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Madoff's Other Girlfriends
Shannon Stapleton / Reuters
Sheryl Weinstein wasn't the only woman the Ponzi monster was fooling around with, writes Lucinda Franks—he had more than one extra-marital affair, as well as encounters with "masseuses."
It turns out Bernie Madoff was as profligate in his personal life as he was in his professional one, repeatedly cheating and lying to the wife for whom he ultimately sacrificed himself.
By now we've all seen Sheryl Weinstein, the amply endowed blonde who says she was Madoff's longtime girlfriend. But Bernie had more than one extra-marital affair during his marriage to Ruth, according to a man close to the fraudster. He also had a number of masseuses who apparently not only gave him massages, but bestowed sexual favors upon him afterward, the federal source said.
He also had a number of masseuses who apparently not only gave him massages, but bestowed sexual favors upon him afterward.
"He had a tremendous libido, like so many men in power," the source added. "He told me that Ruth just couldn't satisfy it. I suppose no one woman could." The source, like so many other friends of Madoff, lost money when the Ponzi scheme crashed. He admitted, however, that he had made more in recent years than he lost and did not want his name used for fear that the trustee charged with compensating Madoff victims would target him for a "clawback"—sue him for his monetary gains.
Another person who is investigating the Madoff affair said one of the girlfriends, reportedly devastated by the evidence of her boyfriend's profound duplicity, moved to London. "He told her lies that she discovered only after the fact, including his declarations of love to her."
An informant for a law-enforcement agency reported that Bernie had been seen at an Italian restaurant in downtown New York City, talking intimately with a woman who had bright blond hair. His wife, Ruth, and Sheryl Weinstein, the CFO of the Hadassah foundation, also sport bright blond hair.
A onetime friend of Ruth's, a Madoff victim who is also subject to clawbacks, says that Bernie's absences made Ruth suspect, and perhaps even know, that he was having at least one affair. As proficient as he was in making people trust him, she eventually became wise to his masquerade. When she let him know of her doubts about his fidelity, Bernie responded by lavishing attention on Ruth, letting her accompany him everywhere. "He was highly motivated to make sure she thought he loved her," the friend said. One of the reasons the two appeared so wound up with each other was that he wanted to keep her from wandering. He couldn't afford to have her confide in anyone about his ways in business.
"I don't think he ever even slipped—you know, dropped some hint—about his Ponzi scheme to any of his mistresses."
The friend did not know whether Ruth, his onetime bookkeeper, knew about the scam.
"She could have been skeptical about what she found in the accounts but decided not to delve into it. She is that kind of a person, she's able to shut things out and she was devoted to Bernie, in spite of everything. There are some things you just do not want to know about your husband."
However, according to the friend, she was ever vigilant when her husband was talking to a woman. "She would come right over, even if he was trying to land a client. He had the habit of cozying up to potential female investors. He'd use a low kind of sexy voice and he'd say something like, 'Don't worry, I'll be there for you. You'll never have to worry.' It irritated Ruth."
Said one of the previously mentioned law-enforcement sources who is close to the FBI: "We've been told Ruth is a very proud woman. This is the kind of publicity she hates. She must be beside herself now."
Lucinda Franks is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author who was on the staff of The New York Times and has written for The New Yorker and The New York Times Book Review and Magazine. Her latest book is My Father's Secret War, about her father, who was a spy for the OSS during World War II.
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Lloyd Grove is editor at large for The Daily Beast. He is also a frequent contributor to New York magazine and was a contributing editor for Condé Nast Portfolio. He wrote a gossip column for the New York Daily News from 2003 to 2006. Prior to that, he wrote the Reliable Source column for the Washington Post, where he spent 23 years covering politics, the media, and other subjects.
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Jacob Bernstein is a senior reporter at The Daily Beast. Previously, he was a features writer at WWD and W Magazine. He has also written for New York magazine, Paper, and The Huffington Post.
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Lucinda Franks is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author who was on the staff of the New York Times and has written for the New Yorker and the New York Times Book Review and Magazine. Her latest book is My Father's Secret War, about her father, who was a spy for the OSS during World War II.
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Allan Dodds Frank is a business investigative correspondent who specializes in white collar crime. He also is President of the Overseas Press Club of America, one of the many journalism organizations that protests the arrests of journalists abroad and repression of freedom of speech.
Lucinda Franks is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author who was on the staff of the New York Times and has written for the New Yorker and the New York Times Book Review and Magazine. Her latest book is My Father's Secret War, about her father, who was a spy for the OSS during World War II.
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Lucinda Franks is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author who was on the staff of the New York Times and has written for the New Yorker and the New York Times Book Review and Magazine. Her latest book is My Father's Secret War, about her father, who was a spy for the OSS during World War II.
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Pandering. That's what Lucinda Franks is doing. To base urges among her audience. And that's why my shlong has accidentally dropped out. Come on! I want photos and other visual aides.
Seriously, I just wish you would give more information about Madoff mistresses other than 'amply endowed blonde' and 'blond' and 'blonde'. Some dimensions? Ages? Who they look like? If I'm going to fantasize as Lucinda Franks apparently would like me to do, I need more details.
If only, if only Abe Vagoda would come out as one of Madoff's mistresses, I could die happy and content. I'm sure charles116 would concur...
Abe Vigoda. That kind of spelling error (substitution of vowels--a for i; u for a is another common one) reveals an intellectual deficiency.
Also, Schlong.
Still, no worse than Lucinda Franks's "bright blonde" hair. This is neither an accepted usage nor an interesting metaphor. It's nonsense. But that is the stuff of journalism. The whole piece was ridiculous.
BriggsJohnstone: I appreciate the comment about 'intellectual deficiency'. What does it say about you that you'll stop and reply to those whom you would deem intellectually deficient? Hint: Projecting your own deficiencies and hating every piece of it. Welcome to the ridiculous!
Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive, and blah, blah, blah.
Well this "new" information gives new meaning to my prediction, heads will be rolling, of course eyes will be rolling too.
It is a great article. These articles seem to be getting better.
"He had a tremendous libido like so many men in power do."
I think instead what you mean is that he was a sexual predator, don't you? This is not healthy adult libido.
We confuse power with "libido" and healthy sex drive in our society because we overempower men and underempower women (it is a vicious cycle).
Don't give me that sexual predator stuff. The size and activity of one's schlong is directly related to the size and activity of one's ability to dole out bucks. I seriously doubt that anyone of those paragons of virtue with whom he had liasons were victims of anything but their own greedy desires.
The reason women often become "victims" of sexual predators like this is because their autonomy and ability to make money on their own as equals to men is not respected. When men use a little wifey at home, or "masseuse" or whatever to support and dote on them in their exploits in the world, that's exactly what they get in return. They get used for their $.
Actually, Bernie was a slave to his own avarice and appetites. I don't envy him one bit.
I'm trying to think of any possible reason that anyone cares.
I enjoy the Madoff stories! Thought of so many rich people, made gullible by their greed, being fleeced by a guy like Madoff is so pleasant!
And where did the money go? It's not as if Bernie and Ruthie maliciously burned it. A great deal of it no doubt went to craft and trade people who supplied most of the goods for their lifestyle. If the Madoff hadn't spent it, the other rich people would have.
While I don't think Bernie deserves a medal for what he did, the idea that he should roast in the hottest part of hell seems absurd.
People who rip off poor people are a lot more worse.
Actually, Madoff ripped off plenty of poor people, too. A lot of the money he was given to manage, or invest, was meant for charities -- and he was aware of that, very well aware. Mort Zuckerman and Elie Wiesel, for example, were two charity-heads who were ripped off by Madoff. Of course, you're right in the sense that much of the money went back to the people who invested early on, and they came away with profits. The problem is that their illegitimate profits are someone else's -- someone who invested later and didn't pull their money out on time -- illegitimate losses.
Also, your line, "If the Madoffs hadn't spent it, the other rich people would have," is absurd. It was not the Madoffs' to spend; it was the other rich people's. And how do you know how any of this money was "spent"? Perhaps others would have done more socially conscious things with their money. Yours is a very twisted argument, and a little scary. IT WAS NOT THE MADOFFS TO SPEND -- IF I INVESTED WITH THEM, IT WAS BECAUSE I WANTED TO REAP PROCEEDS AND SPEND IT MY WAY, ON MY OWN CRAFT OR TRADESPEOPLE.
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To really understand the point of this little hit piece, one needs to read it in the context of the author's recent article on Ruthie Madoff's $45 million stash.
In that article from about ten or so days ago, Lucinda Franks teamed up with Allan Dodds Frank to opine that the trustee of the whole Madoff-affair would like to go after Ruthie's hidden assets.
Viewed as a follow-up to that article, this essay makes a certain amount of sense. By not disclosing any of the "sources", and hitting Ruthie where it hurts (well they are trying to hit her where it hurts, in her purse), at least the FBI thinks a public airing of ole Bernie's extra-marital shenanigans might do the trick.
They mistakenly think that by enraging Ruthie about Bernie's sexcapades, she will capitulate and open the doors to the secret chambers where the treasure has been hidden.
Unfortunately for the FBI, and the trustee this gambit is bound for failure. The failure is due to the fact that both Ruthie and Bernie are sociopaths. Neither one of them feels a damn thing when it involves money.
And it all involves money!!!
The more that is written the more bizarre it all seems. Bernie was criminal, a skunk. His wife had to know something. Everything they did was grounded in a false pretense. He was really a crook. So now what? A 60 Minutes interview?
I want a spoon.
michaelslevinson dot commie
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Yucko.
i don't see the baglady writing about bernie anymore---was she one of them?
Baglady's been silent for a long time, besides, why would the lady tell.
Note to TDB: Bernie is in prison, confessed, convicted and sentenced. Who cares about his tawdry little love life.
The interesting aspect of the Madoff story now are Ruthie and the boys.
[ Weinstein, 60, has denounced Madoff publicly at least four times this year, including at the June 29 court hearing where he was sentenced to 150 years in federal prison for masterminding the largest Ponzi scheme in history. Weinstein told the judge she met Madoff 21 years ago when she was chief financial officer at Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America Inc. ...Weinstein spoke several times to the media this year about Madoff without detailing their personal relationship. On the night before Madoff's March 12 guilty plea, she joined 20 victims on Fox Business Network. She said she met Madoff when a donor gave $7 million to Hadassah and directed Madoff to manage the money. ...] excerpted from http://blogs.jta.org/philanthropy/
[UPDATE: A spokesperson for Hadassah says the organization did not know of the alleged affair during Weinstein's tenure at the organization. She did serve on the investment committee that decided to put some of its money with Madoff, but she was one of many members of the committee. The spokesperson said that Hadassah is "moving on" from Madoff, noting that the organization recently received a $1 million gift and is close to securing two more.] excerpted from http://blogs.jta.org/philanthropy/
Hadassah can't be "moving on", because they were an earlier investor with Madoff's ponzi scheme, or an investor for close to 20 years, they withdrew something like $30 million or more than their initial investment with BMIS. They owe the Bankruptcy Court the difference between what they invested and what they earned...
This whole scheme gives new meaning to getting screwed. That is for sure :).
Who the f*ck cares. This kind of reporting is so stupid and base as to be a betrayal to the Pulitzer Committee. Lucinda Franks, THIS is what you want to do with your probably not inconsiderable talents? I mean, really?
A certain kind of man, rogier, will never be able to grasp why Madoff's web of extramarital sexual activity is relevant to the story, but many men - and virtually all women - understand its relevance.
I wonder who's massaging him now.
This guy was ruthless in his pursuit to get other peoples money and he was ruthless in his pursuit of sexual escapades. Only now his wife Ruth says to him "Hell with you. You can rot in the slammer all by yourself."
So as he has always been ruthless, he has to spend his time in the slammer "RUTH" less.
At the Holocaust Memorial Museum Remembrance Ceremony on April 23, 2009 Eie Wiesel stated, "Maybe the world is paying the price now for its indifference to Jewish pain and suffering Among the children there might have been Nobel Laureates who might have discovered the cure for cancer for all kinds of diseases, could have sensitized the world and say look there are certain things you cannot do and remain human. Will the world ever learn?
Or, there might have been more Bernie Madoffs!
I still cannot muster any sympathy for anyone involved in this whole thing. Well, maybe Lucinda, she got ****ed twice.
I enjoy the Madoff stories! Thought of so many rich people, made gullible by their greed, being fleeced by a guy like Madoff is so pleasant!
And where did the money go? It's not as if Bernie and Ruthie maliciously burned it. A great deal of it no doubt went to craft and trade people who supplied most of the goods for their lifestyle. If the Madoff hadn't spent it, the other rich people would have.
While I don't think Bernie deserves a medal for what he did, the idea that he should roast in the hottest part of hell seems absurd.
People who rip off poor people are a lot more worse.
"He had a tremendous libido, like so many men in power..."
Oh please, give me a break. All men screw around when given the chance, unless they have a medical problem. Money/power attracts women who are interested.
O'l Bernie was just an ordinary guy, don't make him into some sort of myth. Just what he'd like to happen.
And yes, it is a nice touch that these stories are coming out now. Ruthie's pride shouldn't be spared.
absurb! why would anyone even admit to having a liason with that that pig? when did he have time to screw around? he was so busy wheeling and dealing this ponzi scheme. come on guys, this Weinstein story belongs in rag magazine. where is that alexdra penney??
As has been the case throughout her articles on the Madoff
miasma, Lucinda Franks has provided a new angle, which gives
additional insight into the man. His arrogance and his utter
amorality are as evident in his philandering as in his calamitous thievery. This is a very enlightening piece of the puzzle.
Of course he had a tremendous libido. He was screwing people for 20 years! Thank you, I'll be here all week.
*rimshot*
Nice one, Webb04.
Thank you.
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