So, the trial of the dastardly family member accused of swindling old NYC high society queen Brooke Astor is underway, and guess who took the stand yesterday? Our old friend, Vanity Fair's Graydon Carter! He had a sad tale to tell (with a silver lining!):

Graydon published some pieces by Brooke Astor in his magazine. They were friends! But near the end, when they went out to lunch, she couldn't even remember who he was:

"Where is Graydon Carter?" was Astor's question to the exuberantly coifed, highly recognizable editor-in-chief of Vanity Fair — whom she'd known for nearly a decade.

"Have you seen Graydon Carter?" the doddering doyenne asked him.

"I put my hand on her shoulder and I told her, 'I'm Graydon Carter,' " Carter remembered yesterday, after taking the stand as prosecution witness No. 30 in the monthlong Astor swindle trial.

"Oh yes! Of course you are!" Astor answered, recovering awkwardly.

Alzheimer's is a tragedy for any family. But we were heartened to hear that the possibility of forgetting who Graydon Carter is still exists.
[NYP. Pic via]