Mannahatta
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Posts posted by Mannahatta
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It's a FB group not a page.
Thanks for posting the link.....There's a guy in the group who says he served time with Durst. Yikes!
I was hoping everyone would just run out and buy the book. lol But now that I figured out how to use the spoiler alert here's what struck me:
Gilberte Najamy was loved by the media because she inserted herself into the story at any opportunity she could. She would repeatedly tell people that she was Kathie's "best-friend" and that on the night Kathie disappeared Kathie had been a guest at a small family gathering at Gilberte's. Well the truth was somewhat different. Gilberte was one of Kathie's many friends. But Kathie tended to keep her friends compartmentalized. And Gilberte was her drug contact friend - specifically cocaine. And the party that Gilberte threw that evening was not a small family function. It was a fairly wild drug party. Interestingly enough, the police never interviewed the people at that party. But years later, Kathie's friend, Ellen Strauss, spoke to a man who had been at that party. He reports that Gilberte provided Kathie with copious amounts of cocaine and booze, all the while egging her to go home and confront Robert to let him know she wanted a divorce on her terms. Many at the party thought that Gilberte, who was a lesbian, was in love with Kathie. So by not disclosing Kathie's state of mind that night, Gilberte was withholding crucial information from the investigators. She also lied not only to the police and the media but to Kathie's friends and family. Gilberte would tell anyone who would listen that Kathie's death was the reason she lost her business as a caterer - because she was so obsessed with finding the truth about Kathie's death she couldn't focus on her business. In reality, Gilberte was a convicted felon with a total of 6 arrests including possession of drugs with intent to sell. Gilberte also sold the movie rights to her "story" - meaning the story of Kathie Durst. When Joe Becerra, the investigator for the NYS police (as of 1999) told her that this jeopardized her potential position as a witness should the case come to trial, Gilberte became angry at him. Soon after Gilberte spoke to Jeanine Pirro, the then Westchester DA and complained about Becerra. She spoke to the right person. Pirro had been taking credit for Becerra's work and was angry at him for discussing the case in an interview with Vanity Fair magazine. Pirro wanted all the credit for the investigation although she was only involved when there was publicity to be had. So after Gilberte complained to her, Pirro had Becerra, who had worked for years on the case, taken off the case. Later Pirro found out about Gilberte's history as a felon and dropped her like a hot potato. None of this information was presented in The Jinx. (I later read an interview with author, Matt Birkbeck, who said he had been asked to appear on the documentary but declined.) Another bit of information i found confusing in the documentary was the issue of the doorman who said he had seen Kathie at the West End Ave apartment. It turns out that he was an alcoholic who was often not where he was supposed to be when he was on duty. So he either lied or didn't remember clearly. That wasn't clearly explained in the documentary either. The book also goes further into detail about Durst's bizarre behavior and the strong possibility that he could be a serial killer with more than 3 victims. But you'll really have to read the book if you want to find out more.
And that is the end of the first book report I've written since the 1980s!
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I just finished the recently updated version of "A Deadly Secret - The Bizarre and Chilling Story of Robert Durst" by Matt Birkbeck. What a riveting and well-researched read. I normally take forever to read a book but this one took me only a day. I thought it would be a rehash of a lot of what was presented in The Jinx. But instead It answered a number of puzzling questions that the documentary left hanging. Plus it gives a completely different perspective about some of the major players. (However, I don't want to give away any spoilers in case anyone else wants to read it.)
Also, in case anyone is still as fascinated by this teflon psychopath as I am - there's a Facebook group called Robert Durst Murder Trial. Looks interesting.
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Intriguing, indeed. What a messed up little family that was. Not to excuse his behavior, but it made me wonder what the relationship between Brooke Astor and her son was like when he was growing up. They touched upon it to a limited degree but, wow, he really seemed to despise her. And, of course, his wife was a piece of work so that didn't help things any. Sad also that her staff could see what was going on but perhaps felt powerless to do anything - until they were fired.
Did the show mention that the son died in 2014 at the age of 90? http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/anthony-marshall-son-brooke-astor-dead-90-article-1.2029294
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More "smiling through the tears" selfies:
Does anyone else think Yolanda has some sort of arrangement with the Daily Mail?
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Here's an interview with the writer of "A Deadly Secret". Among other insights, he minimizes Jeanine Pirro's role in the Kathie Durst investigation.
http://www.vulture.com/2015/04/robert-durst-biographer-jinx-factually-incorrect.html
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http://theinterrobang.com/former-ada-jeanine-pirro-was-terrified-robert-durst-would-kill-her/
Interesting interview with former Assistant District Attorney Kevin Hynes:
In an exclusive interview with Ron Bennington and Gail Bennington this week on SiriusXM’s “Bennington” Show, former Westchester County, New York assistant district attorney Kevin Hynes said that he believes the wealth and power of the Durst family caused a cover up in the investigation of Robert Durst for the murder of his wife Kathleen. His comments also seem to suggest that former prosecutor Jeanine Pirro may have had involvement in that cover up or at least may have been influenced by the Durst family.
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Did anyone else see this? A woman who briefly dated Durst in 2000, said he had an apartment in Dallas with a small room that had a bare concrete floor and a saw. He told the building management he needed a concrete floor because he used a lot of chemicals! Fortunately this woman had the sense to break up with him.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/robert-durst-woman-who-dated-784301
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Seems there's another police department that wondering about Durst: http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/local/2015/03/24/middlebury-police-durst-update/70378078/?from=global&sessionKey=&autologin=
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According to a CBS news report from this morning - investigators are looking into Durst's possible connection to the 1997 disappearances of Karen Mitchell and Kristen Modafferi.
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Well, this is interesting--according to a story the New York Times just put out (with the headline pulled from the last moment of tonight's show), it says that the bathroom mic comments are years old.
When Durst was presented with the envelope all I could think was "Check-mate!". He really didn't see it coming. I'm glad the filmmakers included the footage of them figuring out their strategy on how to approach him with this evidence. Too bad the original investigators didn't put that much thought into their respective cases.
Interesting article. Thanks for posting it, hendersonrocks. But I still don't understand the legal rationale given for not handing the evidence over sooner. But then everything about this case is so bizarre.
Another big question - since Durst had the time and the money, why didn't he immediately flee the country after this second interview? Was it because he knew he was being watched by the authorities? Or maybe because he felt too old to go on the lam again. (He really looked out of shape, even for a 71 year old, when he was climbing the stairs of his brother's brownstone.)
And how macabre - on top of everything else - that he asked to keep the photo of him and Susan Berman. No doubt, he's become very adept at coming up with the lines that an innocent person would say.
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Wow, this is creepy. Thanks to his own hubris he's finally been arrested for the murder of Susan Berman. Let's hope these other families find their answers.
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It makes me wonder as well. I came across this GQ article that gives a little bit more info about Durst's life in Galveston & his cross-dressing. Apparently dressing like a woman wasn't something he did just as a disguise (like I think he'd like us to believe.)
I really wonder if there are some missing/dead male prostitutes in the different cities where Bob lived whose deaths/disappearances he's responsible for.
Now that was a scary article. You would think that the DA in Galveston would have investigated some of its contentions (eg. Durst's boasts about shooting people). But maybe they didn't think the reports of a transsexual prostitute were credible. Or maybe they just assumed they would win the Morris Black case and put Durst away for life, so why search for more possible victims. It does make one wonder.
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This show is one of the most chilling true crime stories I've ever seen. Durst is the consummate sociopath - a perverse combination of ordinary and evil. He acts so nonchalant even when he's admitting to lies that he almost appears honest! I suspect that the reason he sought out Andrew Jarecki to make this series was to have the thrill of manipulating people on an even larger scale than previously.
But being the compelling story that it is - it does leave a lot of unanswered questions. Vanity Fair Confidential on ID also recently covered Robert Durst. They provided more info about the history of domestic violence directed towards Kathie. And in the above article from the NY Times, Douglas Durst stated his belief that Robert killed 7 of his own Alaskan Malamutes as "practice" for killing Kathie. That would also explain how he did such an expert job chopping up Morris Black. It all makes me wonder what else has Robert Durst gotten away with?
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It boggles the mind to think that the theft of 2 computer monitors by a former judge could be in any way connected to the premeditated murder of 3 well-respected and well-loved people. I can almost see how a person might initially think that Eric Williams just lost it due to his conviction for the theft and the subsequent loss of his profession. But when you think more about it, the theft wasn't just an incredibly self-destructive and stupid thing to do - it was an indication of his narcissism and sense of entitlement. I guess all these crime shows emphasize a different angle and Dateline's isn't about examining the psychopathology involved - but I really wonder how he was functioning before the murders. Sure his resume looked impressive but what about his day to day dealings with people? It's chilling to think that a sociopath like Williams can have a thriving career in the field of law. This really was/is a sad story.
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I posted in the media thread too- Radar is reporting that Simon got primary custody of Sidney. Tamra will see her once a week for a few hours and every other weekend, if I remember correctly. I can't post links, it's on the site today.
Here's the link. I feel sorry for their therapist. http://radaronline.com/exclusives/2015/02/real-housewives-orange-county-tamra-judge-custody-ex-husband-simon-barney/
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Thank you Special K. I guess I have to stop multi-tasking while I "watch" this program. lol
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Why was Samantha sitting away from everyone else? When Alyssa introduced her she was sitting behind her. Then I started watching the reunion and I forgot all about her. It was odd. And I deleted the episode so I can't look back to see if I just imagined this. Plus it's not ready for on-line viewing yet. Anyone else notice that?
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I'm convinced that Tamra is a sociopath or has some other sort of severe mental illness going on.
I was a lurker at TWOP during the last few months before it folded. Glad to see so many familiar posters moved here.... That said, I remember an astute poster at TWOP thought Tamra had a borderline personality disorder. IMHO, whoever wrote that hit the nail on the head. Among the symptoms that people with BPD experience are: an intense fear of abandonment (like when her parents got divorced, and her father left her, when she was what - 25?); impulsive behaviors (including running away); extreme emotions; feelings of victimization; suicidal behaviors; manipulation of others; and splitting as a defense mechanism (AKA black-and-white thinking, eg. One day it's "You're good. She's bad." Next day it's "No, she's good and you're bad."). All of this naturally affects their inter-personal relationships. Now of course we're not in a "legitimate" position to diagnose Tamra, but BPD sure sound like her to me.
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I found Dubrow's "joke" about Kimber having to fake orgasms - like his own wife does - to be tacky and hostile. Way to put down both your wife and patient on national TV, Doc.
That said, how is the ability to become sexually aroused maintained after a sex change operation -especially for the transition to being a woman? I usually don't go in for graphic details about operations but I would have liked it if they had spoken more about that issue. And Dubrow's hostile remark made me wonder how these doctors view their SOs after cutting and sewing up woman all day? It's a strange line of work but I guess someone has to do it.
Also, the girl with the nose job definitely had issues beyond her nose. First of all, it was delusional for her to use her nose as an excuse for not having more friends. Plus, how did she go from acting a meek little wall flower in the beginning of the program to looking like she had been "rode hard and put away wet" at the end? Girl needs some serious help - psychiatric and style-wise.
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During Tamra's THs, I couldn't stop staring at her eyes, wondering what the heck she had done. Maybe its just how they look when she doesn't have several pounds of black goop around them. She looks like she's squinting while trying to read cue cards, or she's having a reaction to a medication or something.
OMG. I noticed that too. Her TH eyes completely freaked me out. It seems that she used a white eye-liner on the rims of her eyes. Who thought that would be an attractive look?
ETA: Pardon my redundancy. I guess I should have read all the posts first.
The Jinx: The Life And Deaths Of Robert Durst - General Discussion
in The Jinx: The Life And Deaths Of Robert Durst
http://www.ew.com/article/2015/06/23/jeanine-pirro-robert-durst-book
So Jeanine Pirro is writing a book. That's rich considering she was never directly involved in any of the actual investigative work (according to "A Deadly Secret' writer Matt Birkbeck), and she never brought charges against Durst when she was the D.A. in Westchester County (according to everybody). Well, Pirro certainly knows how to make the most of an opportunity to promote herself - have to give her credit for that.
Also, regarding the Facebook page "Robert Durst Murder Trial" - I had signed on to it but after checking it out a few times I signed myself out. There were people on it who said they were writing to Durst in prison! And whoever is running the page thought that posting a contact address for him made perfectly good sense. One woman said she sent him money! (I'm still wondering if she was just trolling the site.) A few mentioned "innocent until proven guilty" and pointed out Durst's likable traits. Not everyone on it felt that way but there was a weird fan page vibe to it that creeped me out.