The Liar's Ball: The Extraordinary Saga of How One Building Broke the World's Toughest Tycoons

by Vicky Ward

Overview

Inside the world of the real Great Gatsby of New York realestate

Harry Macklowe is one of the most notorious wheelers and dealersof the real estate world, and Liar's Ball is the story ofthe gamblers and thieves who populate his world. Watch as Harrymakes the gutsy bid for midtown Manhattan's famous GM building andput almost no money down, landing the billion-dollar transactionthat made him the poster child for New York's real estate royalty.Listen in on the secret conversations, back-door deals, andblackmail that put Macklowe and his cronies on top—and setthem up for an enormous fall.

Vanity Fair contributing editor Vicky Ward skillfullypaints the often scandalous picture of the giants who owned the NewYork skyline until their empires came crumbling down in the 2008financial crisis. Based on more than 200 interviews with realestate moguls like Donald Trump, William Zeckendorf, MortZuckerman, and David Simon, Liar's Ball is thenever-before-told story of the egomaniacal elites of New York City.Read about:

• The epic rise and fall of one of the richest American realestate barons
• Outlandish greed and cravings for power, attention, andlove
• Relationships built and destroyed by vanity and gossip
• The bursting of the real estate bubble and its aftermath

This is no fiction—this is a real life tale ofextravagance, ambition, and power. Harry Macklowe ruthlessly clawedhis way to the top with the help of his loyal followers, eachgrubbing for a piece of the real estate pie. Liar's Ballreveals their secrets and tells the tale of business as usual forthis group—lying, backstabbing, and moving in for the killwhen things look patchy. From the bestselling author of TheDevil's Casino comes an exposé on the real estate elite thatyou'll hardly believe.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781118295311
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	10/27/2014
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	588,594
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

VICKY WARD is the New York-based, British-born author ofthe New York Times bestseller The Devil's Casino:Friendship, Betrayal, and the High-Stakes Games Played InsideLehman Brothers (Wiley, 2010). A former contributing editor toVanity Fair for 11 years, she is the former executive editorof Talk magazine and the former news features editor of theNew York Post. Her work has appeared in the New YorkTimes, the Financial Times, The Times (London), and theDaily Telegraph. She holds a master's in English literaturefrom Cambridge University.

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Table of Contents

Preface ix

Cast of Characters xi

Introduction xv

Chapter 1 Stealing the Spotlight 1

Chapter 2 Alpha Males 11

Chapter 3 The Rigged Bid 21

Chapter 4 Harry’s Hero 37

Chapter 5 The Odd Couple: The English Lord and the HousewifeTycoon 49

Chapter 6 The Age of the Wolf 65

Chapter 7 Donald Trump’s Bag Man 79

Chapter 8 The Money Hunters and the Salesman from Indianapolis91

Chapter 9 Donald’s “Force Majeure” 103

Chapter 10 Paradise, Briefl y 109

Chapter 11 Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride 117

Chapter 12 Tick Tock—A Year on the Clock 129

Chapter 13 The Fall That Wasn’t 145

Chapter 14 Aftermath 153

Note about the Sources 157

Acknowledgments 159

Notes 161

Bibliography 231

About the Author 233

Index 235