As AP publishing industry correspondent Hillel Italie reported yesterday, Judith Regan‘s former temp claims she overheard that phone call, and if Carmen del Toro is to be believed, Regan never uttered the phrase “Jewish cabal” during her conversation with HarperCollins attorney Mark Jackson. Italie gets a somewhat unusual response from Harper to this evidentiary claim, raised by Regan’s lawyer, Bert Fields, late last week; rather than a simple, corporately bland refutation, spokeperson Erin Crum is quoted as telling the press, “We respect Bert’s loyalty to his client, but unfortunately he continues to be terribly misinformed about the facts.” Zing!
In other Regan news, Art Buchwald files a weird column, which makes the non-controversial assertion that firing Regan just before Christmas was wrong, even if she is a “bad Santa,” and even if Rupert Murdoch didn’t much like her, then suggests a solution: “Judith Regan still sits on the bench. She doesn’t get to play, but she has a very good seat for basketball games.” At least it proves Buchwald’s not the sort to hold grudges; Bert Fields is the guy who repped Paramount in its appeal of Buchwald’s famous lawsuit over Coming to America.
And finally, Sarah says: Radar’s Jeff Bercovici has the scoop on Regan’s latest radio show, where she offered clues (be they serious or facetious) to her future plans. “I’m moving to Dublin, where they do have a sense of humor because they drink too much. I’m Irish, so I can say that.” Right, because the last time she talked about a cultural group, disaster loomed… (Ron, also being Irish, is too busy rifling the fridge for beer to comment.)