others without giving it a thought.
It would turn out to be remarkably on target.
Nothing extraordinary marked Davidâs childhood. He accepted his parentsâ Jewish heritage, but followed the tenets marginally. The family lived in Long Island, until David turned thirteen, then moved to Bergen County, New Jersey, just below the New York border.
In elementary and high school, he earned better than average grades; even though, according to a personal admission he made years later, he enjoyed using cocaine before graduating the twelfth grade. âIt was a bad vice, but I liked coke.â
David decided to leave home for his college education, but he didnât venture too far. Fairfield University, in Fairfield, Connecticut, is an approximate thirty-mile drive from his parental home.
The respected institution boasts a pastoral campus offering scenic views and all the amenities of a major, comprehensive university in a setting of rolling hills, sprawling lawns, picturesque ponds, and bucolic wooded areas. One former associate of Mahlerâs expressed the opinion that Davidâs influential grandfather helped ease the way for admission and finances.
Davidâs selection of studies might have been influenced not only by his fatherâs success in business, but by notable alumni of Fairfield. These have included E. Gerald Corrigan, the seventh president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Joseph DiMenna, a pioneer in hedge fund management, and William P. Egan, a venture capital leader.
Or, he may have followed the legal profession path set by Fairfield alumni Raymond J. Dearie, chief judge of the U.S. District Court, Eastern New York District; Joseph P. Flynn and William Lavery, chief judges of the Connecticut Court of Appeals; or Joseph Russoniello, two-term U.S. attorney for the Northern District of California.
The latter group possibly carried more weight with David, since he moved next to New York University of Law, on NYUâs Greenwich Village campus. Established in 1835, this prestigious model of academia produced a long list of notable graduates. Among them were former New York City mayors Fiorello LaGuardia, Ed Koch, and Rudy Giuliani, as well as sportscaster Howard Cosell and John F. Kennedy Jr. Other legal eagles from the famed university later flew west to Hollywood. They included former chairman of Paramount Pictures Jonathan Dolgen, Hollywood and Broadway producer Marc E. Platt, and producer/former chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment Peter Guber. David certainly found no shortage of role models while earning his degree, which he took in 1991.
By this time in his life, at age twenty-seven, Mahler had developed into a sturdy, solidly built man. Standing one inch over six feet, he weighed about 190 pounds. With dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a smooth, oval face, under a high, wide forehead, his features would appeal to many women. Adopting a serious demeanor in both personal and business dealings, he sometimes gave the impression of being overbearing or threatening. He didnât smile often. When he did, he compressed his lips, giving them a brittle look. Now and then, Mahler allowed his temper to leap out of control. Still, he could be charming and gallant with his dates.
After passing bar exams for both New York and New Jersey, Mahler set up a private practice. He rented an apartment in Hackensack, New Jersey, across the street from a residential co-op, where his grandmother lived. Using a room in his living quarters as an office, Mahler began representing clients in divorce cases, civil suits, and an occasional criminal defense. As his business grew, he also defended narcotics and prostitution cases and then branched into Wall Street civil suits.
As David Mahlerâs workload increased, so did his bank account. Following the pattern set by his father, he dabbled in Wall Street investments, and provided financial advice to his clients.
According to a longtime friend,
It would turn out to be remarkably on target.
Nothing extraordinary marked Davidâs childhood. He accepted his parentsâ Jewish heritage, but followed the tenets marginally. The family lived in Long Island, until David turned thirteen, then moved to Bergen County, New Jersey, just below the New York border.
In elementary and high school, he earned better than average grades; even though, according to a personal admission he made years later, he enjoyed using cocaine before graduating the twelfth grade. âIt was a bad vice, but I liked coke.â
David decided to leave home for his college education, but he didnât venture too far. Fairfield University, in Fairfield, Connecticut, is an approximate thirty-mile drive from his parental home.
The respected institution boasts a pastoral campus offering scenic views and all the amenities of a major, comprehensive university in a setting of rolling hills, sprawling lawns, picturesque ponds, and bucolic wooded areas. One former associate of Mahlerâs expressed the opinion that Davidâs influential grandfather helped ease the way for admission and finances.
Davidâs selection of studies might have been influenced not only by his fatherâs success in business, but by notable alumni of Fairfield. These have included E. Gerald Corrigan, the seventh president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Joseph DiMenna, a pioneer in hedge fund management, and William P. Egan, a venture capital leader.
Or, he may have followed the legal profession path set by Fairfield alumni Raymond J. Dearie, chief judge of the U.S. District Court, Eastern New York District; Joseph P. Flynn and William Lavery, chief judges of the Connecticut Court of Appeals; or Joseph Russoniello, two-term U.S. attorney for the Northern District of California.
The latter group possibly carried more weight with David, since he moved next to New York University of Law, on NYUâs Greenwich Village campus. Established in 1835, this prestigious model of academia produced a long list of notable graduates. Among them were former New York City mayors Fiorello LaGuardia, Ed Koch, and Rudy Giuliani, as well as sportscaster Howard Cosell and John F. Kennedy Jr. Other legal eagles from the famed university later flew west to Hollywood. They included former chairman of Paramount Pictures Jonathan Dolgen, Hollywood and Broadway producer Marc E. Platt, and producer/former chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment Peter Guber. David certainly found no shortage of role models while earning his degree, which he took in 1991.
By this time in his life, at age twenty-seven, Mahler had developed into a sturdy, solidly built man. Standing one inch over six feet, he weighed about 190 pounds. With dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a smooth, oval face, under a high, wide forehead, his features would appeal to many women. Adopting a serious demeanor in both personal and business dealings, he sometimes gave the impression of being overbearing or threatening. He didnât smile often. When he did, he compressed his lips, giving them a brittle look. Now and then, Mahler allowed his temper to leap out of control. Still, he could be charming and gallant with his dates.
After passing bar exams for both New York and New Jersey, Mahler set up a private practice. He rented an apartment in Hackensack, New Jersey, across the street from a residential co-op, where his grandmother lived. Using a room in his living quarters as an office, Mahler began representing clients in divorce cases, civil suits, and an occasional criminal defense. As his business grew, he also defended narcotics and prostitution cases and then branched into Wall Street civil suits.
As David Mahlerâs workload increased, so did his bank account. Following the pattern set by his father, he dabbled in Wall Street investments, and provided financial advice to his clients.
According to a longtime friend,
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