James PATTERSON ; | “Why?” she asked when she got to speak to Carter directly. “He’s sensitive about the young women. And we still get to | run most of the piece.” ; In her notebook, Ward wrote down the rest of what Carter 4 had said: “I believe him,” he told her. “I'm Canadian.” ££ But the piece that came out, in the March issue, still createda 4 sensation. It was called “The Talented Mr. Epstein” ina sly refer- q ence to Patricia Highsmith’s celebrated suspense novel The Tal- a be ented Mr. Ripley. The film adaptation, by Anthony Minghella, was q 4 still fresh in the minds of Vanity Fair’s readers. For Graydon a a Carter, just posing the question Is Epstein some sort of scam artist, ¥ q like Ripley? had been question enough. And throughout the a aq piece, there were ironies readers wouldn't miss as they drew a 3 Todd Meister: June 20: their own conclusions about Epstein’s life story. It came through 4 clearly in the frst line of the last paragraph of Ward's 7,500-word . z) story: “Many people comment there is something innocent, a | q arty Cipriani, on . almost childlike about Jeffrey Epstein.” i H«= the restaura In context, the word innocent was rather ironic—so much so 4 post of Harry’s Bar that it almost became its own opposite. i | outpost in Venice. Locate Z q its a theme restaurant—t ; 4 hedge-fund manager name q | wealthy man—Jeffrey Ep FE iF father, Epstein’s sometime 3 a “Tve known Jeffrey sir q > let me tell you what I kr a | everybody else says. First 4 q and here’s why —he has n F - that for him.” 4 j Meister knows how to it : ite Son of a superrich fathe 152 4 q HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_010495