William Gaddis - J R

— Tell you why Bast this partner of mine in our picture project here sits on their board’s got some interests out there he’d like to round off, matter of fact I think he’d be ready to give you people everything you sank into those two ventures and maybe a dollar or two more and I’d recommend you take it. Might help ease this cash flow problem you’ve been up against since the day you walked in here if I’m not mistaken.

— Yes that’s certainly the…

— Of course this Ray-X acquisition looks like a good candidate for some of these big government cost-plus contracts your associate there is beginning to press hard for, problem with their R and D in a shambles though whether they can come up with the product and I’d be cautious about overextending too soon. This three million in undistributed dividends you picked up in that brewery deal and recovering most of your purchase price in the pension fund’s sale of the stock back to the employees has generated enough cash for things like this move into Nobili Pharmaceuticals I don’t mean that of course, talk around the street the only reason you people went after it was its use as a Panama tax haven and transshipping point once this J R Shipping Corp is operative, smart move but right now about all that’s carrying Nobili’s its far east market isn’t it. All this patent litigation in the wings if the VA pulls out on these contracts for ethicals it may just be a question whether they can move into proprietaries fast enough with this crash program in headaches, still having that green problem are they?

— The, the green what? I…

— Wasn’t clear yes ljust meant this trouble their chemists are having with some new aspirin keeps coming out bright green, solve that maybe you can hold things together long enough to tie things in with this insurance scheme for employees your associate here’s just come up with if he can get a favorable decision on it may not be easy, SEC can be pretty sticky when they think you’re just looking for a cash pool and you know what a stickler he can be for the letter of the law. Expansion program’s one thing but when he starts talking in terms of Disney and Kraft and Champion Homebuilders it may be time to stop and regroup, wouldn’t you agree? And this hedging he’s started recently in commodities futures, it can be a little risky played that close to the margin and this may be a good time to stop and pick up some of your winnings, snap up this offer on these power company sites mining claims and the rest of it may not be there next time you look and I should tell you Bast, this man Stamper’s not one who plays to play, he plays to win.

— Yes well that’s what my…

— And I wouldn’t bother to bring Piscator in on it at all just send me the papers and I’ll clear up the details, he’d just try to complicate things. In fact Bast as far as your corporate legal work goes if you people follow up on this Triangle deal I’d take this man Beamish right along with the package, that arrangement he just worked out on the phone there sounds like he’s got a head on his shoulders and he sounds like the right sort you know, man you can deal with because I’ll be frank to tell you Bast I don’t like the way this Piscator seems to be trying to nose you out with your associate there.

— Yes but you see I’d really be very relieved if he…

— I know what you mean but he’s not the type to sit back, take the way he brought this Pomerance outfit in by the back door and brown nosing your associate there on this little nursing homes merger, probably never given you the details on that either has he.

— No but you see Mister Crawley the whole…

— Always says he can’t get in touch with you or makes some excuse though I must say Bast it’s high time you people did something about that midtown office of yours, I called there to ask if there’s anything to this rumor about General Haight joining your organization and your secretary Virginia put me on with a Mister Slomin who wanted to take my bet on the Superbowl game.

— Yes well I think she…

— And that new uptown number Piscator just gave me girl answered and told me to fuck off give you some idea of the kind of numbers in his little black book eh? You might think some more about that suggestion I made to your associate there some time ago, told me you said you were having a little space problem and I told him to think about taking a decent hotel suite while you’re getting this expansion program organized and working out your permanent requirements, use it for meetings that sort of thing.

— Yes well when he called last night he…

— Think I suggested the Waldorf didn’t I?

— Yes well in fact that’s what he suggested last night and I went there this morning, the suite I’ve taken even has a piano in it not a Steinway or anything like that but a small grand I can use when I…

— Glad to hear that Bast yes I know he’s as concerned about your music as I am, really thinks a lot of you you know. Why just from this option arrangement he’s trying to work out for you so taxes won’t catch you on the spread between it and the market price on your new issue see how much he thinks of you as a business colleague, but I think he’s just as concerned about you getting time for your music as I am.

— Well yes he’s, in fact last night he told me he’s setting up this here ah, setting up an arts foundation that could give me a grant to finish the cantata I’m working on as soon as…

— Yes as soon as this little project’s wrapped up eh? Let’s get back to it here yes, everything else cleared up isn’t it?

— Yes I just wanted to ask you about my aunts’ account, if…

— Just reach over and push that will you? black button there…? Shirley? Bring in the Misses’ Bast statement and I told you to bring in my checkbook, I’d be careful on this foundation business Bast, tightened up the laws on these individual grants three or four years ago and you could run into some trouble, there just hand me that phone will you…? Hello? No no can’t waste the… just tell him I’ve got someone with me yes and bring in my checkbook, hang this up will you? Man who just called there incidentally just walked out of a big spot in corporate PR to join that Pomerance outfit Bast, might get him put on your account in fact so if you run into any problems there you can let me know, thoroughly offensive little man of course just needs to be reminded who’s buttering his bread sometimes yes come in Shirley, might take a look over there and make sure these electrodes are plugged in while you’re here. Yes here you are Bast, statement up through the twenty-eighth.

— Oh. Is, where it says security position is…

— See where we sold their telephone company right here yes, and then this Nobili you people have been buying into, got them a block here at thirty-one, averaged down with another block here when it dropped to twenty-three and got them out at sixteen, gives them a nice little tax loss.

— Oh.

— Yes and here, another nice tax loss in Ampex haven’t we, averaged down at twenty yes and again at fourteen, the rate management was handing out false figures to the analysts there was enough to make your hair curl, able to get them out at six though before it hit bottom.

— Oh what was, bottom…

— Selling at around five yes and it may be one of the better bargains right now if you think your aunts would…

— No but, but what’s this one, FAS…

— Famous Artists yes, correspondence courses in the arts photography that sort of thing, thought they might find it a bit more congenial than these humdrum industrials.

— Oh. Is it a tax loss too?

— No matter of fact they may enjoy a complete write-off with this one Bast, can’t promise anything quite yet of course, went through bankruptcy and we’ll have to see how their reorganization program works out, yes now let’s get on to the…