Curb Your Enthusiasm actress and comedian Susie Essman revealed a past encounter with Britain’s Prince Andrew in which the Duke of York made a series of bizarre remarks that left her stunned.
Writing of the encounter in the New York Times’ Air Mail newsletter, Essman — who plays the foul-mouthed Susie Greene in the HBO show — recalled attending a cocktail reception at the royal residence Kensington Palace “several years” ago where she was introduced to Prince Andrew, who she dubbed as the “Fredo” of the British Royal Family — a reference to the less capable brother in the 1972 film “The Godfather.”
“We have a Jew who runs our finances,” Prince Andrew blurted out during the pair's small talk about the event space, Essman said.
‘“Well, isn’t that clever of you,” Essman, who is Jewish, said she told Prince Andrew before immediately turning around and walking away.
In her submission to Air Mail, Essman went on to ponder why Prince Andrew would make such a comment, and from seemingly out of nowhere.
“Did he say it because he knew I was Jewish and thought that was a way to connect with me? You know, the ‘some of my best friends are Black’ syndrome?” Essman wrote. “Or did he say it because he’s a rabid anti-Semite and was putting me in my place? The royal family is German, after all, and Andrew’s uncle Edward was a known Nazi sympathizer.”
“Did he say it because he had no idea that I was Jewish and just assumed everyone in the room was as anti-Semitic as he was?” Essman wrote.
“Or did he say it because he’s just a f---ing idiot who doesn’t know how to read a room, let alone how to turn on a television… So many questions and so few answers. I’ve concluded that I will never understand the royal family, nor will I ever know why the prince chose to tell me a personal detail about who runs ‘our’ finances. I suppose I could have asked him, but I wasn’t enjoying the conversation and chose to end it.”
Prince Andrew has been largely out of the public eye since he faced extensive public scrutiny for his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Following allegations of sexual abuse involving Epstein's victims, the British royal was stripped of his military titles and royal patronages.