The Madoff curse marches on. He’s in the can. Goldilocks the wife’s in the soup. The family’s in purgatory. The staff’s in litigation. Now their Upper East Side seven-room apartment is in flux.
The couple that bought it? Divorced. He’s gone the way of many itchy middle-aged husbands. She is saying “Flux you” and the duplex is back up for sale.
Building president Bernie the Pig, currently making license plates, bought it for zip in ’84. Mr. and then-Mrs. Al Kahn — he made those Cabbage Patch and Pokémon dolls — bought it for $8 mil. Marble fireplaces, 11-foot ceilings, chef’s kitchen, breakfast room, formal bar, den, library, laundry, granite johns, 27-foot living room, 14-foot foyer, French doors to the terrace, redone everything.
Originally having craved that penthouse, Patsy Kahn now says she’s “getting rid of the bad karma.” The place is up for — give or take a few bucks — $14 million.
Pay attention
Colin Firth and Emma Stone out July 25 in “Magic in the Moonlight,” a 1920s Woody Allen costume comedy set in the south of France . . . Pulitzer winner Donna Tartt’s “The Goldfinch” is on the Best-Seller List, and me, I asked, “So what do you do, hon?” She said: “Took me 11 years to write. I began as a poet. I became a novelist.” . . . Following my announcement a while back, the Times just “announced” James Earl Jones coming in B’way’s “You Can’t Take It With You” revival.
‘Green’ team lame
Thursday hayseeds opened NY’s iconic restaurant. To tourists. New Yorker longtime requests for a table for 10? Denied. Their yokels phoned hours before opening to say OK. Reply? “Shove it.” Le Cirque they won’t be. Tavern on the Toilet they already are.
Variety of exes here
Time and movie stars march on. Richard Gere, who first married then divorced Cindy Crawford to marry and now divorce Carey Lowell, who first married then divorced Griffin Dunne, is dating Padma Lakshmi, who first married then divorced Salman Rushdie.
Griffin’s date at Vanity Fair’s Tribeca Film Festival gala was his and Carey Lowell’s actress daughter Hannah Dunne, who said she’s in Amazon’s “Mozart in the Jungle.” Griffin Dunne said he’s in the movie “The Discoverers.” OK? We clear on all this now?
Also at Vanity Fair’s event, alongside Ronald Perelman, who chewed gum while drinking wine, and Gay Talese, who slung a scarf across one shoulder only, Fran Lebowitz. Also apartment hunting.
“A place below 34th Street that can house 10,000 books.” How about removing a few? “Out of the question. Suppose you had four children, and I said you should get rid of two of them?” Oy, Fran, please, better I should talk to editor Graydon Carter, who semi-insulted me with: “Why does whoever you interview sound exactly like you?”
Who is where wearing what
Meredith Vieira and husband in royal blue pantsuit (her, not him) at Carole King musical “Beautiful” . . . Cynthia Nixon on Bowery and Broome’s uptown bus . . . Nate Berkus investigating baubles from Alexis Bittar and Lizzie Fortunato. Goodies for his soon-to-wed Jeremiah Brent . . . Seth Rogen to dress up University of Vermont event Hilarity for Charity.
Goodbye to a fabulous lady
Mama D’Amato, 99, left us. Terrific Antoinette hawked for Fred’s Fur Vault, son Al’s commercials, had me tell Girl Scouts to tell their families D’Amatos were “nice people,” and always had plenty to say about politicos. In bad times, Alfonse’s first visit was Island Park for mama’s spaghetti and chicken soup. Thanksgiving, he’d go to deep-in-faith Mama with, “pray for me.” Antoinette was a treasure.
MME. de Blasio actually sang “Happy Birthday” to someone. Not what first ladies often do. Me, I was not personally close with George Washington, but I can’t see Martha trilling to a pal. Let’s hear it for Chirlane . . .
Only in New York, kids, only in New York.