“I would like to get a copy of the photograph of the flooded West Side highway which appeared on the front page of WestView News; December issue,” said a pleasant telephone voice.
“Sure, but who are you?” I responded. “I work for a real estate firm,” came the reply, which made me think that perhaps we could sell an ad. I asked, “Which one?” and then an imperceptible pause and that name which resonates with the murderous hatred of the most contentious inheritance suit in recent history, “Gottlieb.”
Bill Gottlieb bought, but never sold, small shabby properties in the West Village and adjoining neighborhoods. However, as I said, he never sold. When he died in 1999, he left his aged sister Mollie a billion dollar estate and when she died in July 2007, her original will divided the estate equally between her two children and two grandchildren. Yet, the final version left it to her son, Neil Bender, and grandchild Michael Corbett sued in a cruel and lengthy court battle and lost. Neil Bender is also a recluse, but does sell once in a while; he likes 104 East 10th and 79 Horatio Streets.
Back to my telephone caller…
I learned my caller’s name – Giovanni – and that he was 23, just out of college (jobs are hard to find). Since I now was asking to do a story on the Gottlieb Empire, even young Giovanni realized his cause was lost, “I have a call I have to take, I will call you back in an hour.” He never called.
Later I realized that they, like me for my house in Bridgehampton, needed photos of the Sandy destruction for the insurance company. You would think anybody with a billion dollars would own a camera.
What kind of news is this? Just another Saturday night loser babbling about nonsense.