Editor's Letter

Burroughing In

Ivan Boesky, the notorious arbitrageur, whose very name resonates with all that was wrong with the 80s—and who did time for it—remains a fascinating if somewhat repellent figure. These days, Boesky lives mostly in the shadows, popping up unexpectedly in this or that corner of the world—a mysterious, disgraced public figure whose life goes on even as he tries to reassemble it.

The details of Boesky's current existence may come as a surprise. He lives (to the extent that he lives in any one place) in La Jolla, California, in a home owned by his exwife, Seema—who also reportedly supports him with regular alimony checks while their bitter divorce proceeds. He throws raucous parties—orgies, it is said. He works out at the local gym. He is said to be conveniently free of remorse.

This glimpse we have of Boesky's new life comes courtesy of contributing editor Bryan Burrough, whose first piece for V.F. this is. To check out the myriad rumors swirling around Boesky—of a hidden fortune, of financial ruin, of the peculiar nature of the former Wall Streeter's relationship with the enigmatic Wekili family—Burrough, the author of Vendetta: American Express and the Smearing of Edmond Safra and co-author of Barbarians at the Gate, not only paid a call at the La Jolla house but also spoke to many of the people closest to his subject. Some were protective; some were anything but. By also scrutinizing Boesky's early years—and his bankruptcy in the 1960s—Burrough has pieced together a memorable portrait of a man for whom the events of the 80s were but one wild episode in a stranger-than-fiction life.

"It's an examination of a guy who will have a really hard time constructing a second act to his life," says the author. Beginning on page 84, Burrough raises the curtain on Ivan Boesky's Act Two in the most revealing way: while the star is still scrambling into position.

Editor in chief