bored her so—she desperately wanted to go. Her parents were against the arrangement, but she persuaded her mother to act as a chaperone. After an unforgettable evening of dancing (and he danced the fandango remarkably well for a foreigner), Casanova confessed that he was madly in love with her. She replied (very sadly, though) that she already had a fiancé. Casanova did not force the issue, but over the next few days he took Ignazia to more dances and to the bullfights. On one of these occasions he introduced her to a friend of his, a duchess, who flirted with him brazenly; Ignazia was terribly jealous. By now she was desperately in love with Casanova, but her sense of duty and religion forbade such thoughts. Finally, after days of torment, Ignazia sought out Casanova and took his hand: "My confessor tried to make me promise to never be alone with you again," she said, "and as I could not, he refused to give me absolution. It is the first time in my life such a thing has happened to me. I have put myself in God's hands. I have made up my mind, so long as you are here, to do all you wish. When to my sorrow you leave Spain, I shall find another confessor. My fancy for you is, after all, only a passing madness." Casanova was perhaps the most successful seducer in history; few women could resist him. His method was simple: on meeting a woman, he would The Ideal Lover • 33
study her, go along with her moods, find out what was missing in her life, During the early 1970s,
and provide it. He made himself the Ideal Lover. The bored burgomaster's against a turbulent political backdrop that included the
wife needed adventure and romance; she wanted someone who would sac- fiasco of American rifice time and comfort to have her. For Miss Pauline what was missing was involvement in the friendship, lofty ideals, serious conversation; she wanted a man of breeding Vietnam War and the
downfall of President
and generosity who would treat her like a lady. For Ignazia, what was miss- Richard Nixon's ing was suffering and torment. Her life was too easy; to feel truly alive, and presidency in the Watergate to have something real to confess, she needed to sin. In each case Casanova scandal, a "me generation" adapted himself to the woman's ideals, brought her fantasy to life. Once she sprang to prominence —a nd
[ Andy ] Warhol was there
had fallen under his spell, a little ruse or calculation would seal the romance to hold up its mirror. (a day among rats, a contrived fall from a horse, an encounter with another Unlike the radicalized
woman to make Ignazia jealous).
protesters of the 1960s
who wanted to change all
The Ideal Lover is rare in the modern world, for the role takes effort. the ills of society, the self-
You will have to focus intensely on the other person, fathom what she is absorbed "me" people missing, what he is disappointed by. People will often reveal this in subtle sought to improve their bodies and to "get in
ways: through gesture, tone of voice, a look in the eye. By seeming to be touch" with their own what they lack, you will fit their ideal.
feelings. They cared
To create this effect requires patience and attention to detail. Most passionately about their appearance, health, life-
people are so wrapped up in their own desires, so impatient, they are inca- style, and bank accounts. pable of the Ideal Lover role. Let that be a source of infinite opportunity. Andy catered to their self- Be an oasis in the desert of the self-absorbed; few can resist the temptation centeredness and inflated of following a person who seems so attuned to their desires, to bringing to pride by offering his services as a portraitist. By
life their fantasies. And as with Casanova, your reputation as one who the end of the decade, he
gives such pleasure will precede you and make your seductions that much would be internationally
recognized as one of the
leading portraitists of his
era. . . . • Warhol offered
The cultivation of
study her, go along with her moods, find out what was missing in her life, During the early 1970s,
and provide it. He made himself the Ideal Lover. The bored burgomaster's against a turbulent political backdrop that included the
wife needed adventure and romance; she wanted someone who would sac- fiasco of American rifice time and comfort to have her. For Miss Pauline what was missing was involvement in the friendship, lofty ideals, serious conversation; she wanted a man of breeding Vietnam War and the
downfall of President
and generosity who would treat her like a lady. For Ignazia, what was miss- Richard Nixon's ing was suffering and torment. Her life was too easy; to feel truly alive, and presidency in the Watergate to have something real to confess, she needed to sin. In each case Casanova scandal, a "me generation" adapted himself to the woman's ideals, brought her fantasy to life. Once she sprang to prominence —a nd
[ Andy ] Warhol was there
had fallen under his spell, a little ruse or calculation would seal the romance to hold up its mirror. (a day among rats, a contrived fall from a horse, an encounter with another Unlike the radicalized
woman to make Ignazia jealous).
protesters of the 1960s
who wanted to change all
The Ideal Lover is rare in the modern world, for the role takes effort. the ills of society, the self-
You will have to focus intensely on the other person, fathom what she is absorbed "me" people missing, what he is disappointed by. People will often reveal this in subtle sought to improve their bodies and to "get in
ways: through gesture, tone of voice, a look in the eye. By seeming to be touch" with their own what they lack, you will fit their ideal.
feelings. They cared
To create this effect requires patience and attention to detail. Most passionately about their appearance, health, life-
people are so wrapped up in their own desires, so impatient, they are inca- style, and bank accounts. pable of the Ideal Lover role. Let that be a source of infinite opportunity. Andy catered to their self- Be an oasis in the desert of the self-absorbed; few can resist the temptation centeredness and inflated of following a person who seems so attuned to their desires, to bringing to pride by offering his services as a portraitist. By
life their fantasies. And as with Casanova, your reputation as one who the end of the decade, he
gives such pleasure will precede you and make your seductions that much would be internationally
recognized as one of the
leading portraitists of his
era. . . . • Warhol offered
The cultivation of
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