My Dinner With Jack.

March 28, 2006 1:05 PM

My Dinner With Jack."Three years ago, I had dinner with now the now infamous lobbyist Jack Abramoff (really). I sat down at his now infamous restaurant Signatures, he told me and amazing and wildly improbable story about how he made Red Scorpion and I never heard from him again." [via mefi projects]
posted by delmoi (31 comments total)

What a great and hilarious story.
posted by Optimus Chyme at 1:14 PM on March 28, 2006

I just finished reading this after seeing the projects post, and was thinking about posting it to the blue myself. It is hilarious and fascinating. Why are people who are the biggest assholes also usually the most fun to be around (in small doses)?
posted by ND¢ at 1:15 PM on March 28, 2006

That's priceless. Here's a trailer.
posted by brundlefly at 1:20 PM on March 28, 2006

No mention of Red Scorpion 2? Fighting the neo-Nazis? What's amazing is that Jack Abramoff is like one giant caricature of the neo-conservative. Fighting commies in Africa, fighting neo-Nazis, ripping off Indians...
posted by geoff. at 1:21 PM on March 28, 2006

A great piece. But I can't help but feel that as a good apparatchik, Bill Kristol is trying to smear Abramoff as a cuckoo outsider when he was, in fact, a major player and rainmaker in the Republican money machine for years.
posted by bardic at 1:23 PM on March 28, 2006

I just finished reading that on projects too, clicked back to the the blue and there it was. Nice. I think "My Dinner with Jack" would make a wonderful film.....

"You got a clean suit?"
posted by R. Mutt at 1:29 PM on March 28, 2006

Great story. Thanks.

But I can't help but feel that as a good apparatchik, Bill Kristol is trying to smear Abramoff as a cuckoo outsider when he was, in fact, a major player and rainmaker in the Republican money machine for years.

Well, hopefully Herminator will speak to that directly. I will only say that I did not interpret this piece as a "smear" of Abramoff, and I don't think it portrayed him as "cuckoo." If anything, it humanized him.
posted by pardonyou? at 1:32 PM on March 28, 2006

.
posted by russilwvong at 2:18 PM on March 28, 2006

That was awesome.
posted by birdie birdington at 2:31 PM on March 28, 2006

I'm really honored; kind words from the MeFi community do mean a lot.

And on that note, to answer Bardic's question, there really is no agenda at work here as far Abramoff is concerned. Pardonyou basically has it right -- I didn't come to praise Jack or to bury him. However, I think humanizing him does help illuminate how the lobbying racket works.
posted by Heminator at 2:51 PM on March 28, 2006

there really is no agenda at work here as far Abramoff is concerned

The agenda here, clearly, is Herminator's angling for that book job.
posted by soiled cowboy at 4:04 PM on March 28, 2006

And I meant to add: Great article, Herminator.
posted by soiled cowboy at 4:05 PM on March 28, 2006

Great story.

I like people like this, entertaining scum, until I find out that while I was laughing out at the bar, my house has been possessed by baliffs, my wife raped and my children sold into slavery for three generations.

But he told that one about the big muscly guy - with p-ros-ti-tutes!
posted by lalochezia at 4:06 PM on March 28, 2006

lalochezia: ??? What on earth are you referring to?
posted by clockworkjoe at 4:17 PM on March 28, 2006

*cuts off lalochezia*
posted by swell at 4:23 PM on March 28, 2006

A good story beautifully written, Herminator. Not exactly a 'project' perhaps (, but more than worthy of a front page post.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 4:39 PM on March 28, 2006

Heminator.
posted by russilwvong at 5:02 PM on March 28, 2006

That was rad, man... thanks for posting it.
posted by ph00dz at 5:08 PM on March 28, 2006

Note that his handle is "Heminator," not "Herminator."

It is an awesome piece, by the way.
posted by kindall at 5:17 PM on March 28, 2006

Not exactly a 'project'...

I disagree. I think that the cover article of a major political magazine counts as a project stavrosthewonderchicken (and starting it off in Projects was exactly the way to deal with it).
posted by R. Mutt at 5:22 PM on March 28, 2006

Great article, or rather great story!

I think you should still write the book, just 'fictionalize' it a bit. Or, talk to other people who were around at that time and make it a non-fiction.

Or turn it into a screenplay. That thing has hit written all over it.
posted by cell divide at 5:35 PM on March 28, 2006

Hey guys, there's a rumour going around that his username is 'Heminator' rather than 'Herminator'. Confirm/Deny?

I disagree.

That's fine. I wasn't looking to argue about it.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 5:38 PM on March 28, 2006

I'm gonna go with Herninator.

Great article.
posted by graventy at 6:27 PM on March 28, 2006

That's what you call a story that will buy you dinner for years to come. Of course, it seems it was that way for Jack as well. ;-)

Heminator. For Hemingway.

See also the WaPo profile of Abramoff from December.
posted by dhartung at 7:03 PM on March 28, 2006

Great story, very well told.
That was fun.
Thanks.
posted by bru at 7:09 PM on March 28, 2006

Actually when you think about the bigger picture, a movie about the making of a B-movie would be fun.

One can see a Christopher Guest mockumentary, Best of Abramoff, thing working. Or not. Work with me people!

I see this starting with Jack in prison. The story grows out in flash backs from there. This then tells what must be one hell of a story about Jack, framed in the making of the making, of Red Scorpion.

Hemingway come out here to California, you won't even need a clean suit.
posted by BillyElmore at 7:55 PM on March 28, 2006

NICE JOB HERNIATOR

Just kidding. I really enjoyed the article, Heminator; maybe you can write a book about the book about the making of the B-movie.
posted by jenovus at 7:59 PM on March 28, 2006

Heminator,

are you related to hemingway?

if not kudos to the art crew for splicing in that out of africa scene as the cover. Also, can't believe i was the first person to notice that.
posted by sourbrew at 10:28 PM on March 28, 2006

Terrific article.

It's worth noting, peripherally, that Jonas Savimbi turned out not to be such a great guy. From the BBC obit: "Some of the harshest criticism has come from those who once knew and admired Savimbi, but have since admitted they were duped by his charisma into overlooking serious character flaws."
posted by ibmcginty at 7:00 AM on March 29, 2006

Awesome.
posted by elderling at 7:25 AM on March 29, 2006

I laughed. Great writing, Heminator!
posted by applemeat at 11:41 AM on March 29, 2006