The Astronaut-Cosmonaut Dialogues
Victoria Shares the Story of One of High Points of Her Professional Life
The Story
As a member of the Board of the Soviet American Exchange and the Board of Esalen Institute from 1980-1990, I was privileged to host many working meetings, welcome parties, and debriefings of so many who traveled from California to the Former Soviet Union, and back again, at a time that "Official Diplomacy" was at a standstill.
Having the luxury of quite a large two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in Manhattan, I could happily offer my space for Jim Hickman to use it as his base and offer the spare bedroom to Others visiting as participants in the Exchange.
One of the first Soviet visitors staying in my apartment at the request of Dulce Murphy was Paul Posner, brother of Vladamirthe, well known Soviet Newsman. I did not meet Paul until the following day when I found him in my small dining area. In this first meeting, I have always described Paul as a figure from Central Casting in a B movie that was anti-communist. He immediately told me that the author of Gorky Park should be shot and the publisher of Playboy magazine. Without being pedantic in my role as a welcoming hostess, I made general remarks about how a free press is a keystone to our democracy. Over time, throughout the many events that Paul was privy to, his stance did relax with a greater appreciation of American Freedoms. This was part of the purpose of these citizen exchanges.
Development
I got to host meetings and discussions of many riveting events throughout several years, from the first Satellite exchanges between Russians and Americans to preparing John Denver for his first concert in the Soviet Union. I also gave a party for Edvardseverdnadze On his first trip to America, using a friend's large Park Avenue apartment since mine was not important enough to host the Foreign Minister Of the Soviet Union.
I had many parties for visiting Soviets. My husband-to-be often referred to these events as "Commies for dinner," which he always made an effort to attend. Later, when Jim Hickman withdrew as Director
to follow other paths, we Board Members hired Jim Garrison as the Director to replace Jim.
Jim Hickman continued to be helpful to Jim Garrison in passing the baton with its many connections and creative histories. Jim Garrison helped organize, with my help, the visit Of Abel Aganbegyan, Gorbechevs economic advisor. I called a friend of mine, John Swing, who was the Executive Vice president Of the Council of Foreign Relations, to see if the Council would have any interest in meeting Mr. Aganbegyan. John immediately said yes and organized an office for Aganbegyan to use and a plan to have him address Council members. I also called one of my executive search business clients, the Vice-Chairman Of Smith Bay, to see if they would host a lunch to show Aganbegyan around the stock exchange. Smith Barney hosted the lunch for most of the CEÜs Of Wall Street firms, which I attended.
Later On…
The wall street titans were quite shocked by the unadulterated honesty about the financial problems of the Soviet Empire and the coming revolution that was underway with Gorbechev. Jim and I accompanied Mr. Aganbegyan to the Stock exchange floor with its phenomenal electronic computer systems etc. It was quite an eye-opening experience for him to see all of this when back in his Office in the Soviet Union, he had old-fashioned file cabinets and an old-fashioned back-dial telephone. I don't think he even had a computer.
One party I did not host but attended was the one for Boris Yeltsin, again organized by Jim Garrison and the Soviet American Exchange. That party was at the home of Bob Swartz, former publisher of New York Magazine and founder of the School for Entrepreneurs. My reward for the Yeltsin trip was a t-shirt that said, "l survived Boris Yeltsin"s visit and listed some dozen cities."
Near the end of my involvement with the Soviet American Exchange, in 1990, Jim Garrison, who had arranged Gorbechev'svisit to the US, invited my husband and me for a small private meeting that consisted of 6 others to meet Gorbechev before he gave his talk to a discussion of 200 at the Waldorf Astoria. I was pretty Starstruck to meet such a charismatic figure, who was much livelier and funnier than one ever saw in his formal speeches.
Not long after that, I resigned from both Esalen Institute and the Soviet-American Exchange. I resigned from the board Of Esalen because I was spending so much time in Europe with my Consulting and Recruiting Business I could not face another 3000-mile trip in the opposite direction to Big Sur, California: I resigned from the Soviet American Exchange because it was the end Of an empire, although exactly how much and how wide an end, I was yet to find out.