Page 42 - James Caan - The Real Deal

The Real Deal

I went back to the recruitment agencies and told them that I
wanted to work in an office. I couldn’t be too fussy because I
absolutely had to earn enough to pay the rent, but as long as it was
in an office, not only would I be warm but I would be working
with people.
Working and living on my own would have been pretty lonely
if it hadn’t been for my mates. The first three months in the flat
were absolutely amazing: I could have whoever I wanted round,
go out when I liked, come back when I liked, have five people
crashing on the floor. You couldn’t take the grin off my face.
Everyone else still lived at home in suburbia, so my pad in
Kensington became the place to hang out, and it was just fantastic.
Bernie didn’t have a regular job – he was the kind of guy that
did a little bit of this and then a bit of that and would suddenly
turn up in a suit because he’d got some flash new job. He had the
gift of the gab and was always talking himself into – and out of –
jobs. We became incredibly close in those days, and he would
often stay on my sofa after a night out. It was only when I saw
him a couple of days later in a really familiar jacket and pair of
trousers that I’d realise he had got up and helped himself to my
wardrobe before leaving for work!
One day he told me he had a great new way of making money
– selling clothes in Ireland. The fashions in London were more
adventurous, he said, and all we had to do was take some samples
over there and get some orders. And that’s exactly what we did.
We persuaded some manufacturers to let us have some samples,
then we went to Dublin on the ferry and sold the samples door to
door. We took orders and deposits, placed the orders in London
and then went back a month or so later to deliver the goods. It
was a bit of extra money, but just as soon Bernie was on to his
next project, so we never did it again.
After about three months, the novelty of being a constant party
host had definitely worn off. It was a bit of a shock to realise that

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