Chapter 4The Payoff of Commercial Drive
A funny thing happened when Edward Munch's The Scream was auctioned at Sotheby's New York in 2012. The price had escalated to $99 million at an unyielding pace, with infrequent pauses punctuating the staccato back-and-forth among bidders. With the number rising from the opening bid at $40 million, Sotheby's principal auctioneer, Tobias Meyer, managed to be both animated and calm as he whittled the field down to two bidders.
A member of Sotheby's staff, manning a phone to one of the bidders, tensely motioned for more time in a palpably taut moment, and Tobias quipped, “Do not worry. At $99 million I have all the time in the world.” The tension in the room dissolved into momentary laughter, and seconds ...
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