposition.
103 AT LEAST $31,906,074.81: This total for gifts to the Peris is from public administrator’s petition.
104 “I CANNOT RECALL ANY PAPER”: Hadassah Peri deposition.
105 “NEVER COME TO MY MIND”: Ibid.
106 “YOU WILL HAVE TO”: The October 26, 2001, letters from Bock and Kamsler are cited in public administrator’s petition.
107 “AS YOU WELL KNOW”: Bock to HMC, letter, October 31, 2272, HMC papers. This letter was also an exhibit to his deposition.
108 SHE GAVE DON WALLACE $130,000: The total value of dolls that Wallace received from Huguette is listed in the accounting of his estate in Surrogate’s Court. A copy of the file is available online at http://msnbcmedia.msnxom/i/msnbc/Sections/NEWS/wallace_probate.pdf.
109 WALLACE’S SECRETARY WROTE: Series of letters from Gloria Parker to Huguette Clark, 1992, HMC papers.
110 “SO THERE I WAS”: Wallace Bock, prepared text of remarks, Efrat, Israel, July 29, 2008.
111 “THE SECURITY SYSTEM FOR EFRAT”: Photograph.
112 “SHE SAID SHE BOUGHT”: Sattler deposition.
113 HUGUETTE WAS JUST TWO MILES: Her condolence note to James Hurley for the loss of his son-in-law, Chandler R. “Chad” Keller, is i
n HMC papers. See Keller’s biography at the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, http://pentagonmemorial.org/explore/biographies/chandler-r-keller.
114 DEADLY ANTHRAX: Huguette’s fears of an anthrax attack were described by Bock in his deposition.
115 SHE CALLED HER GODDAUGHTER: Styka deposition.
116 “I HAVE IN HAND”: The transaction for La Pucelle was described by violin dealer Charles Beare in an interview with Dedman, February 27, 2012. The buyer, David Fulton, also told the story in interviews and emails with Dedman, and in an unpublished manuscript of a memoir.
117 AGREED TO BUY LA PUCELLE: Fulton didn’t realize at the time of the purchase that he had a connection to the Clarks. Fulton’s father had been a manager at W.A.’s United Verde copper mine in Arizona.
118 AN EXTRAORDINARY INSTRUMENT: There is a popular misconception that a fine violin has to be played regularly to be kept in fine condition. The less stress on the instrument, the better. There’s a good reason that Huguette would have preferred her less expensive Strad. As David Fulton, who purchased La Pucelle, explained in an interview with Dedman, “La Pucelle, as it was set up when it came to me, is perfectly fine for most pros to play but, for an amateur, even a skilled amateur, it would probably be set up a little differently. The fact that Huguette preferred her early Strad is somewhat indicative. Early Strads are lighter in tone and generally easier to play, more approachable for an amateur. I doubt Huguette was a particularly strong player, though doubtless she was fairly competent. My conclusion from all this is that La Pucelle was essentially untouched while Huguette owned it, in a time capsule really. I’d guess she didn’t particularly enjoy playing it. That is confirmed by the condition, setup, strings, and the accessories that were in the case when the violin came to me. This was a stroke of great good fortune for the violin.… People who buy big, important instruments are often dismayed to discover that they can be very demanding to play.… I think Huguette must have had trouble taming it.”
275 “IT REALLY HAS AN AMAZING PURITY”: Violinist James Ehnes provided this description of La Pucelle through his publicist in August 2010.
Chapter 11: Beth Israel Medical Center
1 “WAS QUITE WEALTHY”: Dr. Henry Singman, testimony, August 16 and 20, 2012, Depositions, and public administrator’s petition.
2 “MADAME, AS YOU KNOW”: Singman deposition.
3 DR. NEWMAN SENT HUGUETTE: Dr. Robert Newman, testimony, August 9, 2012, Depositions.
4 THE MOTHER WROTE TO HUGUETTE: The visits by Dr. Newman’s mother and the two women’s time watching skating are described in HMC papers.
5 “I KID YOU NOT!”: Public administrator’s petition.
6 “DEAR MRS. HUGUETTE”: Newman to HMC, letter, January 1994, HMC papers.
7 “EVEN IF SHE CHANGES”: Public administrator’s petition.
8 “ONE SMURF TO MAKE AMENDS”: Ibid.
9 “SHE HAS NO ‘CONCEPT’”: Ibid.
10 HE MADE NO PAYMENTS: The public administrator’s petition gives details on the Rudick loan documents, which turned into a gift.
11 DR. RUDICK DENIED THIS ACCOUNT: Dr. Jack Rudick, testimony, September 19, 2012, Depositions.
12 WAIVED HADASSAH’S FEES: Singman deposition.
13 “I THINK HER GIFTS”: Newman deposition.
14 “WITHOUT KNOCKING HER PAST GIFTS”: Ibid.
15 “THE GREAT JOY AND SPIRITUAL SATISFACTION”: Public administrator’s petition.
16 “THEY MIGHT PUSH THE QUESTION”: Ibid.
17 HUGUETTE WAS HIDDEN AWAY: The former employees were interviewed by Dedman in July 2012.
18 THE JOINT COMMISSION: The routine practice of the Joint Commission was described by spokeswoman Elizabeth Zhani in an email to Dedman, July 26, 2012.
19 “IF WE WERE FORCED”: Public administrator’s petition.
20 ENCOUNTERED FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES: Moody’s Investor Service, “Moody’s Downgrades Bonds for Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City,” press release, 1995, http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Moody’s+Downgrades+Bonds+for+Beth+Israel+Medical+Center+in+New+York…-a017424498, and “N.Y.’s Beth Israel Medical Center Takes Rating Hit from Moody’s,” The Bond Buyer, June 16, 2000.
21 SHE GAVE A PAINTING: Details of the sale of the Manet painting are in HMC papers. Letters show that Beth Israel showed the painting at a benefit on November 5, 2000, and it failed to sell on November 8.
22 “TERRIBLY CONFUSED POLITICAL SITUATION”: Huguette’s advice to delay the second attempt to sell the Manet is described in an affidavit by Marvin Wexler, attorney for Beth Israel Medical Center, in reply to the public administrator’s petition.
23 “AN UNCONDITIONALLY GUARANTEED CASH PAYMENT”: Newman to HMC, letter, HMC papers. The letter is also in the public administrator’s petition.
24 “FREEING YOU FROM”: Ibid.
25 THERE WERE MORE CONS: The proposed charitable gift annuity was evaluated for the authors by wealth management specialist Gavin Morrissey of Commonwealth Financial Network.
26 “A CONTRIBUTION IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD”: Dr. Newman described this meeting in notes to the Beth Israel development staff, described in the public administrator’s petition. It’s also discussed in his deposition and in Morton Hyman’s testimony, October 10 and 11, 2012, Depositions.
27 “EXPRESSING CONCERN”: HMC medical records.
28 “SHE DON’T WANT CHANGES”: Hadassah Peri, testimony, August 13, 14, 15, and 17, 2012, Depositions.
29 HOSPITAL POLICY ON CONFLICTS OF INTEREST: The Beth Israel policy was an exhibit to the Hyman deposition. It says, in part, “Gifts of money (including gift certificates) are never acceptable.”
30 “THE INDISPUTABLE REALITY”: Hospital attorney Marvin Wexler made this comment in an affidavit filed in opposition to the public administrator’s petition, January 15, 2013.
31 “THAT’S A LOT OF MONEY”: Dr. Newman described his conversation with Huguette in an email to a hospital development official, May 12, 2004, which was an exhibit to his deposition.
32 “NEVER ABANDON HER”: Ibid.
33 “SHE CAME THROUGH”: Ibid.
34 HUGUETTE’S LAST DONATION: Her resistance to further implorations is described by Wexler in his affidavit.
35 “WOULD HAVE TO DISCONTINUE”: Singman deposition.
36 HADASSAH TOLD HER THE SAME: Hadassah Peri deposition.
37 “WE TOLD HER”: Ibid.
38 CHRIS SATTLER HELPED HER: Sattler described the morning trip with Huguette in his testimony, August 23 and September 6, 2012, Depositions.
39 “SHE IS TERRIBLY INSECURE”: HMC medical records.
40 “SHE HAVE TO KNOW YOU FIRST”: Hadassah Peri deposition.
41 ROOM 10L04 WAS DECORATED: Observation by Dedman.
42 “SHE STARTED COMING OUT”: Sattler deposition.
43 THERE WAS A LITTLE GATHERING: Several of the participants described in depositions the birthday party. Nurse Erlinda Ysit described the balloon in her testimony, August 22, 2012, Depositions.
44 ANNA’S JEWELRY DISAPPEARED: The jewelry losses are described in a series of letters from the bank and from Huguette’s attorneys in HMC papers.
45 “HAS BEEN DEVASTATING”: Ibid.
46 WROTE HER A NOTE OF APOLOGY: Ibid.
47 AN INDEPENDENT PHYSICIAN: Letter from Don Wallace to Huguette Clark, October 13, 1994, relaying the offer from Citibank. A Wallace letter from February 1995 shows that Dr. Singman signed a statement of competency.
48 SOMEONE STOLE NEARLY: November 1991 letter from Don Wallace to Huguette Clark, HMC papers.
49 HUGUETTE’S GENTLE BALLERINA: The theft of the Degas painting, the FBI investigation, and the settlement agreement are described in letters in HMC papers.
50 “MRS. CLARK’S CONDITION”: Sattler’s call is noted in attorney Bock’s time logs, files of Collier, Halpern, Newberg, Nolletti & Bock, in White Plains, New York.
51 THEY SENT OVER A DRAFT: HMC papers.
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p; 52 “YOU HAVE NEVER EXPRESSED”: Wallace to HMC, letter, March 7, 1985, HMC papers.
53 “IN THE NOT TOO FAR DISTANT”: Ibid.
54 HE HAD NEVER MET HIS CLIENT: Wallace’s goddaughter, Judith Sloan, described his frustration at never meeting Huguette in an interview with Dedman, August 2010.
55 “ONCE AGAIN,” HE BEGGED: Bock to HMC, letter, September 20, 2000, HMC papers.
56 A 2001 LIST: HMC papers.
57 BOCK AND KAMSLER TOOK A DRAFT: The men discussed this visit in their testimony: Wally Bock, March 22 and 23 and July 24–26, 2012, Depositions; Irving Kamsler, May 8 and 9 and July 17–19, 2012, Depositions.
58 DR. NEWMAN VISITED: Newman deposition.
59 ON MARCH 7, NOW: A copy of this first will is available online at http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Sections/NEWS/huguette_clark_earlier_will_from_msnbc.com.pdf.
60 AUTOMATIC COMMISSIONS: Under New York law, each executor would receive 5 percent on the first $100,000, 4 percent on the next $200,000, 3 percent on the next $700,000, 2.5 percent on the next $4 million, and 2 percent on the balance. The commission is paid on assets other than real property and tangible personal property. Assuming Huguette had $154,257,899 in assets subject to a commission, Bock and Kamsler would each have received $3,119,158.
61 BOCK AND KAMSLER EXPLAINED: Bock and Kamsler depositions.
62 KAMSLER SENT HUGUETTE A LIST: Kamsler deposition.
63 HUGUETTE SIGNED THE SECOND ONE: The second and last will is available online at http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/Sections/NEWS/huguette_clark_will_from_msnbc.com.pdf.
64 SHE REFUSED A HEARING AID: These details from the period between the two wills are in HMC medical records.
65 HAD A DRINK TO SUCCESS: Bock’s secretary, Danita Rudisill, was a witness to the will signing. She testified about the trip to the restaurant in her deposition on July 30, 2012. Bock, in his deposition, said he didn’t recall drinking after the will was signed.
Chapter 12: Woodlawn Cemetery
1 MARCH 1968: Lewis Rutherford Morris Hall said in documents that he was not introduced to Huguette at his mother’s funeral in 1968, but that Huguette was pointed out to him. John Hudson “Jack” Hall III, grandson of the deceased, said in documents and a deposition that he saw Huguette or was told that she was leaving the funeral. Jack Hall testimony, November 12, 2012, Depositions.