She was a pillar of society. Now her only child could find himself a social pariah – and possibly at the center of a criminal case.
Anthony Marshall, son of 104-year-old Brooke Astor, could face a criminal investigation, lose control of one of the richest estates in the city, and be forced to pay restitution if bombshell allegations made in court prove true.
Marshall, 82, has been accused of being neglectful in caring for his mother and of pillaging her assets. His own son and several friends of the society doyenne have stepped in, asking that he be removed as her guardian.
In a sharp turn in the case last week, Astor’s legal guardians filed papers alleging the last two signed codicils, amendments to her will, were faked or forced.
And Astor’s lawyers asked the court to appoint handwriting experts to investigate the signatures.
“There appear to be improprieties associated with these documents, which need to be examined now,” Astor’s court-appointed lawyer, Susan Robbins, stated in the papers.
Experts say the bitter case may turn into a criminal matter if signatures on Astor’s will, worth $82 million, are found to be questionable.
“Forging a will is pretty serious . . . The district attorney would probably be interested in this case,” said the New York State Bar Association’s elder-law chief, Ellen Makofsky, adding that Marshall could be forced to pay restitution if found at fault.
Makofsky said that while neither Anthony nor his wife, Charlene, 61, may have personally committed the alleged forgery, they may know how it happened.
The Marshalls’ lawyer, Kenneth Warner, lashed out over the claims.
“I’m offended by this question because it dignifies worthless and fictitious allegations. There were multiple unrelated witnesses to Mrs. Astor’s signature in every instance and lawyers always present, too,” he told The Post.
“The forgery claim is a shameless invention. So is every other claim of wrongdoing.”
This is the latest salacious allegation in the Astor saga, which has stunned New York society since Astor’s grandson, Philip Marshall, filed a petition in state Supreme Court on July 20 accusing his father of elder abuse and getting rich off his mother’s money.
After hearing Philip’s evidence, Judge John Stackhouse appointed Annette de la Renta and JPMorgan Chase as Astor’s temporary guardians, and an investigation was launched.
Lawyers for Astor allege that signs that Marshall was liquidating his mother’s assets began about 10 years ago when he allegedly sold Astor’s beloved painting “Flags Fifth Avenue” for $10 million.
Then, in 2003, according to allegations in the court papers, Charlene set up a meeting with estate and probate lawyer Francis X. Morrissey, who once was hit with a two-year suspension by the New York State Bar Association for overcharging a client – and who has faced several complaints that he ripped off other elderly clients.
In court papers, he denies any wrongdoing and claims a close friendship with Astor. He says they share a love of “museums, libraries, etc.”
Upon hiring Morrissey, Anthony dumped Astor’s longtime lawyer of 40 years, Henry Christensen.
Shortly after, Astor signed over her $5.5 million estate in Maine to her son, who promptly signed it over to Charlene. Charlene had once lived in Maine with her first husband, the Rev. Paul Gilbert.
Astor also signed a check to Anthony for Charlene for about $5 million to make sure she was “provided for,” court papers filed this month state.
Meanwhile, Astor’s health was rapidly deteriorating, and sources close to the case say she could not have been competent enough to understand the upheaval.
In February 2004, Astor, who wrote in two biographies that she had been a horrible mother to Anthony, appeared to grow more generous not only financially but also emotionally.
At a Knickerbocker Club lunch, she made a short speech declaring her love for the couple, adding that Anthony had “never asked me for anything.”
Instead of speaking off the cuff or reading from a handwritten note on her personal letterhead, as was her habit, the speech was typewritten under two Chinese characters that translate to “motherly love.”
A source familiar with the investigation claims Morrissey may have composed the speech for her.
“It’s not her voice,” another source close to the case said of the tone of the remarks.
Shortly afterward, Anthony sacked Astor’s long-time office aide, Alice Perdue.
Perdue told reporters Anthony forced her to sign checks for a total of nearly $1 million from Astor’s personal account to the Marshalls’ failing theater-production business.
Warner said that Astor was fully aware of the transactions and that she supports her son and daughter-in-law’s theatrical pursuits.
Morrissey, meanwhile, oversaw two codicils to Astor’s will. And in March 2006, Robbins states in court papers, Marshall agreed to split $4.9 million in “executor’s commissions” with Charlene and Morrissey when his mother dies.
Friends of Philip Marshall told reporters that he was watching these developments with interest but that learning of the agreement among these three led him to file the shocking lawsuit.
In it, he alleged that his father denied Astor such everyday items as medicine and no-slip socks. The petition also claims that Astor was forced to sleep in ratty nightgowns on a smelly, urine-stained couch.
In rebuttal, Warner, the lawyer for Anthony Marshall, submitted 13 photos of Astor’s Park Avenue apartment that show a well-maintained home with clean and pressed nightgowns on hangers and a clean-looking couch.
Additional reporting by Stefanie Cohen
THE BROOKE ASTOR SAGA
1979 Anthony Marshall becomes Astor’s money manager.
1996 Marshall sells Astor’s beloved painting “Flags Fifth Avenue” for $10 million.
1997 The Vincent Astor Foundation closes.
2003 * Astor’s longtime lawyer is dumped, and Marshall brings in once-suspended lawyer Francis X. Morrissey.
* Astor signs over her $5.5 million Maine mansion to Marshall, who in turn gives it to his wife. Astor also signs over $3.4 million in securities.
2004 * Feb. 10: Astor praises her son in a speech allegedly composed by Morrissey.
* Marshall sacks Astor’s longtime office aide and pays himself four times his regular salary for managing his
mother’s money.
2006 March: The Marshalls enter into an agreement to share $4.9 million in “executor’s commissions” with Morrissey upon Astor’s death.
TRUTH?
The allegations against Anthony Marshall regarding his treatment of his mother, 104-year-old society doyenne Brooke Astor, include:
* Elder abuse: Denying the ailing Astor her medicine, cosmetics, clothes, favorite foods and access to her dogs, while forcing her to sleep in ratty nightgowns on a smelly, urine-soaked couch
* Selling assets: Stocks, real estate and artwork are in question
* Skimming: Paying himself four times his usual salary for managing his mother’s estate in 2005
* Forgery: Investigators are looking into whether Astor’s final two signatures on her last will and testament were forged or coerced, as well as whether Astor’s last public speech, declaring her love for her son, was composed by her shady lawyer, Francis X. Morrissey.
CONSEQUENCES
What Anthony Marshall could face:
* Criminal charge of forgery, which carries a sentence of up to 15 years in prison
* Loss of guardianship as caretaker of his mother’s $82 million estate
* Loss of power of attorney and health-care proxy as caretaker of his mother’s health and personal future
* Payback of tens of millions if found guilty of skimming or forgery