Wednesday, January 21, 2009

J. Paul Getty and Friends

It was unconscionable of writer Robert Lenzer, his editor, and Crown, his publisher, to have used this wonderful photograph on the back jacket of his 1985 biography of the oilman, but not to tell us who these marvelous ladies were, describing them only as "friends."
I'll say. They make heterosexuality look like fun, even to me. Getty was said to have adored the company of women, and it shows---everyone looks like they're thriving in this atmosphere. Of course, I'm sure the billions of dollars had something to do with it too. That tasteful jewelry looks real, and really expensive. Spreading the necessary task aspects of servicing an old goat amongst a crowd of beauties also just makes good business sense. I see nary a catty internecine attitude undermining the evening's voluptuous calm and luxe. There's enough to go around for everybody!

The two dolls who sit most intimately with Sir Paul sure look sophisticated to me. They're definitely MILF-material. I bet they didn't leave that corn-fed 20-year-old standing sweetly there alone with the old man. Not when they could practice their sensual arts while passing on a few secrets. And one spring chicken is clearly enough, the rest is conversation.

And qu'est-ce que c'est...who do you think took the unattributed photo??

But look at the splendid canapés! I think something with a sexual theme is afoot in those Berain-esque shells-with-pistils numbers. I used to serve a simple and delicious hors d'œuvre comprised of a cocktail frank stuck inside a pitted prune and baked off. I called them Pudenda et Wagina.

Now, the bits about the armed guards in his bedroom and the pay phone for guests is merely grist for the tabloid mill. Important, and worthy of a reread, is his early spotting of the potential of Arab oil---along with his love affair with Adolf Hitler's Third Reich. Maybe we can gain some insight into how we ever arrived at such a sorry predicament in the Middle East! Could anybody ever have seen it coming, I wonder? Oh well, wash it down with a bit of bubbly, I say.

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