Roy Cohn: The Legal Eagle with a Talon for Trouble

weirdos from history welcome to weirdos from history the series where we delve into the annals of antiquity and The Archives of absurdity to unearth Humanity's most bizarre and bewildering figures today we tackle the tumultuous tale of Roy con the legal eagle with a penchant for persecution from Prosecuting spies to partying at Studio 54 his life was a whirlwind of weirdness born Roy Marcus cone on February 20th 1927 in the Bronx New York Roy's Roots were already firmly planted in a garden of grandia his maternal great uncle was none other than Joshua Lionel Cowen the brilliant but bizarre brain behind the Lionel Corporation famous for its toy trains his father Albert con was a dignified judge of the appet division of the New York state supreme court a role that Roy would later metaphorically and mischievously thumb his nose at as a child Roy was the apple of his mother's eye and what an overbearing apple tree she was Dora con was the quintessential helicopter parent before helicopters were even invented even when he was to have a brief Taste of Freedom at summer camp she rented a house within spying distance ensuring her omnipresence overshadowed his every experience living with her until her death in 1967 their relationship was less motherson and more Madame Overlord Roy never married a fact some speculate was due to his mother's meddling and his own complex sexual identity if Freud had lived to meet Dora he'd have written an entire Opus on overprotective mothers Roy's academic Suare began at the fieldston school and the horis man school but it was Columbia University that bore the brunt of his burgeoning Brilliance graduating from col I law school at the tender age of 20 Roy was ready to unleash his legal lingo on the world and let's not forget his diance with the dazzling future famed journalist Barbara Walters during his university days a relationship that deserves a whole episode of strangely Starcrossed Lovers by age 21 the minimum age to take the bar exam in New York or to drink in a bar in New York for that matter Roy was already an assistant us attorney specializing in subversive activities his big break however was as electrifying as it was controversial he helped prosecute Julius and Ethel Rosenberg for Espionage leading to their rather shocking end in 1953 this propelled him into the public eye where his sharp suits and sharper tongue made him a media darling and a mathus Menace In 1953 Roy became Chief C Council for Senator Joseph McCarthy the Red Scare rabble Rouser together they embarked on a Witch Hunt that made Salem look like a Sunday school picnic Roy's reputation for ruthless questioning was only matched by his Enigma of an Entourage including his let's just say close friend G David shine whose drafting into the army led to a scandalous end to the Army McCarthy hearings of 1954 con's post McCarthy career was a Cavalcade of courtroom Capers and criminal clientele his Client List read like a who's who of high society and higher criminality New York Yankees owner George steinbrener shipping magnate Aristotle anassis Studio 54 owners Steve rubel Andi and shreer and the Roman Catholic Arch dices of New York all sought his Council but Roy's roller decks also included a roster of organized crime figures that could make a capo blush Tony solerno Carmine galante and John gotty to name a few despite being a lifelong Democrat Roy was a political chameleon rubbing shoulders with Republicans and Democrats alike he befriended presidents from Nixon to Reagan all while maintaining close ties with colorful characters like novelist and playwright Norman maor mix other half Bianca Jagger Cosmetics Queen Estee lorder and Canadian first lady Margaret Trudeau Roy's paradoxical Persona was a Labyrinth of contradictions openly gay yet vly homophobic he helped Fire Federal Employees suspected of homosexuality during the lavender scare all while cting with handsome young men at Studio 54 if hypocrisy were an Olympic sport Roy would have taken home the gold while simultaneously denying the event ever happened his personal life was as plastic as his face after numerous surgeries aimed at maintaining a youthful veneer Roy's Relentless partying at Studio 54 made him a nightlife Legend a Sphinx in a sea of sequins yet beneath the Botox and bravado was a man as insecure as he was influential in the 1970s Roy found a new client in a Brash young real estate developer named Donald Trump the then Democrat debutant who would later become Republican president con mentored Trump instilling in him a philosophy of never admitting defeat and counterattacking with a ferocity that would make a honey badger blush however the law is eventually caught up with this legal lothario in 1986 con was disbarred for ethical violations so egregious they could make a mobster look like Mother Theresa his attempts to defraud clients and falsify documents were finally too much even for his formidable finesse to fend off Roy's final years were marked by a battle with AIDS a disease he publicly denied while privately suffering he clung to his claim of liver cancer until the bitter end a Last Stand in a lifelong campaign of denying inconvenient truths he passed away on August 2nd 1986 at the age of 59 leaving behind a legacy as muddled and multifaceted as the man himself thanks for watching weirdos from history if you enjoyed this deep dive into the bizaar be sure to like subscribe and leave a comment letting us know are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party and always remember my fellow weirdos normal is just a setting on your dryer