by Andy Warhol
And it looks like I’m going to be painting in the ballroom for now because the basement where I was supposed to be put to paint is now filled up with prints and paintings. Good. I didn’t want to paint in a dark dump. But eventually we’ll have to use the ballroom for big lunches and parties.
Grabbed Benjamin and we ran uptown and I just threw a bag in and we went right over to the theater where the Muppets Take Manhattan was screening and Frank Oz who wrote and directed the movie—and he does the voice of Miss Piggy and another one, too—came over and said, “You won’t remember me, but I was one of your friends during the Filmmakers’ Coop days.” And he said he just loved the Philosophy book. He said he reads it all the time, he called it “gentle.”
Wednesday, July 11, 1984
Went around to stores promoting Interview, and now I ask to use the phone at places so I won’t have to pay the $.25 for phone-booth calls. And later in the afternoon Chris came to the office and (laughs) was doing the same thing.
Gee, I’m looking at MTV right now and they use my paintings in a lot in videos. I just saw my Liz Taylor and I’ve seen my Joseph Beuys in another one.
Tuesday, July 17, 1984
Decided to work until 7:00. Then cabbed to the Limelight ($3). And it was boring. Chris had T-shirts made up with his photographs on them and he gave a shirt to everybody, but me he told to go buy one. I couldn’t believe it. And I’m looking at these slobs he’s giving them to. It was air-conditioned and freezing there. One of Sidney Lumet’s daughters, either Amy or Jenny, sat next to me and she’s a spoiled Black Jewish Princess. But she’s sweet and I shouldn’t put her down, but oh God, she’s so dumb. She was being world-weary. She said, “I did everything when I was thirteen and now I don’t even go out anymore,” those kinds of things. But I guess she’s likable, she tries hard. She said how when she was younger she used to hate her grandmother, Lena Horne, but now she adores her.
Wednesday, July 18, 1984
Si Newhouse is coming down to lunch. He called and said he wanted to talk about Interview. But I invited him to 860, not the new building, so he wouldn’t see it was grand in case he was wanting to buy it. I’ll try to sell him art instead. But you know how these things always turn out—he’ll probably say he wanted to ask me what kind of ink Interview uses! He owns Vogue and Vanity Fair and 1,000 newspapers, but he’ll be asking me where do we buy our pencils or something.
The Democratic Convention is too boring. I sat next to Jesse Jackson at a Time magazine dinner, and he was too serious. He was “above” all of us.
Thursday, July 19, 1984
Si Newhouse came to lunch at 860 which we’re almost moved out of so there’s nothing there, and he offered to buy Interview. But after I was thinking about it, I think they just want to buy it to get rid of the competition. I don’t know how much he would offer. Nobody was around. Fred was in L.A. and Vincent was at lunch so I didn’t want to hear any offer. He’s coming to lunch again and Fred will be there. I showed him old art and new art and he’s interested in a Natalie. He said to stretch it for him.
Friday, July 20, 1984—New York—Aspen, Colorado
I was picked up by Benjamin really early. Flew directly to Aspen for the celebrity auction. Marty Raynes paid for the trip. Richard Weisman was involved. Howard Cosell did the auction. They sold a $400,000 apartment. And then they sold four portraits by me so I raised $160,000 for cerebral palsy.
Saturday, July 21, 1984—Aspen
Got congratulated on raising $160,000 worth of art for them. John Forsythe told me he bid on a portrait but dropped out at $25,000. Now would be such a good time to really go after the Hollywood crowd, because now they see that the portraits at this auction went for $40,000, so they would know that $25,000 was a bargain. If we only had somebody in L.A. to follow up on this. Bob Colacello would have been so good at this.
Jack Nicholson was there all weekend, we saw him everywhere. He’s fat now. Jack Scalia gave me his phone number for Italian dinner at his house in L.A.
Afterwards I told Dionne Warwick that I met her twenty years ago at a Brooklyn Fox rock and roll show and she remembered and I’m not surprised because it was so odd—I was with Isabel Eberstadt who was doing an article for maybe Vogue and she was talking to Dionne in her breathy society voice like Jackie’s.
Andy, 1981. (photo Ralph Lewin copyright ©1989)
Then-best friends Truman Capote and Lee Radziwill in 1974. (photo Peter Beard)
Sisters Lee Radziwill and Jacqueline Onassis.Lee rented the house from Andy in the early seventies (photo Peter Beard)
Mr.Winters,the caretaker.(photo Anty Warhol)
Caroline Kennedy and photographer Peter Beard. (photo Andy Warhol)
Halston in the kitchen. (photo Andy Warhol)
Steve Aronson and his Newfoundland, Magnus, on the beach atMontauk in 1974. (photo Peter Beard)
Top: Lunch on the back lawn with Bianca Jagger and neighbor Dick Cavett. (photo Peter Beard)
Bottom Right: Liz Taylor in 1976 in the kitchen of the main house. Susan Johnson stands behind her. (photo Tom Cashin)
Billy Boy in London, 1986. (photo Andy Warhol)
In Germany on the set of Querelle with director Fassbinder and star Brad Davis in March 1982.(photo Christopher Makos)
Fred Hughes lounging in a European hotel room. (photo Andy Warhol)
In Berlin with artists Robert Rauschenberg and Joseph Beuys in March 1982. (photo Christopher Makos)
Gloria and Johannes von Thurn und Taxis in London, July 1986.
Visiting the Great Wall of China in 1982. (photo Christopher Ma/cos)
Fred Hughes, Jed Johnson, and Andy pass time in Kuwait.
With friends in Kuwait, in 1976.
(photo Andy Warhol)
Sylvester Stallone studying the Polaroid photos Andy had just taken of him. (photo Andy Warhol)
Farrah Fawcettat 860 Broadway, posing fora Polaroid photo that Andy will use in making her portrait.
Jerry Hall posing for her portrait Polaroid, (photo Andy Warhol)
With New York Met Tom Seaver in July 1977. (photo Christopher Makos)
Liza Minnelli posing for his portrait Polaroid, 1978.(photo Andy Warhol)
Top Right: Tinkerbelle and Divine. (photo Andy Warhol)
Top Left: Robin Williams thrift-store shopping in the Village April 17,1979.(photo Andy Warhol)
Middle: Jon Gould, Philip Johnson,and David Whitnry.(photo Andy Warhol)
Bottom Right: Truman Capote near his apartment in U.N.Plaza, summer,1978.(photo Andy Warhol)
Bottom Left: Bruce Springsteen, August 21, 1978.(photo Andy Warhol)
Bob Colacello and Nancy Reagan. (official White House photo)
Top: Fred Hughes and Jerry Hall,(photo Andy Warhol)
Middle: With Christopher Makos in 1982
Bottom: With one of the Dupont twins and Cornelia Guest.
Top: On Fifth Avenue with Fred Hughes and Yoyo and Bruno Bischofberger.
Bottom Right: With Jodie Foster.(photo Christopher Makos)
Getting weightlifting instructions from his trainer, Lidija. (photo Christopher Makos)
On a snowmobile with Jon Gould in Colorado on January 1,1983. (photo Mark Sink)
Top Right: Jean Michel Basquiat going into a show of his paintings at the Mary Boone Gallery. (photo Andy Warhol)
Bottom Left: Jean Michel Basquiat’s portraits of himself and Andy, done in October 1982. (photo Andy Warhol)
Artist Francesco Clemente, (photo Andy Warhol)
Peter Martins, January 1987. (photo Andy Warhol)
Two of the “Kids at the office,"Wilfredo Rosado(left), a fashion editor at Interview, and Sam Boldon (right).(photo Andy Warhol)
With Kenny Scharf and Keith Haring. (photo Patrick McMullan) Keith Haring art (in background), (photo Andy Warhol)
Tama Janowitz and Ronnie Cutrone in matching Stephen Sprouse jackets at an art opening in 1985. (photo Benjamin Liu)
Top Right: Steven Greenberg and Tama Janowitz in 1986. (phot
o Andy Warhol)
Bottom Left: Designer Stephen Sprouse at the 33rd Street offices, (photo Andy Warhol)
With model/actress Paulina Porizkova, Rie Ocasek, and Vincent Fremont, July 18,1986. (photo Pot Hockett)
Record producer Jellybean and Madonna. (photo Andy Worhol)
Alba Clemente with Julian Schnabel (photo Andy Warhol)
At a manicuring installation at Area in August 1985. (photo Patrick McMullan)
With Federico Fellini, March 26,1986. (phofo Patrick McMullan)
Liberace and John Sex at Andy’s 33rd Street off ices, December 6,1984 (photo Andy Warhol)
Debbie Harry wearing Stephen Sprouse, summer 1986. (photo Andy Warhol)
Yoko Ono, Sean Lennon, and Sam Havadtoy. (photo Andy Warhol)
Kate Harrington, Jane Sarkin, Don Munroe, Glen Albin, and Marc Balet at Kate’s birthday party in 1985. (photo Pat Hackett)
With Pat Hackett in 1986 at the Hard Rock Café. (photo Sam Bolton)
Paige Powell and Jean Michel Basquiat in Hawaii in February, 1984. (photo by Janine Basquiat)
Paige Powell styled for an appearance in the movie of the novel Slaves of New York. (photo Tama Janowitz)
With Miles Davis, February 17,1987. (photo Christopher Makos)
With Grace Jones at the wedding of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver, April 26,1986. In the background is a statue of Arnold—a wedding gift from Kurt Waldheim. (photo Peter Wise)
Stuart Pivar. (photo Andy Warhol)
In 1985 with Brigid Berlin’s dog Fortune in the first-floor office area of the former Con Edison building that Andy bought and moved into at the end of 1984. (photo Paige Powell)
Viva, Marisol, Sylvia Miles, and Géraldine Smith at a lunch following the memorial service for Andy at St. Patrick’s on Aprili, 1987. (photo Patrick McMullan)
Andy, 1986. (photo Patrick McMullan)
Sunday, July 22, 1984—Aspen—New York
Benjamin showed me that his seat on the plane converted into a toilet—if you had to go to the bathroom, you would have to ask him to get up and then a curtain would come around you. So that scared me into not drinking anything on the flight—you would’ve had to say, “Excuse me, but I would like to use your seat for a toilet.” But Vitas had about six sodas and still he didn’t have to use it.
So anyway, this small plane had to add fuel in Denver because a load big enough to get us to New York would’ve been too heavy to get us over the mountains, it’s a regulation. And then we stopped in Pittsburgh for a minute (candy $3). There were six seats plus the toilet seat that Benjamin sat on. Got to New York.
Monday, July 23, 1984
Cabbed to meet Lidija ($6.50). And all the gym equipment had been moved out over the weekend so we just had the bare essentials left at 860. I packed some boxes and that tires me more than anything, more than doing ten paintings. Because it’s emotional.
The big news came about Robert Hayes and I didn’t want to think about it. The kids at Interview were all upset. Fred says we have to do a page on him, but I just don’t know if that’s a good idea. But Fred says we have to.
Walked over to Private Eyes and started talking to John-John Kennedy and he’s so big and handsome now. Then this kid started taking pictures and John-John said it would be okay if it wasn’t too obvious, but then it was obvious, so John-John walked away. So many pretty people. Timothy Hutton came in and that was so exciting, and Antony Radziwill. It was a party for the Cars.
Tuesday, July 24, 1984
Got woken up by Jean Michel talking about his girlfriend things. She has an infection in her tubes. This is the tall tall blonde, Ann. He’s working his way up. He started with short girls and he’s getting more confidence and now he’s with tall blondes that are just average-looking, but he’ll go on to the Swedish beauties, I just bet. Then he’ll have a white baby with one and then dump her for a black girl, right?
Went down to meet Grace Jones at the office and we waited for three hours. Benjamin went out and made calls and finally tracked her down at Bergdorf’s getting a fur coat out of the Revillon cooler. She spends all her money on fur coats. She says it’s all she cares about, that she doesn’t care about money, just furs. I told her it’s crazy, that you can’t resell them or anything, and that she should buy jewelry, but she just loves furs. It’s that insane. She buys them and stores them all in the cooler. I was taking pictures of Grace for Vogue, and we were interviewing her for the cover of Interview. But anyway, she was really late, and we were putting her down for hours and then suddenly she appeared and it was all, “Oh darling!” So that would be funny to have all the put-downs in the interview and then show when it all changed when she walked in (Benjamin’s phone calls $5).
Andre Leon Talley asked Grace if she thought she was white and she said yes. He’s just lowkey and good. Sent out for champagne, but then we didn’t have ice. Everything’s gone from the office.
Wednesday, July 25, 1984
Walked around a little and then cabbed to meet Fred on Spring Street and Sixth Avenue to sign prints for the building I did (cab $8). And the woman who owns the place is 5’ X 5’. And she was so grand. I kept asking her how much the building cost and she said, oh well she just couldn’t remember, you know, so offhand, and I mean, this is a person who would know to the penny in one second how much she paid for every floorboard. And it was a glamorous reception room and I was jealous of the setup, so neat and orderly, and she’s been printing Norman Rockwell for years.
Then Fred said may we have our check, please, and they didn’t even have it. And then the 5’ X 5’ lady had an extra print there and she said, “Oh it would be so sweet of you to sign it to me,” and I just said no. And then later I took it all out on Fred. I mean she was so grand, the fat slob, and they didn’t even have our check.
But I’m sure they do make up a lot of extras, these things are always showing up in Macy’s or somewhere. Prints are so easy to fake. And I mean, museum posters? Forget it! Anybody can do a poster from this or that show at this or that museum. I mean, I see my Brooklyn Bridge print being sold everywhere and where’s our part of that money?
And Fred, since he stopped drinking, his grandness is appearing again, and it’s kind of scary. It only used to appear when he was drinking and now it’s there without drinking. He’s going to Linda Li. And he doesn’t know if she really believes this stuff or if she’s just out to make a hundred bucks. I guess she jangled up his nerves. He said he just wanted to see what I was into now.
Thursday, July 26, 1984
Cabbed to meet Lidija ($6). Worked out and then packed boxes, tried to, all afternoon at 860. I’m just going to try to stay on there as long as possible until they kick us out because I love it now with the whole place empty and it’s so sunny up front and I hate to leave Union Square Park—I’ll miss the trees. As long as I have a phone, that’s all I need.
Saturday, July 28, 1984
Went to Soho to go to Robert Mapplethorpe’s shooting session of Grace Jones for Interview that Keith Haring was doing special makeup for (cab $6). Stopped at Central Falls for lunch because they advertise, they were thrilled to have us (lunch $40). Then wandered around Soho, knowing that Grace would be good and late. Signed autographs. Called Keith and he said to come in forty minutes. So to kill time we went over to Avenue D and 2nd Street where Keith had done a thing called “Candy Store”—he painted a brownstone with a storefront red and green and blue and purple and inside the kids sell drugs. Like heroin. Keith said he wanted to be around “hot kids.”
Went to Mapplethorpe’s on Bond Street. Keith did Grace’s makeup and Mapplethorpe shot her and we were there for three hours. Then went home to watch the opening of the Olympics on TV and it was thrilling, then (cab $3) to Grace’s dinner that she was giving at Holbrook’s.
David Keith was there. He’s sublet Jon’s old apartment on 76th Street when Jon bought that one-bedroom apartment in the Hotel des Artistes. David Keith’s career was so hot for a few minutes there. That’s when Jo
n met him, from Officer and a Gentleman. He’d gotten there on time at 9:00—he didn’t know the Grace Jones Story. So we explained to him that two hours late usually timed it right for Grace, but still she got there half an hour after we did. And Grace’s mother was there. She was just a normal mother.
David left and came back with Twiggy. Grace insisted on waiting until he got back, which was 2:30 A.M., and then we went down to Private Eyes.
Sunday, July 29, 1984
I took all my old bread to the park and tried to give it to the birds but they didn’t come around and I just hated them for that. Went to church. Then was picked up by Jon, he had a car, and we went out to the Brants’ big spread in Greenwich. Jed decorated the house and everything, and it was my first time seeing it. Rolling hills and white columns. It’s impressive. Peter’s so into polo and horses, still. It was a lot of polo players at the place. I was underdressed because Sandy told me it would be all right to just come like that, and then I felt crummy, especially when I saw Jed was there. Fred came with Averil and her husband, and it was his birthday. I saw a couch that was a copy of the one that I have on my first floor, and they’d had it done for $2,000, and I told them that they could get one that was the real thing from the Roosevelt estate for $85,000. They have one of my paintings in every room. And Peter had paid I think $500,000 for a new Jasper Johns that didn’t look like a Johns, it’s his new stuff, it looks like an illustration.