Watching the credit crisis destroy Wall Street this week, it was hard not to think of the mortgage episode of “This American Life,” which aired many months ago.
Clarence Nathan: I wouldn’t have loaned me the money. And nobody that I know would have loaned me the money. I know guys who are criminals who wouldn’t loan me that and they break your knee-caps. I don’t know why the bank did it. I’m serious … 540 thousand dollars to a person with bad credit.
Glen Pizzolorusso (a mortgage broker in upstate New York): We rolled up to Marquee at midnight with a line, 500 people deep out front. Walk right up to the door: Give me my table. Sitting next to Tara Reid and a couple of her friends. Christina Aguilera was doing some, I’m-Christina-Aguilera-and-I’m-gonna-get-up-and-sing kind of thing. Who else was there? Cuba Gooding and that kid from Filthy Rich: Cattle Drive. What was that kid’s name? Fabian Barabia? We ordered 3, 4 bottles of Cristal at $1,000 per bottle. They bring it out, you know they’re walking through the crowd, they’re holding the bottles over their heads. There’s fire crackers , sparklers. You know, the little cocktail waitresses. You know so you order 3 or 4 bottles of those and they’re walking through the crowd and everyone’s like: Whoa, who’s the cool guys? We were the cool guys. They gave me the black card with my name on it. There’s probably 10 in existence.
Thanks to Peter Cochran and my twin brother Wes for reminding me about this episode, nearly simultaneously.
I searched for a picture of Glen Pizzolorusso but he’s nowhere to be found…