Tsar Vladimir devotes special attention to Sino-Soviet relations
Has Wendi Deng been “seeing” Vladimir Putin? That’s the rumor we heard, from one of the most prominent and worldly citizens of NY and London, a person who had been around a long time and never known to have been wrong.
The Deng-Putin putative dalliance was first bandied about three years ago, but the rumor keeps coming back, from well-informed lips. Actually, it makes sense: Wendi is a pal of David Geffen, who is a buddy of Roman Abramovich, who is a dear comrade of President Putin. See? Only three degrees of separation.
Of course, if they have been having clandestine assignations, it will remain a state secret, and we won’t know for sure until Tsar Vladimir wants us to know. But if it is true, it won’t be the first head of government the Sino siren has seduced. As first reported in Vanity Fair, Wendi had a torrid romance with Tony Blair after he left 10 Downing Street, and that was the proximate cause of her divorce from Rupert Murdoch.
Wendi and Anna like to hang out, discussing fashion, diets, Russian autocrats, and other mutual interests
ORB SAYS: If Vlad and Wend are indeed copulating in The Kremlin, good for them. Neither is currently married, and they have their Communist childhoods as fodder for post-coital conversation.
What we do know about Madame Deng is that she has been elected to the board of directors at 834 Fifth Avenue, the stately Rosario Candela coop at the corner of 64th street. She acquired its triplex penthouse (once the home of Laurance Rockefeller) in her divorce settlement with Murdoch, and resides there with her two daughters by the press lord. An insider told us, “The stuffy grandees in the building were horrified when she first moved in, but they’ve gotten used to her and they thought ‘if she wants the job, which is tedious, why not give it to her.’”
Wendi, who kept a low profile for a couple of years after her frosty divorce (she contested the pre-nup in court), is now raising it. At the very moment Mr. Murdoch was tying the knot with Jerry Hall in London, Wendi was just across the Channel attending the haute couture, sitting in the front row with Anna Wintour and beaming for the paps.
At the very moment these two lovebirds were pledging their troths in London, Rupert’s third wife Wendi was staging a photo op at a fashion show in Paris
By the by, Wendy told The NY Times a few weeks ago she has become close friends with Geffen. According to her, they have been taking walks together in the park, enjoying cozy movie screenings, and sailing around on his yacht—make that yachts. All strictly platonic, but of course.
Speaking of Mr. Geffen, the gut renovation he is undertaking on the vast penthouse at 785 Fifth Avenue that he bought from Denise Rich for $54 million is causing a commotion. Last week, building residents Howard and Gloria Schwartz filed a lawsuit against him and his contractors asking for $2.5 million. They claim the two elevator hoists erected on the 60th street side have caused cracks in their walls and marble floors, plus “ear-splitting” noise and black soot, all leading to health problems such as high blood pressure and cardiac issues. The court papers say 17 other shareholders submitted claims to Geffen, but he has resolved only six and has ignored the Schwartzes. It must be a helluva bachelor pad that Charles Foster Kane, er Mr. Geffen, is constructing high atop 785.
We’re betting that the thrillionaire, who is a sporting fellow, will make his neighbors whole and then invite them upstairs for a housewarming party, which Wendi will co-host—unless she happens to be in Moscow that week.
The 377-foot Pelorus, which David Geffen bought from Roman Abramovich for $ 300 million. It has a crew of 41 and accommodates 18 guests. It is believed that this is the boat where Wendi Deng was introduced to Vladimir Putin, probably by his close friend Abramovich. But the astonishing fact is that this is not the largest yacht owned by Mr. Geffen—his Rising Sun is 453 feet long. ORB SAYS: It’s always prudent to have two yachts, in case one runs out of petrol.
Report: Rupert Murdoch’s Ex Finds a Man Even More Evil
Jordan Sargent
Staff Writer
jordan@gawker.com
@jordansarge
Wendi Deng was married to Rupert Murdoch for 14 years before they divorced in 2013 amidst rumors that Deng had been cheating on the founder of News Corp. with Tony Blair, the ex-prime minister of the United Kingdom. (Both parties deny this.) With one, maybe two of the world’s most prominent morally questionable, gross men down, you may ask, who else is there left to romance? Who could be ickier or more morally repugnant than Rupert Muroch? According to Us Weekly, the paper of record for international intrigue, she has found someone who fits the bill: Vladimir Putin.
Per Us:
How’s this for a new couple alert? The rumor circulating around the corridors of power — from Washington, D.C., to Europe and Asia — is that Vladimir Putin and Wendi Deng, Rupert Murdoch’s ex-wife, are dating.
Reports of the pair have been floating around for years, ever since their respective divorces in 2014 and 2013.
One insider close to the powerful leader tells Us Weekly the relationship is “serious.”
The source of the rumors cited by Us is unclear, but at the very least writers have been fantasizing about this pairing since Deng’s divorce from Murdoch. Journalist Virginia Heffernan apparently made a Pinterest page imagining a relationship between Deng and Putin, and author Gary Shteyngart tweeted this on the day the divorce was reported:
As recently as six days ago, a website called Orb Magazine reported that Deng and Putin were an item, citing “one of the most prominent and worldly citizens of NY and London.” (Lindsay Lohan????)
I wonder what they talk about.