Indecent Exposure (17 page)
- If Hirschfield at times seemed overmatched by Stark, at least Ray was learning that Alan wasn't a pushover. And both men rather enjoyed the parry and thrust. Stark, in particular, had always preferred a stimulating antagonist to a dull friend. He loved to spray incendiary memos around Hollywood and New York: bitchy, gushy, wicked, funny memos. And
Hirschfield
, still a little unsure of himself but determined to keep up, felt compelled to try to match Stark jab for jab, memo for memo, even joke for joke. - Although the Stark-
Hirschfield
relationship remained sporadically antagonistic, it had become somewhat more stable and comfortable by 1977. Hirschfield knew better than most how much Stark's ability as a producer had helped Columbia, and Stark knew that
Hirschfield
's ability as a financial executive not only had helped the company but had helped Stark to enrich himself by keeping the company intact. They still enjoyed each other's company. Ray, with one of his women friends in tow, occasionally visited the Hirschfield home in Scarsdale. The informality of the place and of the Hirschfield family was a welcome relief from the stiff and formal atmosphere of Ray's own home in Bel-Air. He gave Christmas presents to the Hirschfield chil
dren, and even gave Alan and Bert
e his special recipe for charcoal-broiled steak marinated in Jack Daniel's and honey. - Still, the wariness between the two men never stopped infecting their relationship. Stark had grown uncomfortable after he realized that
Hirschfield
intended to involve himself actively in the affairs of the studio (including Stark's own contract with it) rather than let David Begelman run the studio without interference from New York. And Hirschfield still worried about the degree of Stark's power at Columbia. One of the reasons Alan was glad that the studio had come up with such non-Stark successes as
The Deep. Tommy, Shampoo,
and
Taxi Driver
was his belief that these films tended to dilute Stark's influence.
Hirschfield, however, was certainly astute enough to know that Stark's role in the company remained important and singular—so much so that it would have been unnatural not to summon Ray Stark to the Carlyle Hotel on the morning of Wednesday, September 21, 1977, for advice on what to do about the revelation that David Begelman had embezzled thousands of dollars from the Columbia studio.
After all, Ray Stark and David
Begelman
's relationship with each other went back many years, predating cither's relationship with Herbert Allen or Alan
Hirschfield
. - THIRTEEN
- Ray Stark stared at his two friends for a long second.
- He was shocked, he said, very shocked. Why would David do such a thing?
How
could he do such a thing? - Ray told Alan and Herbert that he knew of no gambling problems or other hidden needs that might have driven
Begelman
to steal. "It isn't a lot of money—there must be some explanation," he suggested. - "The amount of money isn't the problem, it's the nature of the acts," Hirschfield insisted. "These
are
premeditated acts of forgery. God knows how many more there might be. How do you have a guy who appears to be a crook running a company? We've got no choice. We've got to get rid of him, or at least suspend him until we investigate and find out the extent of this." - "There's no need to panic, Alan," Stark cautioned. "Surely there's an explanation. Have you talked to David? Is he coming in?"
- "We're going to try to get him in tonight or tomorrow," Herbert said. "We weren't able to reach him yesterday."
- Stark paused. "Alan, let me make you a proposition," he said. "If you feel you must suspend David and have an investigation, I would be willing, against all my normal instincts, to take over the chores of running the studio, at no salary, for the period of weeks or months the investigation takes. I could turn over power of attorney for my company to someone else, or whatever is necessary, to eliminate any conflict of interest."
- Hirschfield
smiled. Stark's proposal was perhaps the most ludicrous idea he had heard in his entire business career. The conflicts of interest in Stark's running the studio—real as well as perceived— obviously would be enormous, despite any transfer of power of attorney, or any other technical protective maneuver. The other producers on the Columbia lot would rise up in armed revolution. - But Hirschfield didn't state his feelings. He said: "That's a very generous gesture, Ray, but I'll have to think about it. This is a very confused situation, and there are lots of things we have to consider. It's probably best if I keep my own hand on the tiller out there for the time being. And Danny's pretty well in place by now anyway.* But thanks, it's very generous of you."
- Hirschfield
got up and went to the bathroom, still shocked by Stark's suggestion. Ray's powerful influence at the studio was worrisome enough as it was. To permit him actually to run the studio, even for a week, would constitute a gross dereliction of duty by Hirschfield and make Columbia the laughingstock of Hollywood. Was anyone naive enough to believe that Ray under such circumstances would, or even could, in fact relinquish control over his own film projects, while at the same time approve or reject other people's movies? Conflict of interest, indeed! The studio itself would become one huge conflict of interest. What balls the man has even to suggest it with a straight face! Hirschfield mused. - In the den, meanwhile, Herbert was saying: "You running the studio is a great idea. I'd have jumped at it."
- "Herbie
, we just saw a demonstration of something important— something that shouldn't be missed," Ray said. "This is Alan's way of saying he wants the studio for himself. He wants to make movies." - "Oh, I don't think so. He knows as well as anyone that's the quickest way to destroy yourself in this business—to be in a position where you can get blamed directly for a run of bad pictures. Where he is now, he can't get blamed directly. David has to take the heat. Besides, Alan wouldn't know how to run the studio."
- "You're wrong, Herbie
. You mark my words. The man wants to make movies. This business has gone to his head. I've seen this coming. You just watch the way he handles the situation." - Hirschfield
returned to the den, and he and Stark left the apartment together. Herbert was to try to reach David and summon him to New York. Stark was to talk with David as soon as he arrived and be available for further consultations. Neither Stark nor
Hirschfield
expressed his true feelings as they parted on Seventy-sixth Street. Ray said he would do anything he could to help, but he was angry that Hirschfield hadn't accepted his offer to run the studio. Alan thanked Ray again, but he continued to marvel at the brazenness of the suggestion. - Had Hirschfield known certain other facts that Stark did not reveal that morning, he would have been more amazed and troubled. For Stark's relationship with
Begelman
was even closer than Hirschfield imagined. - Herbert Allen telephoned Hirschfield just before noon. The handwriting expert had reported. "You can never be absolutely sure," the man said, "but it would be a miracle if the endorsement on the Robertson check was anyone's other than Begelman's."
- Joe Fischer and Herbert Allen drew the o
nerous task of taking Matty Rose
nhaus to lunch that day and breaking the news about the embezzlements. Sixty-five years old, silver-haired and distinguished-looking, Matthew B. Rosenhaus owned the largest single block of Columbia stock—about 9 percent, slightly more than the
Allens
owned. There was no contest for control, however. Herbert had cultivated Matty skillfully since the
Allens
had bought into the company four years earlier. The older man was very fond of Herbert and generally deferred to his judgments. After all, Matty's 700,000-plus shares had risen in value from about $1.5 million to more than $10 million since the new management had taken over. - Rosenhaus had become rich as head of the J.B. Williams Company, the maker of Geritol, whose "tired blood" advertising had been attacked by the Federal Trade Commission for well over a decade as misleading, and finally prompted a record-setting fi
ne against Rosenhaus's company.
Rosenhaus had grown even richer, however, when the company was purchased by Nabisco. He had been induced to buy his Columbia stock in
the late sixties by Serge Semene
nko of the First National Bank of Boston, a close friend who occupied a neighboring apartment at the Pierre Hotel. Even though Rosenhaus was sixty-five, he had no plans to retire, and continued to serve as president of Williams, vice chairman of Nabisco, and chairman of Columbia Pictures Industries'
executive committee. He was an e
nergetic man and a natty dresser, and his life had assumed a new dimension a few years earlier when he married Gila Golan, an actress and former Miss Israel who was much younger than he. Matty had promptly fathered three daughters, Sarita, Hedy, and Loretta. (He had three children from a previous marriage.) - Although Matty's general attitude toward Columbia Pictures' policies was guided by Herbert, he did not shrink from expressing strong opinions about particular manageme
nt decisions. An emotional, fus
tian man, his praise was lavish and his criticism harsh. At board meetings it was his style to deliver sermons rather than engage in discussions. - Hearing about
Begelman
from Fischer and Allen over lunch at Lutece, Matty began to weep. "My God, this is a tragedy. Does David know what he's done to himself? He must be sick." - "We know very little at this point but we're trying as hard as we can to find out what the facts
are
, and then do the right thing," Fischer offered. - "That fool! Something must be terribly wrong with him. He must have cracked up. We've got to help him. We've got to save him! This is a terrible tragedy for him, for the company!"
- "We're trying to keep it from becoming that," Herbert said. "We'll do everything we can."
- "It's a terrible, terrible tragedy," Matty said through his tears.
- In his
Wilshire
Boulevard office that morning after a late-night arrival from New York, Mickey Rudin got a first
-
hand briefing from Detective Joyce Silvey. Then he telephoned Leonard Wasserstein, the vice president in charge of the twenty Wells Fargo Bank branches on the west side of Los Angeles, including those in Beverly Hills. Wasserstein, whose office was just a block up Camden Drive from Rudin's in the same building where the Cliff Robertson check had been cashed, had had a close business relationship
with Rudin for many years. Wasserstein summoned Joe Lipshe
r, who had approved the Robertson transaction, and instructed him to give Rudin all the pertinent details. Rudin telephoned the information, which essentially confirmed what was already known or suspected, to Joe Fischer, who took the opportunity to tell Rudin that they were summoning Begelman to New York that aftern
oon. Would Mickey talk to David
before he left? Rudin said he would. - * * *
- Alan Hirschfield, relieved that someone else was confronting Matty Rosenhaus and calling David Begelman, was in his office taking congratulat
ory calls about his Brande
is award and attending to a variety of other matters. - "The company was great, and the speech was great, but the dinner was lousy, so you owe me a dinner," said William Thompson, the senior vice president of the First National Bank of Boston, the lead bank of the group with whom Columbia had its bank credit. Neither Thompson nor any of the other callers knew of the
Begelman
problem, and Hirschfield said nothing. - With the Robertson and Choate embez
zlements documented and redocume
nted, it was clear that Columbia had to take decisive action. Hirschfield met again in the afternoon with Fischer and Todd Lang, and none of the three doubted that Begelman would have to be suspended. Perhaps he would have to be fired summarily. Fischer, who tended to favor the latter course, was concerned that Matty Rosenhaus at lunch had seemed more interested in "saving David" than in what might be best for the company overall. - In a projection room on the Burbank lot, David Begelman sat with production chief Dan Melnick and Bill Tennant, a studio vice president, watching a new George Peppard film which Columbia was considering leasing from its producer and distributing. The telephone next to Begelman buzzed softly.
- "I'll take it upstairs," he said into the phone.
He rose and said to Melnick and Tennant: "You have my proxy."
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