If being vice president of product development at Tiffany’s isn’t enough, why not help yourself to a little bit more to be sure? That’s just what Georgetown University graduate Ingrid Lederhaas-Okun did after 22 years with the company. Married to a hedge fund manager named Robert Okun, this sociable sort was used to Manhattan galas and weekends in Darien, Connecticut but decided she’d also help herself to $2 million of her employer’s property. Of the 164 items that have never been returned, in July 2013 she commented: “I knew it was illegal to steal, and I did so regardless… I’m very sorry”.
Tag: New York
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Cory Monteith (1982 – 2013)
This Canadian actor and musician’s life was short but he packed plenty into it. A star of Fox’s Glee, Monteith appeared in 17 different films and attended 16 different schools. Tragically this substance addict was found dead in The Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel in Vancouver in July 2013. A talent lost. -

Chronicling a Masterpiece
A portrait of Albert Vickers by John Singer Sargent
Vickers is undoubtedly one of the best known names in British engineering and it is indeed sad that their final remaining plant will close at the end of this year following the company having been absorbed into BAE Systems.
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Marshalling a sentence
Brooke Astor’s 89-year old son should be jailed
Anthony “Tony” Marshall, 89, is due in court in Manhattan today, Thursday 20th June, to hear whether he’ll be sent to prison. If jailed, he will be not only be one of the wealthiest prisoners but also the fourth oldest inmate in New York State’s prison system.
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Nik Thakkar: “What’s on your mantelpiece?”
The Steeple Times asks fashion creative, writer and television host Nik Thakkar: “What’s on your mantelpiece?”
The Steeple Times shares “wit and wisdom”. What’s your guiding force?
I fear there isn’t time to accomplish the things I must.
“Don’t get even, get medieval” is, in our humble opinion, a great motto. What’s yours?
I am my past all played at once. Be present in every action, it dictates the man you become.
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Ryan Lochte (nicknames 'Reezy' and 'The Lochtenator')
This American competitive swimmer has won 11 Olympic medals, been challenged to a swimming race by Prince Harry in Las Vegas and featured in a Funny or Die spoof with Sir Patrick Stewart and Simon Pegg. Known for his diamond-encrusted smile, Lochte trademarked the catchphrase “Jeah” in 2012 and of its meaning explained: “It means everything, like, happy. Like if you have a good swim, you say, ‘Jeah!’ It’s good. So I guess it means, ‘good’”. Aside from sport, fashion and acting are his passions. He appeared in the teen drama 90210 in 2012 and of his future plans, commented: “When I hang up the Speedo, then, I’ll put the focus on the design”. -

New York’s real estate power brokers: Part I
Oliver Estreich’s New York real estate power brokers
In the first of a series, Oliver Estreich profiles New York’s top realtors. He begins with Joan Swift, James C. Cox Jr. and Emily and Elizabeth Beare.
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Jean Barker, Baroness Trumpington DCVO, PC
“If you want news, listen to the radio; if you want sex, read the newspapers” is amongst the many classic quotes from this Conservative peer. A land girl, a Bletchley Park codebreaker, Mayor of Cambridge, an agriculture minister, and now a Baroness, Trumpington famously stuck two fingers up at Lord King of Bridgwater after he called her “pretty old” during a debate. Of the reaction to that, she commented: “It was entirely between him and me – I thought. I wasn’t conscious of there being television [cameras there]… His family says he is famous now”. Of getting older, she added: “Other people’s opinions matter less – unless they’re medical”. On Desert Island Discs in 1990 she chose the Crown Jewels as her luxury item as she said it would maximise her chances of being rescued. A most practical lady and a true national treasure.



