Page 6 The Talented Mr. Epstein; Lately, Jeffrey Epstein's high-ying style has been drawing oohs and aahs: the bachelor nancier lives in New York's largest private residence, claims to take only billionaires as clients, and ies celebrities including Bill Clinton and Kevin Spacey on his Boeing 727. But pierce his air of mystery and the picture changes. VICKY WARD explores Epstein's investment career, his ties to retail magnate Leslie Wexner, and his complicated past Vanity Fair March 2003 people freely. According to him, the flat fees he receives from his clients, combined with his skill at playing the currency markets "with very large sums of money," have afforded him the lifestyle he enjoys today. Why do billionaires choose him as their trustee? Because the problems of the mega-rich, he tells people, are different from yours and mine, and his unique philosophy is central to understanding those problems: 'Very few people need any more money when they have a billion dollars. The key is not to have it do harm more than anything else... You don't want to lose your money." He has likened his job to that of an architect-more specifically, one who specializes in remodeling: "I always describe (a billionaire) as someone who started out in a small home and as he became wealthier had add-ons. He added on another addition, he built a room over the garage ... until you have a house that is usually a mess... It's a large house that has been put together over time where no one could foretell the financial future and their accompanying needs." He makes it sound as though his job combines the roles of real-estate agent, accountant, lawyer, money manager, trustee, and confidant. But, as with Jay Gatsby, myths and rumor swirl around Epstein. Here are some of the hard facts about Epstein-ones that he doesn't mind people knowing: He grew up middle-class in Brooklyn. His father worked for the city's parks department. His parents viewed education as "the way ou