A friend told me she is putting together her summer reading for her two week vacation in Maine in August and she just ordered my husband, Tony Scaduto's biography of Bob Dylan on Kindle. Tony published that book just before we started living together back in the early 70's. It was the first biography of Dylan and many still consider it the best. Full disclosure: I like Dylan, but have never been a huge fan and I've never been one to read non-fiction, least of all biographies. However, I loved Tony's book because it fully captured the music, the politics, and the feelings of the 60's era. For me, his book really evoked the emotional upheaval we all had just lived through and experienced - a fantastic accomplishment for a writer.
One of the iconic figures of that time, Suze Rotolo, died recently. She is remembered as the girlfriend on Bob Dylan's arm on the album cover of "Freewheelin' Bob Dylan" and although Tony was never able to talk to Suze when he was writing his book, many years later we became friends. Suze was a great beauty, a very principled person and a wonderful artist. She and her husband Enzo were warm and generous hosts - and we shared many delicious meals, good wine and stimulating conversations. As she requested, her memorial, held a couple of weeks ago, was a wonderful party with music, her favorite foods prepared by her son Luca and a gorgeous slide show of images put together by Enzo - a beautiful celebration.
On May 5 we went to a reading and book launch for Heywood Gould - author and screenwriter of Cocktail,
Double Bang, Fort Apache the Bronx, etc. I haven't read his new book yet - The Serial Killer's Daughter - but I really loved the last one - Leading Lady. Lots of old friends - from Woody's NY Post days, his bar tending days and his TV and movie days - reminisced at the dinner afterward. They regaled each other with drinking stories and journalism tales: big stories covered and how they ended up at the NY Post in the first place. They had all started as copy boys and then worked their way through the ranks as police reporter and then feature writers. Invariably there was mention of friends & colleagues who have passed away: Vic Ziegel and a then last week, Leonard Katz.Lenny Katz had been in rehab recovering from a fall that resulted in a broken hip. He and Tony talk
ed weekly and Lenny was always upbeat and optimistic - a real fighter. What a shock that he succumbed to what turned out to be lots of complications. Tony and I saw him last October when we were in Florida for a family wedding. We had a rather forgettable lunch at a Chinese restaurant in a West Palm Beach mall but Lenny was funny and sharp and extended his usual gracious invitation for us to visit with him and his lovely wife, Marilyn. He and Tony sat on a bench outside the restaurant, smoking their cigarettes and chatting before we headed back to our hotel. Two tough old guys having their moment. It was sweet and now, a touching last memory of Leonard Katz, author of a biography of Frank Costello, journalist and terrific police reporter.
