How an Instagram-Perfect Life in the Hamptons Ended in Tragedy

Paywall

Here's the unpaywalled link.

What kind of tragedy happened?

Did he hit her& force her in the giant kitchen to cook a family dinner?

She butchered him with a 2,000-dollar knife!!

I struggle to feel sympathy for this couple. Their first priority was impressing others and making people feel less-than by flaunting their grotesque lifestyle.

When the money ran out, they fucked over their friends, family and business partners.

Inevitably, the chickens came home to roost, and rather than being humble and working to make restitution, he took the coward’s way out and she is playing dumb.

Poor children to be raised by such vapid, self-obsessed parents.

R2 My apologies, I tried to provide a gift link. Not sure what happened. Thanks for sharing the unpaywalled version.

She won’t even be able to collect on any life insurance he had since he committed suicide.

I can spot social media bullshit a mile away, but you rarely get to see such a satisfying collapse like this. Teeheehee

TL/DR: He offed himself in the garage of their $8M Hamptons home they couldn't afford, and she had been jet setting all over and flaunting it on Instagram for weeks prior, and during that time she KNEW they were broke and that he was desperate.

No pity. Except for their kids I guess.

You nailed it R4. Two disgusting, entitled people with no redeeming qualities.

Zero sympathy.

The Times seems to not be allowing comments on this story. No surprise there.

That article is sickening to read. Weeping in meetings, only had a flip phone, had good friends who wanted to have an intervention, she had only been to his work once, wtf. I feel for Brandon. There is no way she didn’t know and even if she didn’t, there’s zero chance she couldn’t sense his black hole depression as it sounded like everyone else could see it. I feel awful for that man. I know he played a part in all this but this was difficult to read.

How incredibly lonely and sad he must have been.

I thought that life insurance generally doesn't pay for suicides.

Is that an urban legend like "leave a person $1 in your will so they cannot contest the will" and other foolish advice?

It sounds like they were living way above their means to impress others and it finally caught up with them. I'm not that sympathetic.

R6, life insurance will pay out on a suicide if done after 2 years and a day. They investigate cause of death that happens in the first 2 years of the policy for a reason not to pay.

They are pretentious MAGA

Yes R10 this is a tough (but juicy) read. However, I only feel badly for his daughters. There is NO way she didn’t have some inkling what was going on. Bragging about 900$ facials while your husband is crying in business meetings? Please.

bet he had a big dick.

Sorry R10 but he could have grown a pair and said “No” to the harridan he married years and years and millions of other peoples money years ago.

He may have been more “modest” but he was as big of a shallow user as the wife. One friend who staged that intervention walked out when he discovered poor Brandon had embezzled that million he invested in one of his projects.

Two total pieces of shit.

Her spending habits sound compulsive. Weekly facials and Tracy Anderson and the parties? It’s just not necessary, certainly not that often. They were living large even for the Hamptons set. Seems like she was self-consumed and disconnected from reality and he was secretive and depressed.

They sold their home for $9M and still ended up broke? This is completely on them:

$900 a month studio fees

$180,000 in decoration

$47,000 a month in rent

They had a speedboat....

All to keep up appearances. Hell, Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced Bouquet) could have turned this into a multi-million dollar surplus..

I'm sure the daughters would have preferred having their father over trips to Europe and expensive furniture.

It's shocking that he chose death over cutting back on expenses. Perhaps the idea of being upper middle class felt worse than death to him, which really tells you what they think of the rest of us, huh?

When they sold their apartment for $9M, why didn't they just move to the Hamptons house?

Or sell it?

They could have spined it as "the Hamptons have lost its exclusivity and we are looking at smaller islands"

He was hot.

She on the other hand is Gilda Radner's Rhonda Weiss.

Sad and lonely r10, but also shallow like his wife. He went fully along with her lifestyle extravagance and insecure flaunting, right to the end. The kids are the victims here, I hope they don't grow up to be like their mother.

There’s so much schadenfreude here it must be fattening!

Plot twist: by Tribeca/Hampton standards they weren’t that well off! Compared with their “cohort,” they were not even close to the actual one percent. The sound and fury of $, signifying nothing.

Her comeback by way of Bravo is in the early planning stages.

This guy seems like he couldn't face the failure he had made of his life. It's awful when what others think of you dictates your life because in the end they probably don't really care. Also he may have been addicted to her the same way some women are addicted to an abuser.

I don't get how you can blow through $9M so fast....

R21 they had no equity at that point. Duh

This article makes me happy I'm with someone who loves me, not my money.

Insane that she is being cast as a victim. She knew. And I doubt she'll ever be able to show her face in her social circle again. Time to pack up the bags and move to Nebraska, lady.

Come on. How could she have not seen how incredibly stressed, anxious and depressed he was? She saw but chose to ignore it. If you truly love someone, you would live in a dirt patch for them. Her lifestyle was more important to her. She likely pushed him to keep borrowing.

Here’s a great new novel that delves into the mysterious and stupid lives of the wealthy … I highly recommend it.

She is going to end up working as a seamstress

The American dream.

r27 it doesn't take much. years ago we had a lottery winner here who had 3 limousines in his driveway. He started renovating his house and never finished. A friend who worked at Sears said he would come out buy 6 tv's at a time and then the next day return all of them. Money can make some people crazy.

R30 Actually, I disagree with you. I think she was so into her self, the surgeries, Instagram, that she didn't notice or care about him until the money stopped coming in.

I feel sad for the two little girls left behind without a father. In my eyes, there is something absolutely selfish and stupid when someone commits self-harming in a situation like this. Sell your assets, go bankrupt, get a job at Mcdonald's but don’t leave your kids parentless.

Props to the guy who who called her directly. At least someone cared enough to attempt an intervention.

R37 I thought the same. He’s the only one who comes out of this article looking halfway decent.

R36, in his culture of money, a father with no money is worthless.

Of course she knew.

In NYC they were living in a rental.

With rented furniture.

R36 But they wanted to see Italy! He didn’t want to lose their deposit! That’s some real O. Henry irony.

[quote]when someone commits self-harming

I despise this type of infantilization in language that has become so common today.

Say it with me. The word is SUICIDE.

You know what "self-harming" means. I know what it means. The triggered person knows what it means. What possible benefit could there be to replacing SUICIDE with a childish phrase like "self-harming."

If a person is so emotionally fragile that reading SUICIDE triggers them, but "self-harming" doesn't, that person is too delicate to be function in society.

R40 Thank you. Of COURSE knew. The article had a few telling details. She lived in a home with rented furniture - she had to have known she couldn’t afford the real stuff. They sold their first place in the city and “downsized” - and had to rent the furniture in that new place, so she must have known why. She also had their friend call and tell her about it. I once had a medical bill that went into collections ($600, I didn’t know) and they were sending certified letters to my home. I can only imagine what lengths creditors go to when you owe tens of millions. Maybe she believed what he told her about the next deal coming through to make it all right again, but even that strains credulity. I also don’t believe the Europe trip was the first time her cards declined.

Committed suicide? Bah.

He KILLED himself.

so does the debt dies with him or is she responsible?

I think the key to this story is his father, his father’s own debt (which precipitated the guy’s downfall, it seems) and his visit to the grave / never getting over his grief.

I didn’t see any mention of therapy, but if he was going, it certainly didn’t take. I imagine he was trying to provide a lifestyle to his family his father gave him (though, in retrospect, probably also based on a house of cards) and it crashed and he just could not accept it, for various psychological reasons.

I might be projecting here, too, honestly. This story resonated with me deeply for personal reasons. But you would be surprised at the grip lifestyle expectations have on people, men in particular. The shame he must have been experiencing was marrow deep.

I kind of wanted to hear what she’s up to now.

What does she do? Remarry? Doesn’t seem likely. Plus, her skin with all that exposure to the sun… /smh

Of course she knew, she is a fake fuck

I wonder if they come to collect on all her expensive bags and clothes...surely they are worth something

The key to this story was “he was an investor in commercial real estate.” You could see that triggered what was always an impending disaster.

I don't want to subscribe to the NY Times OP, thanks for nothing.

[quote]Her comeback by way of Bravo is in the early planning stages.

r25 calls it!

She will be remarried to some rich older sap within 18 months. Mark my words.

R51 then get your own firewall bypass…there are these things called “apps” and “websites” to help you.

Only Blanche is allowed to depend on the kindness of strangers. You’re no Blanche.

She is going to end up working as a seamstress

He was flipping leasehold interests. What a nut!

That empty lot in Chelsea, seen in the article, is steps from the Highline—once occupied by The Park restaurant… it’s been vacant for years.

Social media has warped people’s perceptions and people are spending more than they ever did to display a lifestyle that they cannot afford. It’s grotesque to promote a lavish lifestyle to others while living on credit and Monopoly money, just so you can grift, social climb and shop at Chanel. This woman is painted as a victim but she is part of our society’s decay into selfish, greedy ultra-capitalism. She’s no victim.

Turns out, all that glitters isn’t gold. Who knew.

Maybe one of his friends who is ugly and single and always had the hots for her will marry her or at least take care of her and the kids

Surely she must fuck around?

[quote] didn’t see any mention of therapy,

We believe in retail therapy.

r45 Debts don't die with the debtor. They're passed on to the heir(s).

She has a mountain of debt, her name is mud, and she has two daughters of her own. Not sure many eligible men would be signing up for that in a city filled with gorgeous smart women. Maybe if she leaves NY, but he won’t be wealthy the way she’s used to.

R62 only if her name was on it. Otherwise you’ve misstated federal law and the law in every state.

The image of him in his final moments, sitting in his car with a picture of his family is heartbreaking. I truly hope his daughters find peace, as they did not deserve any of this. A tragic story that reminds me a little of Blue Jasmine.

Just an invasion of privacy.

Yes, they flaunted themselves on social media, but does that warrant an exhaustive expose in the NYTimes?

I think it’s important to remember that both their families have money. He already grew up in a certain lifestyle. It’s easy to say oh just live simpler in a way that most of us do, but if you have never done it you don’t know how. I’m not justifying anything and I do think learning a new way to live would undoubtedly have been better than this outcome … I just don’t think it was as simple to them as it is to us. It’s easy to see how the hole got dug so deep when his dad kicked it all off and he didn’t know anything other than that.

^ there’s the basic plot of Long Island Compromise…right in front of you.^

This is horrible. Something deeply pathological and sick about burying yourself in this much debt willingly - almost like addict behavior AND about staying this ignorant about your family’s finances (if that part is true which I struggle to believe entirely).

On the flip side, it makes me really grateful that I can be content with what I have. My partner and I bit work, we aren’t millionaires, but we live comfortably and while it would always be nice to have a little more, I’m glad I don’t struggle with an endless want and need for opulence.

The business side of things was a bit like Madoff. Borrow money from Bank A to purchase real estate. Borrow money from Bank B to make payments to Bank A. So on an so forth. It works for a while as long as you can eventually improve and flip the real estate investments. Things get tight during lean times, but when the bottom falls out (2008 recession broadly, 2021 post pandemic commercial real estate bust), that’s when the shit hits the fan. New borrowing becomes impossible and there’s no longer money to repay Bank A, B or Z.

The most repulsive part of this story is the wife giving written and video interviews to Hamptons Magazine et al, bragging about how much she spends on beauty and fitness and Chanel. The social media is bad enough, but her going out and loudly boasting to traditional media must have made the husband want to crawl under a rock and die.

NO R70. …this was barely a kindergarten version of Madoff. Don’t give him credit for any kind of sense—which Bernie did have. He was a garden variety fuck up, with daddy (and mommy!) issues, who couldn’t make it work. He faked it and never could make it. The end.

I read this yesterday and was genuinely stumped why this was a page 1 story. It’s tragic but it’s not news. I felt kind of icky after reading it. I felt empathy for the husband but not the wife, who expressed having no idea of the pressure her husband was under—either making her completely emotionally inept or intentionally oblivious.

[quote] but her going out and loudly boasting to traditional media must have made the husband want to crawl under a rock and die.

Which he did.

R72 It’s because the only thing more exciting to people than obscene wealth is the destruction of it.

Well…he crawled into a Porsche and died…

It’s made note of in this article that Brandon reported he had “dark thoughts for years” in the suicide note. This may avoid any payout of life insurance, even if it’s been two years since he took out the policy if he lied on his application and denied any history of mental health troubles.

Asking friends to borrow $1,000 is truly rock bottom for a rich person.

Basically agree with r4, but I think this (not said by r4) is a bit much:

[Quote] You nailed it [R4]. Two disgusting, entitled people with no redeeming qualities.

Jeez. I mean yes, they did get caught up in the desire to live the polished ultra perfection of social media wealth, but can we just admit that it’s very alluring, and designed to be so? It’s not like people who submit to it and try to fly to the sun are evil devils.

Everyone has weaknesses and failures, unrealistic wants and desires.

Suicide may have been his only way out, financially. Probably unable to qualify for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which would have wiped away the debt and given them a fresh start. Instead, they would likely be forced into a Chapter 13, which forces you to liquidate what you can and pay back any disposable income over 5 years. Perhaps the idea of living on a strict, tight budget -- especially for the wife and her clueless, lavish spending -- was too much to bear.

[quote]I read this yesterday and was genuinely stumped why this was a page 1 story.

Are you joking?

Billionaire lifestyle, the Hamptons, TriBeca, Park Avenue, Instagram, mommy blogger, real estate investments, designer clothes, mountains of debt, suicide...etc and etc...this is great summer reading.

[quote] My partner and I bit work, we aren’t millionaires, but we live comfortably and while it would always be nice to have a little more, I’m glad I don’t struggle with an endless want and need for opulence.

Oh, please. Pass the barf bag.

R76 you might think that, but you’d be 100% wrong. That would not be the basis for a proper denial or demurrer.

You are not responsible for parental debt.

Stories like this give me second hand anxiety. I can't imagine living like that, all for the sake of showing off. Financial security is worth so much more to me but I guess not to everyone. Then again, it's the risk takers who typically get rich. I have a problem feeling bad for people like this, especially those who leave kids in the wake of their failed greed.

She’s not exactly a trophy wife. And she’s already driven one husband into the grave.

I don’t see a lot of potential in another marriage for her.

She should do charity work and devote herself to her girls.

You missed the boat on your bankruptcy “analysis.” Unless he was a complete moron, his business interests, and even many of his family interests, would have been structured to allow for. Ch.11 filings. But in the end he was so fucked over it didn’t really matter, did it?! He was too far gone.

It’s kind of wild that she’ll likely walk away from this tragic debacle with a $15 million golden parachute but I’m assuming everyone will come calling for their pound of flesh and she won’t be left with much.

R56 - The Park was such a cool space, it was a really nice place to go for a special occasion.

True it was part of the second or third wave of Chelsea gentrification, but sad it couldn’t survive the insanity of wave five or six.

Oh you knew that old garage was destined for destruction…only a matter of time. But trying to flip out the ground lease without any development plan was pretty stupid.

Why on earth does anyone feel sympathy for these people? Because they used to be 'fake' rich and their white?

Millions of American working people go through the stress of losing it all over a layoff, a health issue, debt, etc.

Fuck this guy and his wife. They finally get to know what regular people have to go through all the time - and instead he lied and stole and then offed himself because he couldn't take responsibility for this actions.

N.B. The food and service were mediocre —only appeal was the raw garage space.

Not that has a thing to do with the vacant lot he tried to leverage…

The Hamptons house was the major asset and was mortgaged to the hilt. It wasn't even an asset, with all of that debt.

His "friends" who "cared enough" to do an intervention and to call & inform Wife --- were CREDITORS.

This country is full of people who live above their means.

r86 true, I don't know, nor care, what their actual financial situation was. But, I can speak of my own experience, where I was drowning in debt, completely due to my own out of control spending and poor choices. I made too much money for Chapter 7, Chapter 11 wasn't an option, so had to do a 13 or else default on the debt and get sued by creditors, which would lead to wage garnishment, etc. I thought about suicide rather than the embarrassment of being labeled "bankrupt" and the idea of living hand to mouth for 5 years; but, that's what I ended up doing (living within my means for 60 months, not the suicide obviously). The upside is that I now live well within my means and am building a nice retirement fund for myself, when that time comes. And I will NEVER get into debt again -- I owed over $200k.

And to be clear, I wasn't living some faux influencer "look-at-me-isn't-my-life-so-fabulous" delusion like they were.

There are some nasty mean old bitches on DL. I feel sorry for everyone involved. Yes, even her. It can’t be easy being such a bottomless pit of want and need. These are broken people.

That’s your story, not the one in the article—that’s all. Glad you’re OK.

[quote]Stories like this give me second hand anxiety. I can't imagine living like that, all for the sake of showing off. Financial security is worth so much more to me but I guess not to everyone.

Besides discussing the true definition of "risk" in a financial sense, whenever I discuss finance, money, and investing, I ALWAYS make the comment that no matter what the potential returns may be, you have to be able to sleep at night.

In order to increase returns, you have to increase risk (liquidity, credit, market, legal, opportunity cost, etc.). However, increasing risk does NOT guarantee that you will increase returns or even that your returns will adequately compensate you for the added risk.

Folks should only take on as much risk as will allow them to sleep at night.

R96 - it's all EGO. You feel sorry for people because of their narcissistic ego-driven adventures? Seriously?

They had exit ramps - but neither wanted to take them. She's just as guilty as he is. Did she not see him depressed and glum? Did she ever look into their finances for her stupid weekly facials and shit? She's not innocent - the creditors TOLD her things were bad. And she never followed up because she was too consumed with her 'brand' and Instagram.

Meanwhile, regular people are dying because they can't afford insulin or put off going to the doctor because they know they can't afford the visit. You need a better gauge for your sympathy.

R96 You feel sorry for scammers?

You must have been absolutely heartbroken for Bernie Madoff.

This is what I don't understand. At all:

[quote] They decorated with rented furniture for which they paid $180,000 for one year, according to a lawsuit filed this spring, and $12,000 per month after the first year.[/quote]

Why the fucking FUCK would the rent furniture at that price?? I'm not expecting to shop at Rooms-To-Go but give me a fucking break. Poseurs. Frauds. That's all they were.

You can buy a lot of furniture for $180, 000

He was actually kind of cute. She's a beast.

I’ve fast forwarded to the end this thread to say:

I don’t care

[quote]Why the fucking FUCK would the rent furniture at that price?? I'm not expecting to shop at Rooms-To-Go but give me a fucking break. Poseurs. Frauds. That's all they were.

And their monthly apartment rent was $47,000 a month.

Congratulations.

I made it to the end of the article. It angers me that she ended up getting $15 million from life insurance. I hope her home was repossessed.

15 million will be gone in a few years....the way she spends

Well, I guess he must have been up-to-date on his life insurance premiums.

I think she can *easily* spend $15 million, considering how she had been spending.

R102 - that IS the crazy part - who rents $180k of furniture a year? You do it for a month or two max for high-end apartments for staging purposes.

$180k can certainly buy a LOT of good furniture.

She needs to think about her two daughters. Perhaps a waitressing job...

Won't that $15 million immediately go to pay off debts?

And the article doesn't speak of debt to the IRS. I wonder what that situation is like.

Wanna vomit?

Here ya go:

hmmm good question R112. I would think if nothing , it would need to go towards the Hamptons house multiple mortgages, since the house was probably in both their names. As far as all the business debt I'm sure she's not liable for it. Could those commercial creditors sue the Estate?

R113 that truly is vomit-inducing. Gross. Bitch had what was coming to her.

And she knew. She couldn't be that stupid.

[quote] Won't that $15 million immediately go to pay off debts?

New York is not a community property state. She’s not responsible for any debts that aren’t in her name. Creditors can’t attach assets which weren’t in his name.

Couldn't have happened to a more deserving vapid cunt.

Is she going to keep pretending her life is amazing? If any of that debt was in her name (credit cards, rental leases) she has to pay the money owed. She seems worse than him.

[quote] I feel sorry for everyone involved. Yes, even her. It can’t be easy being such a bottomless pit of want and need. These are broken people.

I'm with you, r96. I read this article yesterday. And yes, that video of her posted r113 is, well, it's its own form of obscenity.

Human reactions aren't always either/or. My reactions have been described here already by all of the posts in this thread.

The husband grifted his friends and creditors. He isn't alive to be held accountable, but in a real sense he's better off than his wife and daughters.

My grandmother observed "There are some situations worse than death." She and her daughters are now enduring one of those situations.

As such, I don't feel disgust, I feel pity. Her sins are coming with their own Hell.

[quote] Oh, please. Pass the barf bag.

Enjoy that barf, r81 but I know exactly what r69 means in their 2nd paragraph. I live in very modest means, far from any wealthy areas.

But I'm very rich in one real sense: I know it's better for me to want what I have, rather than have what I want.

I have peace of mind, a contentment with myself, and the proverbial Joneses next door? I can't, and moreover, don't WANT to keep up.

And let there be no perception that I judge people who do want to acquire things and have the money to do so. Go to it. Let the good times roll.

I just know what "evil" Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis Presley's grifting manager said, and even though it comes from him, it doesn't make it any less true: "You've never seen a funeral hearse pulling a luggage dolly, have you?"

Pseudo Rich People Problems

Question: why do rich white men (or in this case, fake rich white men), always have that same haircut?

R114 why on earth would she pay on any mortgage at this point? Let them take it to foreclosure. Jeez.

R114 to your last question: unless he set things wrong—NO.

R121, older rich women wore pageboy hairstyles.

R226 community property has nothing to do with this —literally.

R126^^

Sorry 😵‍💫. For R116

Too bad so sad

The world of a heterosexuals is a sick and boring life.

Can I have his (rental) stuff?

What a repulsive couple and marriage. He fucked over everyone including his friends. For ridiculous empty luxury and image. Destroyed his hideous wife who probably deserves this, but their kids do not. Garbage people.

The wife has a face like a bug.

He was cute, once.

He had a little Armie Hammer going on looks wise, I think. The house was probably in the business' name too, wouldn't you think? He kept her well insulated from reality though she must've seen the mail.

Here's the house, now for sale.

[quote] He kept her well insulated from reality though she must've seen the mail.

I think she knew, but was addicted to Instagram and showing off their lifestyle.

He was too much a wuss to downsize and cause her any displeasure.

An obvious solution would have been to live in the Hamptons house year-round (even though it was heavily mortgaged) and NOT rent the UES place at ~ $50K per month.

Renting furniture? Anybody remember RAC or Rent-A-Center?

"He kept her well insulated from reality though she must've seen the mail."

Bitches like this do NOT concern themselves with trivial bullshit like the mail. That's what the help is for.

However, if there was cash money or a check in the mail, she would have sniffed that out like the blood hound she really is.

where do they sell pitchforks at

R135 The worst thing is they went into all that debt for tacky art

Does Ms Miller have an OnlyFans? If not, she will. Soon.

The part that of this story that is appalling is that it was very salvageable if they had been willing to downscale for a few years.

As for the insurance, insurance payouts are not taxable income in most cases. Also, if he insulated her correctly, his "estate" and his company (the one with his father) are responsible for his debts, not her.

It sounds like the Hamptons house is collateral for loans larger than it's worth unless they get a ridiculously high offer.

The life insurance won't last given how she spends, and you KNOW she's not going to put any of it away for her kids to cover things like school (the private one you know she sends them to) or college.

[quote] where do they sell pitchforks at

Need a bubbling cauldron, as well.

Only fans? She is flat like pancakes. Zero boobs

Just from the photo in the OP, I can tell she's a nightmare.

Well, he picked her and seemed to enjoy all the fronting, as well.

He's cute. As long as he had good personal hygiene, I'd be happy to date and marry a guy who looked like that - other than the obvious issues with his financial stupidity and mental instability...

He's a Brown grad. What about her?

She's an Amalita Amalfi - a hooker with a passport.

I want to know more about the NYC rental and the rented furniture. I feel like that would have raised their friends’ eyebrows. Did they make up a story about expecting to buy a place they were going to gut renovate? They are both native NY-ers. Wouldn’t it have seemed odd for them to be renting? But the furniture seems like it would be even more of a giveaway. Are there really companies that rent super high end furniture or was this more of a one-off rent to own deal they structured with a furniture company? Would they really be able to “rent” convincing furniture? Isn’t part of the wife’s whole schtick pretending to have taste? I bet the apartment looked like a renovation hardware store.

That fake distressed splotchy piece in the Hamptons house is awful.

I suspect the guy was so over leveraged and in so much debt that they viewed stuff like $47k / month rent and $180k / year furniture as pittances they needed to spend to keep their creditors from catching on. I don’t think they could have downsized and remained solvent. Given the type of business he was in, I wonder if her name is in any loan docs.

But I just don’t get the furniture fooling people.

She'll start a GoFundMe to keep the kids in tony summer camps and private schools. And maybe an OnlyFans to keep her in cosmetics.

His father was in the same overextended predicament when he died. His dad's death weighed heavily on him but he didn't seem to learn anything from it. He seemed like a sensitive guy, maybe not right for the cutthroat world of commercial real estate.

[quote] I want to know more about the NYC rental and the rented furniture. I feel like that would have raised their friends’ eyebrows.

They probably didn't tell people that they were renting both the apartment and the furniture. Also, I don't see how rented furniture is going to look that different than furniture you'd buy outright.

The jig was up in that they had borrowed money from friend (and then didn't repay). So, those friends would definitely be pissed off and talking about it. Also, with that one friend who lent him money, he (husband) actually sold the property (that he borrowed the money to buuy) and did tell the friend about the sale. So, loyalties and keeping secrets - that was a burned bridge.

Renting high-end furniture isn't uncommon, in NYC anyway. Lots of it used in staging multimillion $ apartments, etc.

And depending how he structured it, as in under his business name, the rent is a tax write-off.

That’s my point - I feel like it would have been obvious the furniture was rented. All from the same company, all purchased at the same time?

How is rental furniture for your primary residence a tax write off? It wasn’t a property he was marketing.

The residence could have been leased under the business's name. In the end, does it matter?

if people don't want to pay taxes they find a way.

LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME!!!

I bet they had no friends of color.

Is that something they put together themselves @ R158? Good grief. Cool song tho.

R149, it probably could. NYC is full of the insanely rich who discard whole homes full of expensive stuff when their mood changes. It also full of exasperated heirs who need to sell off art and furniture.

From the article:

[quote]That Mr. Miller’s death occurred in the Hamptons during the height of the social season almost certainly has added to the intrigue.

Ye gods.

I never met the Millers but I know a lot of people in their immediate orbit. Social media has made this quest for perfection worse than ever. A lot the women in their forties and fifties live every second of their lives for the sake of looking good for instagram, which they then transfer to their kids. A lot of them are actually nice people with good values but the wealth mixed with the need to show it off so ostentatiously puts a dark cloud on it all. It has become almost an addiction to many of them.

How can someone spend $900 a week on facials and still look like that much of a hag??

I've seen better looking people at Target.

Actually the renting part isn’t so uncommon, R149. I know two different families with whom the Millers were friendly and who also live these sorts of lavish lifestyles, both of whom rent their NYC apartments. Sometimes people just don’t want to be saddled down with another property. Or maybe they two are trying to keep up appearances. Either way, renting isnt a huge red flag, especially since they owned elsewhere.

[quote] That’s my point - I feel like it would have been obvious the furniture was rented. All from the same company, all purchased at the same time?

Some people go to a store (IKEA, Restoration Hardware) and buy a slew of furniture. How is it obvious the furniture is rented? Sorry, not understanding how it would be so obvious. Also, you can rent a variety of furniture. Some traditional, some modern.

That’s funny, too, R164. Almost none of the women in this UES/Hamptons scene are conventionally pretty. They are styled beautifully and groomed to perfection, but actual beauty is rare.

The standard of beauty is different, I'd say. A certain amount of horsiness seems to be OK or even desired. Carolyn Bessette had a horse face. Also, not everyone has to be BLONDE, like in LA.

The rented apartment. I'm sure that can't be the same furniture.

Yeah, that furniture is even less convincing than the rental furniture I was imagining. Renting a condo makes more sense. For some reason I was assuming they were in a rental building.

That building is sort of odd, though. Is it a converted office building? Or did they just reconfigure everything when it went condo? Doesn’t seem like a prewar apartment building.

It's a pre-war apartment building that was "improved" with a soulless modern renovation that has made it into something duller than most Dallas McMansions.

Where’s that broke ass bitch living now?

R153 they weren’t staging an open house. They were faking an entire lifestyle!

I'm sure she's attending summer parties all over the Hamptons, trying to snag another sugar daddy.

She won’t have problem this summer. It will be the fall, when private schools start and everyone moves on to their own craziness, when friends will be less interested in taking in a widow and her two kids.

Garbage people. 🤮

R149 at the end he begged a buddy for $1000… Sad!

It’s crazy to think that they actually had less than a debt free single mom living in the projects. Once their total bill is calculated, they surely owe in the tens of millions.

That got me too, R177. In their world, that’s the cost of one nice meal out.

R166 your naivete is showing

[quote] It’s crazy to think that they actually had less than a debt free single mom living in the projects.

Not really. They still had a lot more resources than the average Joe or Jane. Why is it that after someone like Michael Jackson dies, the finances suddenly straighten out (depending on who's managing, afterwards). There was some bad management going on, i.e., this stupid couple (and Michael Jackson).

Call me!

R179 I’ve paid that for two seats at omakase in Manhattan.

R181 poor, naive 181 🤷🏻‍♂️

A lot of what he was doing was probably criminal too. I’m sure he lied extensively on mortgage and loan applications about his assets and amount of debt. There’s no way he was paying taxes either.

I’m not so sure in this case, R181. With her credit card declined on her death holiday and him borrowing 1000 dollars two days prior, their resources seem gone.

Next stop = Reality Show.

Maybe she can become a Baldwinito nanny?

Except for the debt and suicide stuff isn’t this the kind of lifestyle the NYT celebrates in profile after profile. Attractive wealthy people who summer in the Hamptons seem to be the bread and butter of that right wing rag.

Stories like this one are one of very few things NYT is good for these days.

When I first moved to NYC many years ago, I got involved with the Hamptons crowd. At first it was exciting to this Texas gayling, but didn't take long for me to realize how vapid and superficial it was. This was before social media and "influencers" so I can only imagine how much worse it is now.

" Free, white and 21". You have options. I would never suggest, you have it easy, but you have options. Showboating and grifting then offing yourself when it catches up with you only proves your default is making poor decisions.

'THE HAMPTONZZZZZZZZZZ."

Are located in Wrong Island.

[quote]Stories like this one are one of very few things NYT is good for these days.

At one time, stories like this were the bread and butter of Vanity Fair.

This is where the rented furniture came from:

So much beige and white…so much!

Sort of reminds me of the TV show, A Million Little Things, where the husband and father kills himself because his business dealing went south and he saw no way out, except to kill himself and the existing assets were transferred to his family so they could not be legally lien against.

The Hamptons are wonderful to visit. Go out for two nights, stay with friends, splurge on dinner and drinks and you will have stately spectacular weekend. To me, it’s not a lifestyle I find either sustainable or desirable. It’s an escape, not a destination.

R113 the little girl expressions, voice and head tilt are creepy.

[quote] At one time, stories like this were the bread and butter of Vanity Fair.

Yep, VF would've done such a good job on this story. More details, more interviews with friends.

She’s cut from the same cloth as Hilaria Baldwin. They even look alike.

I feel like the Instagram age has really shown in high relief how terminally dull and provincial a lot of rich New Yorker are, especially the millennial set.

They really just flap around like a bunch of cormorants on a migratory path from their boring white Tribeca apartments to their boring white shingled new built McMansions in the Hamptons to their boring white places somewhere in South Florida, with the requisite 2 weeks each quarter in a series of boring expensive slightly off white hotels in wherever (these days it’s Italy).

She wasn't very pretty.

If I had one shred of sympathy for her, which I didn’t, that vanished when I saw the Tik Tok at R113.

The content is repellent enough but inveigling her young daughter into “interviewing” her is beyond appalling.

This is accurate, r201. My epicenter is the UES, but same deal. There is a “right” track of how you are “supposed” to do life. You left out Beaver Creek on winter breaks but hit all the rest.

She'll probably end up like Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine.

When was the TikTok at R113 made? She has a very sad and skittish vibe.

Skanky vibe, really.

No St. Barts? Total losers—lower rent Hamptonites.

R206 it's dated 7/25/23

Skanky is no longer an issue, R207. The modern crop is very different from the discrete Muffys and Bunnys of the past. They lean into being party girls, putting it all out there on social media.

This would have been Candace Miller back 45 years ago in simpler times....

Allegedly, Brandon was a serial cheater. The parents and kids went on a European vacation every summer but this year it was only her and the kids as the wife was considering a divorce.

R211 no. You are mixing your metaphors, badly.

R212 it was only the wife and the kids so he could kill himself!

That TikTok is horrific. What a vapid, trashy woman.

Candice is Eyetalian. Statten Island?

Candice is Jewish. Maiden name: Levy

Sounds like a good old fashioned CHUNG CHUNG Law and Order episode from 1990s/early 2000s. Hamptons, debt, unhappy children…add some mob ties

[quote]That Mr. Miller’s death occurred in the Hamptons during the height of the social season almost certainly has added to the intrigue.

Bewildered Hampton doyennes aghast to think he pulled out of the summer-season-circuit! Now they have to speak to the kitchen staff about a re-do on the seating chart.

[quote]He seemed like a sensitive guy, maybe not right for the cutthroat world of commercial real estate.

His degree is from Brown! He should have become a dilettantish bohemian ne'er do well like any self-respecting Brown grad.

Can I have his regular booking at the racquetball club?

So how many other couples in the Hamptons and UES are on the same trajectory- just at different points, not quite as far along as these two?

[quote]Just an invasion of privacy.

[quote]Yes, they flaunted themselves on social media, but does that warrant an exhaustive expose in the NYTimes?

Yes.

You answered your own question in your post r66

They (or she) exhaustively exposed the family all over social media. There was zero privacy left.

So everyone who has an active social media presence thereby gives up all rights to privacy? Or does that only apply if you reach a certain level of popularity?

You were right the first time, R224 - if you put it in the public domain you surrender any right to privacy.

Which is why people with half a clue and a little class set their socials to private.

She used to come into my shop at The Barefoot Contessa all the time. Since a month or two ago she hasn’t even been able to splurge for the good mayonnaise (Hellmans).

R224, it's not just the online presence that justifies the story. The husband defrauded many people, including at least one person who happened to know someone at the NYTimes.

This was not just an “active social media presence” r224. She and her sister started a website, providing fashion, shopping, and decor advice for rich ladies and wannabees.

[quote]But it mostly showcased Ms. Miller’s personal life and tastes. “Mama and Tata” became an alter ego and self-promotional marketing machine. Ms. Miller and some friends even started a fashion label that she celebrated with a launch party at the Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles. Her followers got regular glimpses of her active social life against the backdrop of grand homes in Manhattan and Southampton, European resorts, private planes, classic sports cars and speedboats.

So no, the NYT did not invade the family's privacy. She did that all by herself.

Terrible story.

Not sure I agree that having a website and being an influencer means you have no right to privacy. I suppose the Times would argue that these activities made the family public figures and the suicide made it a legitimate news story, but I didn’t feel dirty when I read about the problems of Whitney Houston, Sarah Palin or Michael Jackson, but I feel like I needed a shower here.

It was in the police-fire blotter. Can’t hide that very well. Public info

Every generation has stories that reflect the worst of NY and NY adjacent society. Ted Ammon and Kissel Brothers come to mind. The problem now is that people don’t actually have to earn or even inherit money to get the attention this empty soulless crowd always chases. Couture clothing from the Real Real is pennies on the dollar. Anything can be rented. Philanthropy is in the rear view mirror. In every aspect of society millennials seem to only be able to grasp at an idea of what experiences are as opposed to living in those moments. The Miller sisters had to actually have million dollar weddings and marry into generational wealth to get this kind of attention. Now it only takes a few photoshopped insta posts to get a lead NYT story? This is made even sadder by the fact that it seems the family never had enough actual experiences or relationships to create the content necessary for what would have been an in depth VF spread complete with “anonymous” interviews a decade or so ago. Either that or the writers at the NYT are too lazy to get more details.

[quote]Weekly facials and Tracy Anderson and the parties?

He had an affair with the trainer.

His mother yelled "You killed my son" at the wife while they were sitting shiva.

LSA had a thread on this weeks ago.

The NY Post article linked at R232, has a LOT more detail. The lawsuits were flying and Brandon had been accused of forgery.

One can only hope many, very many, R222

These are the real crooks of today’s American society and there’s more of them out there.

White collar bullshit is always swept under the rug.

R229 Why? They were crooks and scammers?

If they were black teenagers doing snatch and grab from Walmart, they’d be all over social media with everyone taking about how fucked up the world is.

They were 17 million dollars in debt. It’s just the 2 of them and their kids!

I just don’t feel bad whatsoever.

[quote] I feel like I needed a shower here.

Mary. Why? Because CHILDREN were involved?

You need a shower? I NEED a shower!!

And food.

No more showers. The towels were rentals.

That TikTok video at R113 is just sad. What a vapid woman. And she made sure to enroll her young daughter in her consumerist, senseless lifestyle. This was dated July 2023, at a time when her husband was already deep in debt. Either she was too self-absorbed doing her weekly $800 facials to notice, or she didn’t care. Either way, no sympathy for me.

Candice Miller, living in the Hamptons on $1,000 a month.

How do we find out if the insurance companies paid out on his policies? In Australia, I've never heard of a life insurance policy being paid out when the death is a suicide.

That video is sickening and it's creepy how in most of the photos she angles her face the same each time. In one photo, she couldn't even have her pants hemmed properly. She spent all that money with him. She's responsible for paying it back. If you're spending $800 on a facial each week, shopping at Chanel and flaunting it all over SM, you should know you're true financial position. Downloading movies on private jets? How stupid is that?

Many American insurance companies do cover suicide if it happens at least one year after the policy goes into effect.

These two are straight versions of HARDCORE Gay Male SCENE queens- vapid and materialistic.

That's hard to understand, r143. He always had a get-out option, even though he paid the ultimate price. But we don't have life insurance like the US does. So many US true crime shows detail how a person would be killed for their insurance payout.

It's always the woman driving the financial destruction by conspicuous consumption and social climbing Female narcissism is a different beast and twice as deadly.

[quote]That video is sickening and it's creepy how in most of the photos she angles her face the same each time

Noticed that too r242. And she looks at the camera sideways, out of the corners of her eyes, which she probably thinks makes her look alluring.

Instead it makes her look, literally, shifty-eyed.

Facials are harsh on your skin. Their efficacy is questionable, too.

They feel good to experience but should be limited to one every 3 or 4 months.

The trainer thing is true. Apparently the trainer was able to build her new gym because they paid her to be quiet. It’s been gossiped about for years.

If you look at the insta of Arielle Charnas, the cousin, that is the vibe of all the women in this crowd. Fortysomethings who post picture after picture of themselves wearing some sort of outfit, posing as if they are supermodels. And then the others post compliments to one another about how stunning they all look. It is so vapid and feels like a response to undiagnosed trauma, or at least to poor self esteem.

[quote]Downloading movies on private jets? How stupid is that?

Oh yeah, I forgot about that. How spoiled and impulsive. Bring a book and save thousands.

And for all the $800 facials once or twice a week, her skin doesn't look that great.

[quote] And for all the $800 facials once or twice a week, her skin doesn't look that great.

This comment is sooo Datalounge -- suicide, bereaved destitute widow, two young fatherless daughters -- but the most important thing is that her skin doesn't look that great.

[quote] And for all the $800 facials once or twice a week, her skin doesn't look that great.

Legally you are not but to the extent you inherit property that is heavily mortgaged, subject to judgment liens or pledged as collateral, it certainly feels like you are.

[quote] You missed the boat on your bankruptcy “analysis.” Unless he was a complete moron, his business interests, and even many of his family interests, would have been structured to allow for. Ch.11 filings. But in the end he was so fucked over it didn’t really matter, did it?!

You cannot discharge debt that is incurred by intentional malfeasance or fraud. Sounds like with his situation he would have been repaying his debtors forever -- with no way to make money.

[quote]but the most important thing is that her skin doesn't look that great.

She literally threw all that money away because she looks totally blah.

but if he forged things in business, she would not be responsible for that.

i'm sure he had it set up to save them.

R231 you got the Miller Sisters' money aspect the other way around, hun. They married young men with tattered invalid titles who were delighted by the Miller dowry. Oldest story in the book. The Miller Sisters got "old family" names from their husbands, not "intergenerational wealth". And Alex was hot as fuck so, a bonus. He married down, if you ask me.

Aren’t you supposed to have at least two seasons of the Real Housewives franchise under your belt before the shit hits the fan and you try for a redemption arc?

What’s crazy is they could’ve been a wealthy couple just living a normal life. Without the shady dealings, they could’ve been typical upper east side millionaires, with a nice apartment and good schools and pretty clothes for everyone. The problem, as well elucidated in the Post article, is that the modern version of this UES/Tribeca/Hamptons rich person doesn’t want to just be a boring old rich person. They are constantly seeking more wealth and more attention.

Candice is already being sued by TITAN CAPITAL ID, LLC for a seven figure "personal guarantee" that she signed related to the house at 25 Cobb Isle Rd, Water Mill. Although the house was in his name, she personally guaranteed at least this one mortgage. The law suit was filed July 23rd. It notes that the property taxes on the house are in arrears and that they let the house insurance lapse, which violates the mortgage agreement, in addition to being in arrears on the actual mortgage.

She’s fucked. And it couldn’t happen to a more deserving cunt.

I love how the realtor only used one photo that barely shows the garage doors, artfully hidden by the leaves of a tree, 'cause they knew that's what we'd all be looking for!

Every month another $47,000 owed to the landlord of the apartment. Mortgages on the house. The furniture rentals. Now lawyers fees... who knows what kinds of credit card debit and other debts there are... she will burn through the life insurance quickly. But she probably has rich parents and rich siblings... and the surviving grandmother of the children (Brandon's mother) probably has some dough. So she'll be fine in the long run, but not like she thought she was!

[quote]Without the shady dealings, they could’ve been typical upper east side millionaires, with a nice apartment and good schools and pretty clothes for everyone.

A life that the vast majority of humanity would be thrilled with. But social climbing and social media made them crazy.

There was never any true wealth, just a couple of fabulous properties obtained due to family ties. $47,000 a month rent!!!

Maybe they should have sublet their apartment when they were summering in the Hamptons. It would have paid for the facials and a few pairs of flats from The Row, at least.

Exactly, R264. I’m the one who has commented as the UESer who is on the fringes of this crowd. My family is well off anywhere else in the world, but in this zip code we are merely upper middle class. Fine by us. In fact, preferable. I watch as my friends, many of whom were Candice’s friends, try so hard to keep up. It seems so exhausting to me, and I suspect it is to many of them as well. I’m often curious if maybe some of them were dorky in high school (I was not) and are therefore trying to reclaim something. Many of them have had lots of plastic surgery to make them look very different than they used to, adding weight to that theory.

Any TikToks of her talking to herself on a bench in the rain yet?

C'mon Candy, give us some content.

R263 apparently Brandon's father was also into some shady dealings and died unexpectedly (not suicide), but left a mountain of debt behind too; so not likely the grandkids will get much help there.

Also, Brandon's mother told the wife at shiva (traditional Jewish mourning) "you killed my son."

whatever, but she is cute and not ugly....on the outside.

They never had the wealth to be anywhere close to what they were pretending to be. Let alone in the stratosphere of the .01%

He killed himself over debt that amounts to pocket change for the very rich. Their collective debt is less than 1 year running costs of a super yacht. Why didn't his mother slap some sense into him or her daughter in law. YOU ARE NOT THAT RICH, YOU SILLY CUNT!

Another Anna Sorokin / Anna Delvey scenario.

Or, "How you say cucumber?"

Nothing to see here.

R254 you sound dumb. As to his real estate debt, there’s this thing called foreclosure and Ch. 11. As to his personal debt, there’s this thing called death. His balance sheet is now clean. Until he meets up with St. Peter…

She reminds me a little of Louise Blouin

I agree with all those among you who haven't shown even a smidgen of sympathy for this pair egotistical wannabes. They had more resources at their disposal than the vast majority of humanity will ever have and, instead of being content with their exceptionally generous lot in life, decided to squander it all on pretending to be billionaires, instead of "ordinary" multi-millionaires.

They could have done a lot of good in this world and instead, decided that playing Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous dress up was more important than anything else - even their own lives and other people's money. Sorry, but they don't deserve even a little bit of compassion. Imagine what the people who are dying of curable diseases, dying of hunger, escaping war or being sold into slavery would give to be in their place, and you'll be able to appreciate the extent of their selfishness.

As for their looks, he might have been cute at some point during his youth, but he was nothing to write home about in the pictures that have been posted here. I guess that engaging in ugly behavior in order to pretend that you're above everybody else, does take a toll on your looks. She is, however, the human equivalent of a rice cracker: indescribably dull and similar to every other utterly unremarkable person in history. Good luck to her, though; at her age, she'll have an extremely hard time coming out of this, because her reputation is shattered and unless a miracle happens, no one in her former social circle will want to get anywhere near her.

Don’t assume all of their friends even have the resources to bail her out. It’s likely many of them are engaging in the same smoke and mirrors, and even the ones that aren’t don’t have enough extra to get her to where she’d want to be. These are insanely expensive existences to maintain.

Have you seen Tracy Anderson? She has a banging body. Of course the husband would fuck her. The wife has terrible body

He has the same absent, internally frightened, emotionless look in his face/eyes as Madoff had.

I thought Tracy Anderson was a lesbo? Doesn't matter; the husband was fucking someone else, an associate of Tracy's.

Fucking over every person he did business with…he threw a mean fuck

The only people I have sympathy for in this are their children who didn't ask to be born and have probably been horribly parented.

The fact that there's inherited wealth in the pot makes this all even more disgusting.

Wow the pall of shadenfreude settles over both the Hamptons and DL. Well done!

Candice Miller on assistance.

Candice sings, to everyone’s dismay.

The one daughter looks just like her dad. If anything good comes out of this, maybe it's the daughters getting a crash course in living within your means.

She’s still young and relatively pretty. We shouldn’t underestimate her ability to latch onto another rich guy she will similarly bleed dry. I’ve known women like this. They are like a succubus who believe they deserve the best because when they grew up their mommy told them how special they were.

“Well, don’t look to me, Candace. All our money’s tied up in cash.”

The singing in the restaurant video is a year old. I see that this family's M.O. has been clocked and ridiculed for some time.

A wealthy friend who I haven't seen in 19 years posted this story with the note: We can never know what goes on inside the people we envy whose lives look golden.

I thought "Envy"? "Golden"? WTF is wrong with this person?

It allowed me to give up the ghost on this friendship and realize we had nothing in common.

r290 Your friend had the exact same (natural) reaction that most of us in this thread have to this story and to Insta influencers in general. He/She is better off without you.

They were never close to rich enough to live their .1% life. But the husband was a crook borrowing money from friends for pretend investments. He probably stopped paying all his bills a while ago. How could the wife not know? Bill collectors send letters and call. I’m surprised the parents couldn’t stop the train wreck before the end.

Why do people think the parents have so much money? It sounds like his dad was in the same spiral he was. Are her parents that rich? Being able to live in Manhattan and put a couple kids through fancy private schools doesn’t make you rich enough to cavort in the playgrounds these schmucks aspired to.

It says something about the husband that he would marry such an airhead- that video of her with her daughter was pathetic.

R71- He grew up rich and was NEVER successful at anything . He didn’t know how to invest and was just good at living beyond his means.

He had a hot ass, but he couldn't kite checks forever.

Oh dear, R90.

And R96 is an idiot. These two entitled fools deserve no sympathy, and that includes the suicide, which was an act of pure selfishness, with two children involved. This is no way a tragedy. More clickbait for the NY Times.

Why did I "oh dear," R90?

[quote] their white?

[quote]More clickbait for the NY Times.

It's a compelling story.

[quote]Don't assume all of their friends even have the resources to bail her out. It’s likely many of them are engaging in the same smoke and mirrors, and even the ones that aren’t don’t have enough extra to get her to where she’d want to be. These are insanely expensive existences to maintain.

Rich people don't help each other.

Actually R300, they do help each other when it comes to protecting their class privileges at everybody else's expense. However, you're right in the sense that when one of them stops being part of the 1%, they become one of the poor; which is to say, someone expendable who deserves to be exploited.

He killed himself because he couldn't take the shame of not being seen as a success by those in his social circle, from which the entire family would be excluded when the extent of his failures / financial crimes would be fully exposed. For him, not being one of the so-called beautiful people was worse than anything in this world, and death was preferable to becoming one of the plebs. She is a profoundly stupid and incredibly superficial narcissist, so she clung to her life of extreme privilege to the very end, refusing to see reality no matter what. Well, let's hope she has the ability to make a lot of money on her own, because otherwise her awakening into the reality of the 99% will be unusually painful.

Anyway, they're not deserving of pity.

R301 deserving of pity yes; sympathy, no.

Either his parents or hers will kick in with at least the tuition to keep the girls at the same school, and that's how she'll meet #2.

I've never known a rich person to support a friend or even a family member who has fallen on hard times. It is every man for himself. When someone is no longer rich it is as if he or she died. The insolvent person might be gossiped about for a while, especially if there is a scandal attached to the fall from grace, but soon that person ceases to exist.

R291, if you think envying people for having more toys is healthy, bully for you. I don't understand nor am I interested in people who stake their lives on living beyond their means, which also describes every housewife on the Bravo franchise. If that's your thing, fine. I am deliberately not saying something mean or cutting about you, which is why my friends value me,

I stopped reading the article because I couldn't abide these cunts; but is she really getting $15 million in insurance as well as selling the Hamptons house for an additional $15 million? Even if she doesn't see a dime from the sale of the mortgaged-to-the-hilt Hamptons property, did she actually make all that money off her dead hubby?

“She is a profoundly stupid and incredibly superficial narcissist,”

R306 should have written the Times article

He had a great ass (and cute face) but he wasn't going to live forever.

I’ve noticed that many straight men cannot resist childish, “cute,” Daddy’s girl entitled women. They almost always always have the same look, too. I’m glad I’m not a straight man.

I’m assuming he was the kind of guy who doesn’t want to be the bad guy and is happy to be led to avoid ever having to shoulder the blame / responsibility of being the navigator. Having a socially aggressive wife takes all the pressure off him. But it’s a choice. He’s not forced into it, he chose a partner that would do it for him. I don’t see him as her victim. He could have married a nice dentist who would have raised healthy kids and cooked dinner a few nights a week and been kind to the 1x/week housekeeper.

He was probably a lot more pleasant to be around than her, judging from his embarrassment in her singing video. But he was on board.

Straight men are weak, as a general rule, in the face of it (or her).

He was so tall. I bet that thang was slangin'.

Sometimes, Dolores...

Candice would be a wonderful addition to the Real Housewives of New York City.

R306 the house was forceclosed upon and had multiple mortgages on it. She won't get a dime from its sale.

#2, r303???

She looks older than Madonna at r113. AND two brats?

Her prospects are zilch.

I must be sexist because I don't like the M.O. of the mother or the father but I pity the father who offed himself. I have empathy for all of the survivors of course. The mother is quite reprehensible. She must be mentally ill to let herself turn into such a repulsive materialistic twat.

You’re right that all of these women look the same, R309. And their “style” is so boring

Too bad he didn’t have a supportive realistic wife. I’d say she was a trophy wife with that attitude but she’s not that pretty.

He was supposed to be the MAN of the family and take control of the situation.

R320 - Maybe he was supposed to bend over and take it like a man.

Thackeray, Fitzgerald, Tom Wolfe, Jonathan Franzen and now this dumber still Instagram version of the old story in which any cleverness, any insight, any reflection, any hint of substance is replaced with luxury brand shopping "stories" and $144,000-$180,000 a year in furniture rentals.

Nice end note though with the husband sending the wife and kids off to a flashy Tuscan vacation knowing the credit cards were no good and that the trip would be further punctuated by his suicide.

I still don’t get it. What did the wife use to purchase food at airport? Kids are constantly asking for things; what was she using for everyday expenses? If he needed to borrow one thousand dollars at the end, what were her last few months like? On the UES or in the Hamptons with two kids, you can spend two hundred dollars by just leaving the house.

She ruined his life, he ruined her vacation.

Well, if we feel like racking up huge amounts of forever debt, we can live almost as good and them!

[quote] I still don’t get it. What did the wife use to purchase food at airport? Kids are constantly asking for things; what was she using for everyday expenses? If he needed to borrow one thousand dollars at the end,

I'm guessing she was using credit cards.

Why did he need $1,000 cash? Cocaine? Who knows.

The credit cards were shut off during their trip. And they flew private, now waiting in public airports with the unwashed masses for them!

R318 that’s how good an influencer she was! Now, pay up.

The Hamptons are so tacky. These people have no idea how crass they are and how people with generational wealth behave.

Truth be told I spent a summer week there (adjacent, as the house was in Shinnecock Bay) in 2020 during the worst of COVID, and it was heavenly …everyone on their best behavior (honest).

I love Cooper’s Beach!

I'm looking forward to the Lifetime treatment this will get. Loved Murder In The Hamptons (Generosa would've eaten this b!tch whole). Hell, there may be a Max or Netflix bit on these asses too!

Well geographically The Hamptohs are lovely. Most of the people who live there are average joes. It’s the “fabulous” crowd and the intense social scene that makes it lame. In parts of Manhattan, there is a high school level of pressure to partake, with trendy clothes and cliques to go with it.

He killed himself while they were away R214. He didn’t send them away.

R263 She might be fine in some ways. But she'll always have that ;poseur stink on her. She will never get invited to the A list parties again. She'll have to get job. I suspect she'll move to Florida. Maybe a family condo in Boca. She needs to start over again. She must evolve into something other than a greedy cunt.

Jobs for Candice:

Psychic

Party Planner

Lifestyle Coach

OnlyFans

High-priced escort

Beard

R322- Renting furniture for $122,000 per year

1/4 of that money to BUY furniture is more than adequate. These two - especially the wife had NO respect for money.

Real estate agent

If my girl wasn't already a big drinker, she is well on her way by now. Massive alcoholism in her future. A dried up old and broke widow. "Bitter party of one" will fill her new social calendar.

why didn't she ask her parents for money?

My fear is that in our gross society, She will actually profit off this. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone has already offered her a book deal

Most people could easily live on $15mm for the rest of their lives.

Assuming that you earned even a paltry 6%, that's $900K per year. After taxes, that's $540K. Assuming that you'd want to reinvest part of that, to be sure you don't outlive your money, let's say you're left with $420K and reinvest $120K (or put into a liquid savings account so you don't have to panic sell during a short downturn).

That leaves $35K/month. Sure, if you're used to spending obscene amounts of money, $35K/month is poverty. However, most people could live very well on half that amount.

She / they were spending $684,000 per year just on rent (UES apt. @ $47K per month) and rented furniture (~$10K per month).

She / they should have been focusing on their daughters' educations.

Welcome to reduced circumstances, Widow Miller.

R341 wouldn’t survive a quarter share in the Hamptons—poor dear.

Maybe Ruth Madoff is looking for a roommate or caregiver.

how gay that you all blame the cute wife and not the handsome husband.

Where's the cute wife?

The daughters are both in private school, r342, which are now in the 65k ballpark.

R346 We were raised not to speak ill of the dead.

[quote]We were raised not to speak ill of the dead.

Boy, are you in the wrong place.

R348 is that a Brearley-type school or a Barron-type school?

Inquiring mind wants to know.

[quote] [R254] you sound dumb. As to his real estate debt, there’s this thing called foreclosure and Ch. 11. As to his personal debt, there’s this thing called death. His balance sheet is now clean. Until he meets up with St. Peter…

You stupid bitch, I'm a lawyer!!! Chapter 11 is for business reorgs, or for people with too much wealth for a Chapter 13. You cannot discharge ANY debt in BK that was incurred due to intentional malfeasance or fraud. For dummies like you, that means if you intentionally make misrepresentations to defraud a creditor and secure an extension of credit, that debt cannot be discharged in bankruptcy...ever. Moreover, a Chapter 11 bankruptcy repayment plan can last for a very long time and if you default the creditor can go back to the court and vacate your BK discharge.

Do you think he would have killed himself if he could have discharged his debts in Bankruptcy, moron?! You sound like a senior finance adviser for the Trump Organization.

The "Interiors" house is at the link in R275!

Here's an inventory of the furniture from one of the court cases...

Dr. Grande did a non-incisive analysis of this couple. He's usually sympathetic towards women, even with Jodi Arias. Anyway, his take is that the husband was living vicariously through the wife. Huh?

Frankie Grande is a doctor now?!?!

R355 Yeah I was excited when I saw he did a video on them, but let down over how shallow his analysis was. He should've taken his time on it more.

I don’t really see why this is news. These people are a dime a dozen.

It is interesting gossip, though.

Does the house's selling price include the suicide discount?

It's disgusting that the 15M will be paid out. She'll just piss most of it away on Chanel and facials.

R341- How is a 6% return nowadays paltry?

R304 is Candy Spelling.

R351, they are at a coed school. Not top tier (i.e. not a Spence or Trinity or Brearley), but it’s close. Doesn’t matter, they all cost over 60 K these days.

Rumor has it they are moving to Boca or West Palm.

[quote] She should do charity work and devote herself to her girls.

Um, why? Why would you want to dump this woman on people in need of charity?

How about she just gets a job?

Charity work would have been expected to keep up the illusion of wealth. Was she an active philanthropist previously? Something tells me not. The fact that they threw a 10th anniversary party for themselves says all I need to know about her. Rich people do throw lavish parties but always tied to charity and never to celebrate themselves.

I never understand the American obsession with “charity work”. Charity work - now - would be a redemption angle.

She doesn’t need to do be Lady Bountiful, doing good works for the needy.

She needs to live an honest, responsible life,

[quote]Rumor has it they are moving to Boca or West Palm.

She can work at Maga-Lardo.

Hard to feel sympathy for either one of these two. Taking the daughters off to Europe, after what she learned about her husband's finances? She's heartless and lying about the extent of what she knew.

She must be taking lessons from Ruth Madoff.

[quote] Rich people do throw lavish parties but always tied to charity and never to celebrate themselves.

That's a pretty sweeping statement, R365.

Dr. Grande said that the wife socialized with Ivanka Trump.

Who is Dr. Grande?

YouTuber. He does analyses on cases, mostly the kind that end up in court.

[quote] I'm looking forward to the Lifetime treatment this will get. Loved Murder In The Hamptons (Generosa would've eaten this b!tch whole). Hell, there may be a Max or Netflix bit on these asses too!

I wouldn't be surprised if there is a podcast series on it.

It's honestly too bad he forgot about the rundown town in Pennsylvania they'd bought as a lark. They could have moved to the fleabag motel there for a few years until they figured out their next act.

R352 Dear Star Jones, did you graduate from Bib Jines Univ. Law…?

The point of the earlier comment: presumably he placed all of the real estate interests in LLCs (or LPs), for which, without a personal guaranty, he would not be directly liable no matter what fraud may have been committed.

Best, Al

Bib Jins = Bob Jones 😎

The root of this couple’s problem was stupidity.

There are loads of people doing this sort of thing, even worse, and many will get away with it for their whole lives. This couple, both of them just weren’t very bright in the end.

I also feel like they screwed over the wrong person. This whole scandal/NYTimes explosion feels like a burn.

"NYTimes explosion" ? "Feels like a burn."?

that bitch deserves to have her life - her supreme greed and avarice - set on fire for all to see. She spent how many years rubbing people's noses in how glamorous her Hamptons lifestyle was. But it was all just smoke and mirrors. And now her children get to grow up without a father because she wanted to keep the charade and facade going.

Some of the best acting you will see.

Damn. Wrong thread

If wifey wants to give the kids half a chance she will change their names and move somewhere where they can start over. Socially and academically the kids are radioactive and will never get a chance to overcome this if their mother continues to have a high profile presence.

Egads she even has the same smug face as Hilaria complete with self satisfied smile and arched eyebrow.

With all the videos and photos she posted, no one has come up with a more interesting photo of him?

I guess she doesn't seem so bad; at least she makes her own money

^ Oh daddy! Dr. Han Jo Kim is gorgeous.

[quote] [R352] Dear Star Jones, did you graduate from Bib Jines Univ. Law…? The point of the earlier comment: presumably he placed all of the real estate interests in LLCs (or LPs), for which, without a personal guaranty, he would not be directly liable no matter what fraud may have been committed.

[quote] Best, Al

You silly f@ggot! Save us all some time and do a Google search. If you engage in fraud or intentional malfeasance the law does not protect you. Partners in LLCs, Corporate proprietors and Bankruptcy debtors are all PERSONALLY LIABLE for fraud and intentional misconduct.

Remember that the next time you trick a young, glamorous, successful God-fearing Christian woman into a fake marriage. I no longer "presume" anything since I was victimized by your sodomite treachery.

I want Dr Han Jo Kim in me, quite deeply

R388 pierce that corporate veil, if you can! He’s dead! DEAD I tell ya!

Fer chrissakes.

It won’t be that deep!

This is the most “Great Gatsby” sentence I’ve ever read (from the article:)

That Mr. Miller’s death occurred in the Hamptons during the height of the social season almost certainly has added to the intrigue.

R392 Well, it certainly fucked up the seating plan for my next garden luncheon. Now who am I going to sit Manuel next to?!

R392 it was better in the original German: “And so we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."

Gatsby had plenty of money when the story happens. As did Tom and Daisy.

Plot twist: they all lost their $. There was no happy ending!

[quote] My fear is that in our gross society, She will actually profit off this. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone has already offered her a book deal

I wouldn't be surprised if she got a book deal.

No book deal…just some Viagra dick that smells like a Strand Books discount shelf.

Original German, R394?

Are you not familiar with sarcasm Or humor? Google is your friend…

From a German website! 🫣

good humor dies not require a Google search, R400.

R400, it's Ivins, not Irvins. That convention was 32 years ago, perhaps the other poster doesn't remember it.

And the National Review *wishes* she had only one good line. Huh.

[quote] Gatsby had plenty of money when the story happens. As did Tom and Daisy.

That's true, but I could somehow see all three of them losing their money. I could see Gatsby getting back to hustling and I could see Tom and Daisy borrowing and fronting, smoke and mirrors.

You could see?

Maybe that was good enough for a 2 on the AP.

[quote] [R388] pierce that corporate veil, if you can! He’s dead! DEAD I tell ya! Fer chrissakes.

Death is immaterial. The only thing his creditors cannot touch are life insurance proceeds. Anything funded by his personal or company assets can be used to satisfy judgments to creditors.

I will destroy you!

I’m confident she will remarry some sap who is a good person and feels some empathy. He’ll be “her rock” and she will return to social media with some sort of business that is either involved with charities or planning events.

Psychic pic of her second marriage.

(Trigger warning required for R409's photo)

so this is all a modern american dream.

I want what I’m entitled to dammit!

Maybe, r408 but not in NY. No one is going to want to associate with her, she’s radioactive. She needs to try to start over somewhere else.

That's incredible, r406. Everything personal he had was likely funded by some form of theft or fraud, including his insurance policy payments. I hope at least some of his creditors try to push.

Release the hounds!

The whole US life/death insurance policy culture is beyond fucked up.

While everyone is blaming the wife the husband is just as culpable:

1. He lied to his wife along with his attorney about the state of their finances.

2. He sent his wife and two kids to Italy for a vacation he could not pay for. The travel agency had to cover the hotel expenses.

3. He never admitted to cheating his childhood friend out of 1 million dollars. He just cried and apologized without admitting any wrongdoing.

4. He borrowed money and then attended a polo match and barbecue right before his death.

This dude sounded like he was thisclose to being a family alienator

People like him are scary fuckers

The husband sucked just as much as the wife did. I wonder if the friend could see the estate.

Socialite influencer wife of financier Brandon Miller lists Hamptons estate and flees for Miami after his suicide

she's listing the house for 15 million dollars

actually, SHE is not, r419. The bank is. It was foreclosed on.

Her parents have cash, so she and her kids are going to be okay.

Someone on here called it…

Not sure if my post worked. Apologies if re-posted.

Sounds like the sister took her in. In the photo with her sister, she really does look just like Hilaria.

[quote]Sources reported that ahead of her planned move to Miami, Miller has been sighted out in the Hamptons. She attended a perfume launch for her friend, fitness guru Tracy Anderson last week, and was seen dining at hotspot Tutto Il Giorno in Sag Harbor.

As one does...

She'll probably be married to some older rich Florida guy in a year or two.

"Look out Chanel Miami!"

The Widow Miller

She'll be caught shoplifting.

Miami DLers (if there are any): BOLO (be on the lookout) for Candice and do post any unflattering pics here.

You can leave the kids out of the pics, though.

[quote]She attended a perfume launch for her friend, fitness guru Tracy Anderson last week, and was seen dining at hotspot Tutto Il Giorno in Sag Harbor.

And this was just after her husband's tragic suicide? COLD BLOODED.

Seriously. The husband died mere weeks ago, and she feels up to attending a perfume launch and dining at a hot spot?

Yeah, real "soul mate" there.

R431 well did you expect her to sit at home? She has a new social media “brand” to launch and she needs selfies!

That she recently went to perfume launch tells you everything you need to know about this woman and her social circle. Her husband has been dead for a month. Her daughters must be in constant grief. A massively embarrassing report just came out in the nation’s most prominent paper. And she goes to a fucking PERFUME LAUNCH?! Unreal.

It’s perfectly ON-BRAND of her!

r11, it's 30% of the estate.

I can't believe Tracy Anderson has a perfume.

My favorite Tracy Anderson quote was when regarding Lens Dunham she said she couldn’t wait for Girls to be finished so she could get her hands on Lens and slim her down.

R436, is it called Man-arms?

Her sister seems legit rich but might be another fraud. Who knows?

Sweat. By Tracy Anderson.

Deception. By Candice Miller.

R433, you are so insensitive! She hasn't had any Me Time since her husband's accident, with all the grieving relatives and fraud accusations and various other inconveniences. She needs to live Her Truth and be allowed to experience widowhood in a beautiful way that reflects Who She Really Is. God, some of you people are so fixated on unimportant things, that you end up missing what's truly essential in life.

Signed,

One of Candice's "friends", getting ready to lunch at Duryea's Montauk and have dinner at Tutto Il Giorno's later on - Candice pays, as long as she's allowed to post everything on Instagram

She’s definitely going to be on the prowl in Palm Beach this winter. Taboo is re-opening and she wouldn’t miss that!

She is ugly and broke. Why would anyone marry her?

Does Tracy Anderson have fake tits? She's in great shape

I’VE BEEN KIDNAPPED BY KMART!

I bet he had a “both hands” kind of cock.

R416 surely you need the word annihilator not alienator.

She's addicted to social media. Her next thing will be "Starting Over," then in a year or so "Blended Family" (with her new husband).

then "Broke Again".

She might try to land a reality show gig.

I'd bang her six ways from Sunday.

Deceased hubby was not successful, but he was still out of wife’s league. She’s not attractive, accomplished, or intelligent. She appears to be actively annoying/trashy and was raising the kids to be the same. How did he end up married to her?

She has a five head.

Deceased husband looked like an upgraded version of Kellyanne Conway's husband, George Conway.

No, he was cute!

Well, then, his wife was cute, too!

How did he/they manage to get a lease for that apartment? Somebody didn't do their due diligence.

Wow and you can see Brandon’s weight fluctuating in his photos too. Probably a lot of stress eating. Must’ve pissed her off though.

Can someone start a gofundme for legal counsel so his creditors can access the $15M insurance payout?

Having a major story written in the NYTimes about your life, your partner and your ruin and their suicide, and being talked about and razzed all over the internet… it all must be a mixed bag of emotions for her. She always was a social media addict.

I know she deleted all her social media when it happened. Still… in this Real Housewives kind of era. I think we can all agree she’s a tad soulless, no?

Mixed emotions.

R461 Agree. She’s got mixed emotions about it all.

Delete this bitch.

R461 R462 In her head the wheels are turning.

He looked the type to not only have a huge cock but also a heavy set of low hangers.

according to reports i've read, they knew each other from childhood or high school or something like that.

I can’t explain the vapidity of her crowd. If you’ve never experienced it, you truly can’t imagine. It’s middle aged moms acting like the most narcissistic teenager you’ve ever met. These women post pictures of their outfits ten times a day. They style their kids the same way. If you have any interest, look at the insta for Rebecca cohen, the founder of love shack fancy. She is one of the ringleaders. Marcella Hymowitz is another. Candice’s own cousin, Arielle Charnas, is a third.

R467 Thanks. Did not disappoint.

Wow, they all have the same long hair and butterfaces. Cohen’s account is everything wrong with women on social media. It infantilizes them.

Arielle’s husband seems…shady…his name is Brandon as well 🤨🤔😒

Are they all just Trumpians in the end?

I blame Ronald Reagan.

Probably performative democrats.

Not so sure. In my experience, a lot of people in real estate are right wingers. Just look at how many of Jan 6 people were realtors.

Every person in real estate I've met is a Trumper, too.

what happened with his partner? The partner was left over from when his dad owned the company?

video at r158 missing?

r188 she reminds me of Hilaria

None of this is new, other than these gals posting their selfies on social media.

They have always existed in NYC, the Hamptons, Miami, West Palm Beach, Beverly Hills, Malibu, Encino, etc.

Back in the 80s, everyone called them JAPs. If you’ve ever known some of them, you’d know that it is their parents who push them into all of this, right along with the men they end up marrying. It’s an ecosystem founded upon getting their daughters married to nice Jewish boys who come from very well to do families, with the goal of popping out kids within 2 years or less after the honeymoon. Most are vapid, yet completely harmless, the husbands sign right up to the entire lifestyle as well. It’s what the boys & girls are groomed to do, it’s what’s expected from them, & some succeed, while others don’t.

As a quick aside: what on earth has happened to the Olsen sisters? They literally resemble Halloween cartoon characters in some of this set’s social media pics.

"Every person in real estate I've met is a Trumper, too."

It takes a thief to know a thief.

Absolutely, R479. It is basically JAP culture. I would argue, however, that the social media element isn’t a small change. It speaks to the worst instincts of this culture, forces comparison that creates basket cases, and leads to chasing an even more unobtainable reality.

The Olsen twins have looked bad for a very long time.

The Olsen twins are creepy dolls.

She gets way more currency out of being a tragic widow rather than the inevitable first ex-wife she would have been within a few years.

R135, but it was specifically a show on comfort food. What did you expect? I don't know if you're an American, but if you are, you must know that what we call comfort food here is all very rich - mac and cheese, meat loaf, mashed potatoes, fried chicken and sweet, rich desserts. It wouldn't be comforting if it was a bunch of steamed vegetables and brown rice.

[quote]It wouldn't be comforting if it was a bunch of steamed vegetables and brown rice.

Nomi Malone has entered the chat!

Widow sued for unpaid rent

R487- It bugs me that this VAPID NIT WIT got off scot free and is now living in a $10 million apartment in Miami.

Naturally she moves to Florida, along with all the other dirtball scumbags living there.

She didn't earn money from her instagram account so why have it?

The wife is annoying, vapid, superficial & an exhibitionist who placed herself out here for various forms of ridicule, HOWEVER, the husband knowingly participated in fraud and theft all on his own, & didn’t need her assistance in doing so.

Someone up thread correctly stated that there are MANY people living on the invisible edge, and this is not as unusual as others think, & I’d even say common place at a certain point when building and maintaining wealth of this type.

The husband did not have the nerves of steel, coupled with the all out sociopathy required to pull it all off. Even more than once, if required.

He wasn’t a good fit for any of it, hence it ended very poorly.

Ironically, I do believe that the wife could have survived it had she been the one in his shoes.

R491- They were both perfect examples of rich RIFF RAFF