Mark Baum
Dr. Bartha, R.I.P.
Of course, there was the rambling 14-page email, that was first published in its entirety on The Real Estate. Also, The Observer interviewed Mark Baum, the doctor's real estate broker of the past six years, who received the email that morning.
Now, the author of that email, the suspected culprit in this headline-grabbing tragedy, has died. On Saturday night, Dr. Bartha--who had been in a coma for almost a week--passed away at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell hospital. He was 66.
Certainly, the Dr. Bartha story had all the ingredients of a Manhattan media frenzy: divorce, madness, and a 19th century townhouse exploding on a tony, Upper East Side block. The New York Times had at least 10 reporters working on a single story, and the local tabloids conjured up such headlines like "Dr. Death" and "Honey, I Blew Up The House." read more »
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"I read the email at around 8:50 or 8:55," said Mr. Baum, who became concerned for the doctor's welfare. "I reported it to 911 right away."
However, the explosion occurred at approximately 8:45 a.m, and Dr. Bartha was later found in the rubble, still alive.
It has been reported that Dr. Bartha's estranged wife also received the rambling, 15-page email, but not how many others did, too.
"The email will eventually be made public," said Mr. Baum, who did not go into details.
Mr. Baum had worked with Dr. Bartha in the past, renting out at least one of the apartments in the four-story townhouse, according to a real estate source.
" We had a business relationship.," said Mr. Baum. "After six years, you can build a relationship a little bit outside of the business. Not that we socialized much, but we had a smooth business relationship."
"He was definitely hurt by the divorce," said Mr. Baum.
- Michael Calderone
