Living in a Fish-eye Lens

Living in a Fish-eye Lens

Last week, Lloyd Grove's "Lowdown" column in the Daily News reported New York Press' rumored intention to publish Douglas Dechert's gossipy account of his experience as literary kingmaker for a young woman with whom he had a sexual relationship. No surprise that Grove (New York Press' #20 Most Loathsome New Yorker, 2004) used this to pit Dechert—a regular New York Post Page Six contributor—against his fellow Page Six hack, Ian Spiegelman (New York Press' "Best Media Whore Over the Age of 25," Best of Manhattan, 2003). Grove suggested that Spiegelman played a major role in the article and would be described as an "amorously intentioned midget." (Neither was true.)

This sent Spiegelman into a sputtering rage. He fired off a nasty email to Dechert, who in turn sent the email to the Post's higher-ups. Spiegelman was fired from Page Six.

Having been on the receiving end of Spiegelman's wrath ourselves, we can only urge him to take another drink—and a deep breath—before hitting "SEND" the next time a fight breaks out. Emails last forever, and they're funniest when full of vaporous hate.

An excerpt from his response to being named in our 2003 Best of Manhattan issue:

You rank amateurs. I should use Page Six as a venue against you. But the next time you're mentioned in this column is when your impotent little rag folds, which, judging by the desperate tone of your latest issue, will be mighty soon, and see how much fun I make your lives when you're out looking for work.

I could kick the living shit out of both of you at the same time and you fucking know it, faggots. But I'm going to do it one at a time, so I can enjoy it more. Wait for it, you little girls.

Ian Spiegelman, Queens

See? That's funny.

Samhain: uncut

David Berkowitz must have hired himself a new publicist. He's been everywhere these past few weeks, clearly in a push to mark this summer's 27th anniversary of the Son of Sam murders. Earlier this month he launched a new website, and last Thursday it was reported that he'd just released his first spoken word album.

The recording ($9 CD/$7 cassette) features an interview with Berkowitz in which he discusses his life, his jailhouse conversion and his continuing work for the Lord. He also talks about how much he regrets shooting those people.

In an interesting twist, the album is being released by a Colorado-based Christian group called Focus on the Family, an outfit that is no stranger to cheap publicity and profiting off serial murder. In 1989, the group, founded by Dr. James Dobson, also created and marketed a videotaped execution-eve interview with Ted Bundy, in which he blamed all of his evil deeds on the demonic power of pornography.

The Bundy tape was amusing, but we're gonna take a pass on the new Berkowitz album. We've heard him talk, and man, is he boring.