Sumith Prasad
Even though Ali Abbasi’s ‘The Apprentice’ is primarily a biopic about Donald Trump, the film also sheds light on the life of Roy Cohn, one of the most controversial figures in 20th-century American politics. The infamous lawyer who represents the rising star of New York’s business scene is often seen with Russell Eldridge. The latter serves the attorney as an assistant or secretary. Cohn seeks Trump’s assistance only a few times, and most of these requests concern Russell. In reality, the young man is one of the chapters of the lawyer’s personal life, which is nothing short of a mystery to the press and public of his lifetime.
The Nature of Roy Cohn and Russell Eldridge’s Relationship Remains Contentious
The exact nature of the relationship between Roy Cohn and Russell Eldridge has divided historians and students of the infamous lawyer’s life over the years. Gabriel Sherman, who wrote ‘The Apprentice’ after interviewing people who knew Donald Trump and his attorney during the 1970s and ’80s, identifies Russell as one of Cohn’s boyfriends. However, Nicholas von Hoffman, who wrote the biography ‘Citizen Cohn: The Life and Times of Roy Cohn,’ stated in his work that, at one point or another, Russell had “done everything for Roy but get into bed with him,” indicating that they didn’t have a sexual relationship.
In the formal circles, Cohn introduced Russell as his secretary — as made clear by David Lloyd Marcus — a young cousin of the former, through a Vanity Fair feature. As per ‘Citizen Cohn,’ he was also one of the few individuals the lawyer expected to look after him if something had happened to him. The secretary was described as the “life of the party” whenever the attorney organized or hosted events. According to the same biography, the personal assistant allegedly had the responsibility of going to gay spots and choosing male partners for the lawyer. Nicholas von Hoffman’s biography includes excerpts of interviews with Jay Taylor, who is often described as Cohn’s “companion.”
For ‘Citizen Cohn,’ Taylor revealed to Nicholas that he became acquainted with Cohn and allegedly slept with him after meeting him through Russell. He added that the secretary was always the “intermediary” between him and the lawyer. While it remains unclear whether Russell and Cohn had a sexual or romantic relationship, people who were closer to both of them have clarified that the attorney looked after the secretary, especially right before the latter died.
Russell Eldridge Passed Away in His Late 30s
Russell Eldridge grew worryingly sick towards the mid-1980s. According to Nicholas von Hoffman’s ‘Citizen Cohn,’ he was initially hospitalized for weeks because of pneumonia, which made him appear as a “scarecrow wrapped in towels” and a “white and yellow bag of bones.” The people around him suspected that he had AIDS, but Roy Cohn reportedly tried to nip the assumption in the bud, stating that his secretary was going to get well. At the time, Russell reportedly couldn’t walk by himself and often pretended he was feeling better to please and comfort the lawyer. As per the biography, he accompanied Cohn to dinners even if he couldn’t properly eat.
However, it doesn’t mean Cohn didn’t look after Russell. “He [Cohn] was very good with him [Russell]. He didn’t want anybody to baby him. He wanted him to more or less do for himself,” Sue Greenig, a friend of both men, said about the young man’s final days, according to ‘Citizen Cohn.’ Russell was eventually diagnosed with AIDS, and during his last summer, the attorney tried to comfort him through his presence. In ‘The Apprentice,’ Cohn seeks Donald Trump’s help finding a suit for his secretary in Hyatt Grand Central. However, reality differs a little. The property the lawyer chose for his assistant was the Barbizon-Plaza Hotel overlooking Central Park in New York City, also owned by his client.
Nicholas von Hoffman wrote in his biography that Cohn didn’t give up on Russell, even when the latter had accepted his tragic fate. The lawyer led his secretary from Trump’s hotel to his townhouse on East 68th Street to celebrate Christmas in 1984. Not long after his last holiday supper, Russell passed away on January 26, 1985, at the age of 37 or 38, in New York City. Unfortunately, Cohn couldn’t be with his secretary when the latter took his last breath. Then, the lawyer celebrated only one more Christmas without the presence of the man he deeply cared for.
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