He was known as the “King of Ming” but Maureen Donohue-Peters knew Robert H. Ellsworth simply as a good customer. The 85 year old Ellsworth, a world renown dealer in Asian art, died last August after a fall. Prior to his death, Ellsworth frequented Donohue’s steakhouse on Manhattan’s Upper East Side nearly every day for more than 50 years.
Donohue-Peters, who waits tables at Donohue’s, called Ellsworth “more than a customer.” She says “[h]e was a dear friend of mine.”
Ellsworth apparently felt similarly for Donohue-Peters. The longtime art collector left the waitress the sum of $50,000 in his Will. Donohue-Peters says she didn’t see it coming, saying that she was “[s]hocked when I got the call.”
Ellsworth’s generosity didn’t stop there: he also left $50,000 for Donohue-Peter’s niece, who waits at the restaurant one night a week.
The gesture was “just like Bobby,” according to Maxwell Hearn, chairman of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Department of Asian Art. Hearn would know about such gestures: in 1986, Ellsworth presented the Metropolitan Museum of Art with 480 paintings. That collection, which included paintings by Wu Changshi, Wang Zhen, Xu Beihong, and Qi Baishi would serve as a catalyst for the creation of the Astor Chinese Garden Court at the museum. At the time of the donation, the collection was valued at nearly $22 million.
In March of 2015, works in Ellsworth’s estate were sold at Christie’s auction house. More than 1,400 lots were offered, including Chinese, Japanese, Indian and Himalayan sculptures, paintings, furniture and works of art, and were expected to sell for $35 million: the final tally was more than $132 million, setting multiple records.
Most of Ellsworth’s estate – thought to be worth nearly $150 million – was left in trust for the benefit of Ellsworth’s friend, Masahiro Hashiguchi. After Hashiguchi’s death, the remainder of the estate was to be payable to a number of charitable organizations. A lawsuit filed in March of 2015 alleges that careless drafting by attorney George L. Bischof of Bischof & Bischof PLLC, disqualified the estate from qualifying for a charitable deduction for the trust, resulting in an additional $25 million in federal estate taxes. That suit has not yet been resolved.
Despite the controversy, Ellsworth’s will was clear about his bequests to Maureen Donohue-Peters and her niece, Maureen Barrie. The pair was notified that they would each receive $50,000 Ellsworth – even though he didn’t even know their full names. The bequests were left in Ellsworth’s will to “Maureen at Donohue’s” and “Maureen-at-Donohue’s Niece Maureen.”
Headlines have since touted the bequests as the ultimate “tips” for the pair. I’m sure that Donohue-Peters and Barrie would rather not characterize their windfalls as such. A tip would be considered taxable income to the recipient for a job well done while a cash bequest would pass to the recipient without any federal income tax consequences.
Ellsworth’s generosity is what Donohue-Peters would want people to remember about Ellsworth. I have a feeling she won’t forget him any time soon.