William Gaddis - J R

— It’s this man at the door he…

— If it’s that soldier boy give him a copy of that feature on Frigicom you’ll want to give that a onceover before it goes out Beamish oh and Virginia that memo from the Boss I told you to run through the typewriter better give him two copies and give one to Beamish here where is it.

— I just started it Mister Davidoff but this man at the door has this big package for Mister Bast he says it’s this golf practice set which…

— See what I mean Beamish the piano’s one thing but setting up a golf course in the middle of Virginia just give him the headquarters office address uptown let them lay it out up there it’s where Mister Bast spends most of his time, the Boss has him all tied up on this foundation music grant project why he wants me here on deck for these brush fires the shape he’s in I don’t think Mister Bast can handle them, I showed him this big Alsaka Development story and he just drew a blank standing here like that hearing aid was tuned in on outer space looks like he’s lost twenty pounds squaring up this music project before he leaves tomorrow for Virginia call Piscator see if he’s got the all clear on this company logo, the Boss wants it painted on the tail of the company plane before Mister Bast flies out to that Wonder funeral tomorrow may have told you Beamish, he’s stopping off there on the way to this Indian pageant we’ve worked up to wait if you’ve got Piscator on the phone I’d better, who?

— It’s…

— If it’s Mister Ten-forty tell him to get up here before we lose Mooneyham, may want to get in on this yourself Brisboy our personnel man’s coming in to put the division heads over there through their paces some kind of decision making session the Boss had him work up who is it Virginia?

— It’s the hotel manager’s office they’re calling Mister Bast…

— Tell them we expect him any minute he, here give me that, hello…? No this is Mister Davidoff what… Not to Mister Bast no you’re billing this suite to Pomerance Associates and we’re billing the client that’s all you… what? What do you mean General Haight’s suite you’re not billing that to us or to J R Corp either no he… he’s on the board of directors yes but when we took this suite over and moved him up the hall your PR boys took him on as a guest of the hotel for the mileage you could get out of having a retired three star… Three no three moved up a grade on retirement he… I didn’t tell your PR boys he was in charge of commissaries over there because they didn’t ask me now what… No I don’t know how long he’s going to stay here no but before you pull that you’d better tie up your… yes goodbye somebody at the door there Virginia did you get out that file for Mister Brisboy here?

— Excuse me Mister Davidoff before we go further, this is not Mister Brisboy but Mister Duncan, and I believe he…

— Duncan?

— Mister Duncan, yes. In connection with the Triangle Products acquisition I believe Mister Duncan had been led to understand his firm was an object of interest to the parent company in light of its indebtedness to Triangle, however…

— Don’t worry about it Mister Duncan, Beamish here gets his signals crossed sometimes but everything’s under Virginia get Skinner out of the bedroom, show you the dummy he’s laying out in there Duncan you’ll get a real look at who’s at the door…

— Some man that says he plays the bass flute with a little mustache he…

— One thing we really need right now tell him to try the grand ballroom and tell Skinner to bring out that woman really topflight track record in curriculum management Duncan one look at what she’s got spread out in there and you’ll see what that big story we got in Monday’s Times was all about somebody on the phone?

— Mister Davidoff before we go further, I believe some confusion has occurred between this Mister Duncan’s firm, with its reputation as a leading producer of wallpaper…

— Wallpaper like his dry humor don’t you Duncan oh Virginia if it’s those two Indian boys calling tell them to stay right where they are send somebody right out to get them, lose them now and the Boss will really who is it…

— It’s some magazine they…

— Tell them I’m in a meeting and get Skinner out here with wait give it to me, hello…? No he’s not who… statement he gave you on the phone what statement he… Wait you called him where last night he’s been out of town since… Mister Bast isn’t here either no he works out of uptown operations headquarters we’re just camped out here handling their corporate PR till the lease is signed on that building at Madison and… because right now I’m probably closer to this acquisition picture than Mister Bast is that’s why, got the lawyer who set up the Triangle deal sitting right in front of me now what… Well who said Mister Bast wasn’t still executive officer of the parent company trouble with you press boys listen to each other’s rumors instead of… what? Because he’s been busy on this foundation grant don’t even read the releases we send you Virginia get a copy of the press release on this J R Foundation grant to encourage symphonic… what? Well what did you call about then… Rumor that’s what I just said about you boys listening to… point eight million this year who wouldn’t grab the tax loss but there’s no plan to liquidate no, the magazine’s being acquired to round out this whole vertical integration picture wood pulp source through paper manufacture with the Triangle deal into this field growing faster than defense getting the publishing end under one roof and any sales of Her magazine’s fixed assets are leasebacks or duplication with the Duncan facilities got Duncan himself right here in front of me taking over his whole line, prestige backlist new titles in the trade end pulling together a children’s encyclopedia expanding the whole textbook operation and this revamped women’s mag laying out the new dummy right now a whole new concept in… changing the title to She yes that’s all I can tell you a whole new concept in… saw that too yes if Time magazine thinks we’re going to lose our shirt on it they… Because those boys still think à la nineteenth century just ask them how much it costs them to get one subscription one new subscription just one new sub… what? Who said anything about paper clothes… no we’ve got the division head from Eagle Mills here I’ll check it out call us later Virginia? Get Mister Hopper over there out of that melon long enough to see if he’s getting into paper clothes heard anything on that one Beamish?

— No but I believe…

— Don’t blame you believe anything I hear myself about paper the way they’re stripping those power company rights of way and mining claims right down through Virginia I told you to get Skinner out here with those figures the Boss wants on paper consumption rising triple the rate of the GNP for Mister Bast’s talk to the security analyst boys, has us bring in a top drawer speech writer on it and then reads them these statements over the phone must be where this Business Week interview came from, Triangle Products acquired for an undisclosed price rumor places substantially below book value refers to him as shrewd downstate interests when it was Beamish here who got the nut down to four million five put Piscator’s nose a little out of joint thinks maybe you’re trying to crowd him out…

— I? Good heavens I hardly…

— Probably where the Boss got the idea you were putting something over on him listing this Her magazine’s two hundred odd thousand account receivable as a Triangle asset with point eight million in operating losses already this year so he’s knocked it off your four million five, three million of that covered by the Eagle pension plan sale back to the employees and X–L selling at twenty-nine with its own paper source handing over fifty thousand shares of X–L common market value over a million four gives you a little margin over this million three balance wants your approval on these figures for the press.