Carolyn S-nclair

The Hustler Tattler writes 7/20/05:

Dear Luke:

I read with great interest Mark Cromer's interview with you. As someone who works at LFP currently, I would have to dispute his statement about Carolyn S-nclair being a "young and talented contributor" prior to her ascent to Features Editor.

Prior to assuming Cromer's position, Carolyn worked delivering Dominoes Pizzas in Ireland. Hardly a seasoned journalist by any stretch of the imagination, she contributed a few weak freelance articles to Hustler which were published because of Bruce David's insistence (Tim Keneally and Dan Kapelovitz opposed publishing her, with good reason) and his affection for a girl nearly 40 years his junior. There were several more qualified candidates for the features position, such as Ed Rampel, but Bruce isn't trying to get into Ed's pants.

Ironically, Carolyn S-nclair had dated Mark Cromer prior to stealing his job (she had also gone out with Ed Rampel for a short time). The dimunitive, flat-chested, deep-voiced, bowl-haircut brunette once bragged that she learned how to manipulate men from her days working as a waitress as at strip bar in Texas. Speaking of Texas, she has a shakey history at best, including time in a mental hospital.

As someone who sees her on a daily basis, I cannot tell you how insufferable she has become since becoming Features Editor. The 20-something know-it-all loves to lecture co-workers, especially those who are older than she is. We are routinely told how much better Europe is, how much better Europeans are, and how "having a career is wrong." Mother Superior gives this all-knowing lecture with a straight face as she smugly sits in her office (living out her career) in Beverly Hills.

Now married, she also spends a good deal of company time advising others on relationships, a frightening prospect indeed, as her own love life is rife with failed trans-atlantic trips to meet European loser-lotharios and abortions. Do we really need HER advice to f--- up our lives?

But she gives Bruce David what he demands, loyalty to the point of disregarding reality. Completely rewriting history, she actually stated recently that the mass firings at LFP that Mark Cromer described never took place. You might wonder where exactly she was when the firings took place? Spain, so there. She should know, not Cromer, who was at LFP.

She also has done Bruce's bidding in asking about LFP employees and trying to gather info. Fortunately, the staff was highly suspicious of her from day one. Copy Editor Valerie Valdez even quit because of the absurd appointment of Sinclair to Features Editor. She knew it was a sham as we all did.

However, as loyal as Carolyn appears to be, there are cracks in the armor as she has been seen with some enemies of Bruce and has been heard chatting about him. His fetish for bondage is a sore spot for her, pardon the pun. She was sickened by the Jan. 2005 issue that had pictures of women tied to cars, courtesy of performance artist Gord.

Mark Cromer responds:

I never "dated" Carolyn S-nclair, but I did indeed hang out with her pleasantly--and platonically--on a few occasions, including dinner one night on the patio at Cat & Fiddle and an afternoon jaunt through the LA County Fair in my home town of Pomona. I actually met Carolyn, as irony would have it, in Bruce David's backyard during a party he threw for Greg Palast in late 2003.

The irony is that Hustler Features Editor Dan Kapelovitz was also at that party. A few months later, Bruce fired Kapelovitz during a mass of retalitory terminations designed to wipeout what remained of Allan MacDonnell's old crew and anyone else who Bruce thought might be sympathetic to them. He then brought me in as Features Editor. A few months later, Bruce fired me after I filed a complaint against him with Human Resources. He then tapped Carolyn S-nclair to be Features Editor of Hustler.

So there we all were, three generations of Hustler Features Editors partying in Bruce's backyard. Now if he fires Carolyn and hires his pool boy, the circle will be complete.

But no, I never romantically dated Carolyn and I indeed stand by my assessment that she shows strong promise as a young writer honing her chops. As such, it was not pleasant to learn from a variety of credible sources that she--at Bruce David's encouragement--has disparaged me to other writers. It's poor form. A cheap shot apparently undertaken to impress her boss, not to mention an illegal act evidently sanctioned by Bruce and LFP. But we'll be sorting that out soon enough.

Also, I don't believe that Hustler Copy Editor Valerie Valdez's departure had anything to do with Carolyn S-nclair. I believe Val was leaving before Carolyn ever got there, so I don't think that is accurate.

As far as the comments about Carolyn being a "diminutive, flat-chested, deep-voiced, bowl-cut brunette," I completely disagree. I would describe her rather as a lithe chick with a Suzanne Pleshette voice radiating an occasional high-voltage wit that makes her very attractive. Which is why I enjoyed her company. But hey, like art and obscenity, it's all in the eye of the beholder.

If Carolyn actually has claimed that the mass firings that I described in my interview with you last month never took place, I can only assume that she is following some Maoist-like script issued from the Dear Leader on the Third Floor. I almost hope its true because it is such a lovely Orwellian touch, devoid of any troubling semblance of reality. I would love to know how she would explain the emails that I gave you--and you published in the interview--or perhaps she might suggest those incidents never really happened either, even though Bruce was commenting about them? Well, that was just the tip of the iceberg.

The assertion that Carolyn is opposed to the style of photo "art" that Bruce is fond of running, such as the Gord pieces depicting women being dragged behind trailers and tied like dried venison on the front of pickup trucks. That is true, as Carolyn and I discussed it over dinner and I recall telling her how I had made the case against running the set-to which Bruce responded by increasing the size of the layout.

I remember Carolyn pointedly noted "What the hell is he thinking?"

Now there's a question.

The Hustler Tattler writes 7/24/05:

This week Sean Carney, Director of Marketing for Hustler Video, is leaving LFP. Sources say Sean is leaving in a part to due Mark Cromer's recent interview with you which detailed the Nixonian and bullying tactics of Hustler Editorial Director Bruce David. The Cromer interview reportedly reminded Sean of the backstabbing nature of the insecure 65-year old man-child and LFP.

Not surprisingly, Hustler Features Editor Carolyn S-nclair denies that Bruce ever bullied or conspired against Sean. She quickly dismisses this criticism of Bruce as "just gossip," regardless of how many eyewitnesses at LFP confer the facts.

It's interesting to note that Carolyn was not even in the United States when Sean was bullied by Bruce. She was residing (unemployed) in Barcelona, Spain. But as usual, she claims to know it all.

With exception of Bruce and Carolyn, Sean Carney was well-liked by his co-workers who appreciated his integrity and honesty. Many of us recall when Bruce promoted Sean from Editorial Assistant to Head of Research on the condition that Sean spy for him.

Thankfully, Sean Carney did not spy on us and refused to become a pawn in Bruce David's paranoia. In other words, Sean cannot be bought. He is no Carolyn S-nclair.

Sean Carney is a man of courage, conviction, and vision. Sean will be missed by many at LFP, and Bruce will continue to be tolerated, barely.