May 15, 1987
In this snippet, Schmidt is alluding to an incident in which Epstein had pressed her for information about her family, including her mother’s maiden name. When Epstein learned that it was Arlene Dahl, he seemed pleased. There was a famous Hollywood actress with that name, and he assumed she was Schmidt’s mother — a potentially valuable connection. Schmidt, eager to impress, didn’t correct his misunderstanding. Epstein eventually figured it out, and he called Schmidt at work to chastise her. “It was terribly awkward,” she told us. “He sort of felt played.”
