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The Oyster Foundation is a heterogeneous group
of individuals who have tried in one way or another to make the world
more interesting and appetizing.
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OYSTER NEWS January 2003 In this second year of The Oyster Foundation, we welcome the first additions to our group, Mr. and Mrs. Joel Dreyfuss (Veronica Pollard). They were proposed by David Levering Lewis and seconded by Stephen Banker. Response of the membership was unanimously favorable. One member commented, "I can hardly wait until May to meet them." E-mail: jdreyfuss@attglobal.net. Veronica Pollard is group vice president for external affairs at Toyota
North America, responsible for corporate advertising and philanthropy,
as well as investor, media and community relations. According to On
Wheels magazine, she is the first African-American woman to be vice
president of an automobile company. She joined Joel Dreyfuss has been senior editor of Fortune,
editor of PC Magazine and editor-in-chief of Information Week.
Born in
SIMPLE, ELEGANT, BRILLIANT Quite a few years ago, when my then-wife and I were dining with
Joe and Betsy Schildkraut in a That vignette came to mind a couple of weeks ago when Joe called
me from The treatment of depression has been impeded by the fact that available medicines take so long to kick in—sometimes three weeks, or even more. What this means is that patients, who are often disoriented as a consequence of their condition, somehow have to adhere to a strict regimen of medication over a long period of time. Moreover, prescribing physicians don't know if they've titrated too much or too little until almost a month has gone by, and it takes a similar length of time before a correction manifests itself. As John Meeks, who has treated many depressed patients, says, this lengthy delay makes treatment all the more difficult. So for over 30 years, Joe and one of his colleagues at HMS have been tinkering with the notion of developing a drug that does the job as well as or better than existing solutions, and quicker—much quicker. The fruit of their labor is a compound that theoretically will start working in no more than 48 hours, possibly in much less. A few months ago a patent was granted for the invention. In December, Joe (and Betsy) flew to This was the reason for his elation. The overwhelming reaction from all quarters was that his proposal was "simple," "elegant" and "brilliant". Thus, people who had technical know-how thought it would work—and that it would revolutionize the treatment of depression. Already, he has been contacted by several companies that want to bid for the rights to test and develop the product. The bad news is that even in the best of circumstances it will take quite a few years for the drug to come to market. The good news is that Joe may not have to write that novel. ONE SMART BUSH A few months ago, when the White House, under the guidance of First Lady Laura Bush, staged the second annual "National Book Festival," a story appeared on page one of The New York Times to the effect that one of the invited speakers, David Levering Lewis, thought he might be uncomfortable in the White House setting, since he disagreed with so many of the administration's policies. When asked by a reporter for her reaction, Mrs. Bush said, "American literature does not speak with one voice." Indeed! Classy dame. Could be Oyster material. But if she wants to bring a guest, it would have to be someone up to her intellectual level.
WOMEN ARE HUMAN TOO! George Klein and his wife Helga, normally residents of LATER IS HARDER Several people have asked me what to read in preparation for their trip to Switzerland in May for Oyster II. I have looked at several guidebooks and my answer is: Fodor's. NB, some of the moderate-priced hotels in Geneva are already filled. We are arranging for accommodations at Auberge de Confignon on May 29. The rest is up to you.
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