“Once upon a time you dressed so fine
Threw the bums a dime in your prime, didn’t you?
People call say ‘beware doll, you’re bound to fall’
You thought they were all kidding you
You used to laugh about
Everybody that was hanging out
Now you don’t talk so loud
Now you don’t seem so proud
About having to be scrounging your next meal
How does it feel, how does it feel?
To be without a home
Like a complete unknown, like a rolling stone.”
It has long been theorized by Bob Dylan fans and music scholars alike that these cryptic lyrics to Bob Dylan’s opus “Like a Rolling Stone,” first released on his 1965 album “Highway 61 Revisited,” were written about tragic New York fashion icon Edie Sedgwick. Bob Dylan’s condemnation of a faded high society girl on the skids certainly seems to match the narrative of the rise and fall of Edie Sedgwick. But, personally I don’t think it is. I mean, it could be, but unless Bob Dylan had a crystal ball and was adept at telling the future, the dates of when “Like a Rolling Stone” was recorded and released do not match the time line of Edie Sedgwick’s life to make sense that’d it’d be about her. “Like a Rolling Stone” was recorded on June 18, 1965, and released a month later on July 20th, 1965. At that time Edie Sedgwick was at the pinnacle of her fame with “The New York Times” declaring her a “new superstar,” and she had just released one of her most watchable films, “Poor Little Rich Girl.” So the Edie Sedgwick that Bob Dylan was rumoured to have written about in “Like a Rolling Stone” was not yet a reality, but his observations of her lifestyle, and most likely the lives of those around her in Andy Warhol’s Factory scene, could possibly have been an inspiration for the song lyrics. But we won’t probably ever know for sure if Edie was the inspiration for “Like a Rolling Stone” or not, because Bob Dylan isn’t telling.
But while it is unclear if Edie Sedgwick was the inspiration behind “Like a Rolling Stone,” it is highly theorized, and very probable, that she was the inspiration for two of Bob Dylan’s compositions on his 1966 double album “Blonde on Blonde.” Although Dylan has rarely discussed her, he and Edie did know one another at the time he was writing the songs that made up “Blonde on Blonde”, and Edie had the rare ability to inspire people to create art about her as one of the 1960’s most infamous muses. It’s likely that even the intense and intellectual Bob Dylan most likely fell under the spell she wove. But, if any of his songs were about Edie, they were hardly love songs. Instead they were critical and snide criticisms on her character and lifestyle, only furthering the accusations that Dylan had a part to play in her eventual demise.
What was the deal with Bob Dylan and Edie Sedgewick? Did they have a relationship? Did he love or hate her? Did he think much about her at all? Was he truly to blame for her descent? These are all complex questions which we will never truly know the answers to. During an era of free love and a culture of excess drugs and narcissistic hedonism, the stories told about Dylan and Edie have been created by decade old second-hand accounts, gossip and rumours.
So, what does Bob Dylan have to say about Edie Sedgwick? During an interview conducted in the 1990’s, Dylan addressed questions about her by saying “I never had that much to do with Edie Sedgwick. I’ve read that I have, but I don’t remember Edie all that well…. I know other people who, as far as I know, might have been involved with Edie. She was a great girl. An exciting girl, very enthusiastic.” In pure Dylan style, he is both vague and dismissive, which is probably shows his true feelings about Edie Sedgwick. She probably wasn’t one of the loves of his life. She was just a girl he knew. However, to Edie, Bob Dylan was much more.
Now I’m not going to claim to be a Bob Dylan scholar. Although I’ve been listening to his music for more than three decades, I do not have the grasp on his career and music like those who have spent their entire lives studying his work. But I do have a much better grasp on the brief life of Edie Sedgwick. Edie Sedgwick is an odd enigma within our modern culture. Although called a socialite, the reality of that role was vastly overblown. While she was indeed a fashion icon, her professional modeling gigs seemed to be far and in-between. While her biggest body of existing work is on film, you could hardly call her an actress. If anything, Edie Sedgwick was New York’s original “It girl” and a pioneer influencer. A woman who created excitement just for showing up. Someone who gained headlines for being sensational when walking into a room. But more actually, Edie was one of the 1960’s most famous muses, inspiring people to make art, music and films about her. Although she’s been dead for over fifty years, she continues to inspire artists work still today . It’s hard to fathom, but Edie Sedgewick’s entire time at the top of the pop culture scene lasted little more than a year, but she would become a fascination to people forever.
In September 1964 Edie Sedgwick, at age 21, arrived in New York City with her eight-thousand-dollar trust fund and a plan to pursue modeling. Originally from California, Edie’s life had already been a tumultuous one. The seventh child of a wealthy rancher, her parent’s had come from old money, but her childhood was fraught with isolation and emotional instability, including the suicide of two brothers and alleged sexual predatory behaviour from her father. Developing an eating disorder at age twelve, her schooling had been interrupted multiple times due to hospitalization and treatment. Edie had initially come to the East Coast to attend a private school in Maryland, but this too became interrupted when her eating disorder was upgraded to anorexia, and she spent months in a Connecticut mental facility. Upon being released Edie briefly attended an arts college in Massachusetts, but once she secured her trust fund, she was off to New York. Spritely and petite, with a shock of blonde hair cropped short and deep expressive eyes, Edie turned heads with her big personality and unique sense of style. However, hiding behind her surefire confidence and photo perfect smile there was an emotionally unstable girl with a highly addictive personality and narcissistic tendencies.
While some young girls come to New York City and toil to make a place for themselves, Edie’s climb to the top of the New York social elite was fast. Edie had a knock for finding herself in the right places with the right people at the right times and getting all the right attention. Her fate would change when Edie met Andy Warhol at a party in March of 1965 and followed up his invitation to visit his famous Midtown Manhattan based art studio, The Factory, shortly thereafter. Having broken out in the art scene a few years earlier, Warhol had just opened the Factory that January, which quickly become a hub for a certain set of bohemian art types. A lot of interesting and experimental art was being created at the Factory, but it was also filled with a lot of phonies and hanger oners who were looking for a scene to be a part of. For Andy, it was his kingdom, and the atmosphere he was creating there was a living piece of art all its own.
When Edie first came to the Factory, Andy was in the middle of filming “Vinyl,” which was one of the earliest versions of Anthony Burgess’ “A Clockwork Orange” to be adapted to film. Although it was to be an all-male film, Andy had Edie go and sit on a trunk in the frame, where she had no lines or anything else to do in the film, except to occasionally move her body to the music of Martha and the Vandellas, The Kinks, The Isley Brothers and The Roling Stones. Well, despite being little more than an extra, Edie’s presence in the film was the most interesting thing about it, which was either a testament to had terrible the film was, or how powerful Edie’s presence was (you can watch “Vinyl” for yourself on YouTube and come to your own opinion). Well, that moment on film changed Edie’s life forever, as she quickly went from being an extra to becoming Andy Warhol’s leading lady and Queen of the Factory.
As one of the newest icons of the New York art scene, Andy Warhol was not yet in a place in his life where he felt that he could be accepted by the cultural elite, which is something he longed for since he was a young boy. Cripplingly insecure and shy, Andy was gay in an era where it wasn’t socially accepted. While not overtly hiding it, Andy deflected his obvious homosexuality by being non-committal in regard to his personal relationships. So, when Andy met Edie, he saw someone who he desired to be like – beautiful, socially adept and the focal point of every crowd. He saw her as someone who could ease the brunt of the social and public expectations he feared, and a voice for the times he couldn’t speak. Thus, while it was not a sexual relationship, Andy and Edie formed a very powerful social union.
Throughout the spring and summer of 1965 Edie was Andy’s constant companion, and the pair became the talk of New York City. Reporters and camera men followed them wherever they went as the couple partied throughout the city at night spots, art openings and happenings. Meanwhile, Edie became Andy’s “superstar” as the feature player in his films. Having recently announced he was leaving art to become a filmmaker, Andy was creating low budget but often provocative short subjects at The Factory, which were often shown no further than New York based art houses. Although numerous New York bohemian figures were subjects of his films, Edie became the most famous of his stars. But as some might suggest, Andy wasn’t necessary using Edie. The relationship became a mutual benefit to both of them, but Andy and Edie were said to have very deep affection for one another, spending hours on the phone together when not in each others company. Andy had found a companion who he could lean on, and Edie found an entry into the world of New York’s elite.
So where does Bob Dylan fit into this whole narrative? Well, in 1965 Bob Dylan and his crew were also very much part of the New York bohemian landscape, but while Andy and Edie were part of the Midtown Manhattan art scene, Bob was the superstar of the Greenwich Village music scene. Although the two scenes seemed to be worlds apart, they were actually a lot more similar than the players probably realized. Both scenes were full of creative intellects, free sex, disposable groupies and plenty of drugs. But, while there was a high energy cramp quality to the Midtown crowd, the Greenwich scene was far more pseudo-intellectual and emotionally introspective. As a result, the Warhol camp and the Dylan camp mixed as well as oil and water, or in the case of Edie Sedwick, fire and napalm.
Surprisingly, it’s been told that Edie Sedgwick crossed paths with Bob Dylan prior to meeting Andy Warhol, only weeks after arriving in New York City. According to Bob Dylan’s friend and former road manager Bobby Neuwirth, he and Dylan had first been introduced to Edie in December 1964 via a mutual unnamed acquaintance. The three met up at a drinking establishment called Kettle of Fish, which was a favorite hang out for Dylan, and the they dank and laughed for a few hours before going to a local Catholic Church to look at the Christmas nativity display together.
Dylan and Edie also were reported to been seen together at an art event in early 1965 held by art curator Sam Green. Little information on that outing has been reported, except to say that Dylan and Edie primarily spent the night in a corner enjoying each other’s company, and Green later stated he found Edie to be charming, but that Dylan was “an asshole.”
Now it is highly documented that Bob Dylan had a lot of trouble with infidelity during his “Freewheelin’” days. At the time that he met Edie, his relationship with Suze Rotolo was long over, and he was now living with his future wife Sarah Lowndes. Meanwhile, he was still reportedly having an affair with Joan Baez, which had been going on for a number of years. Thus, when Edie came into the picture, Dylan was already involved with some of the great love affairs of his life. So was Bob Dylan and Edie Sedgwick also lovers? There is no evidence to say that they were or not, But despite, Edie was said to be incredibly infatuated with Bob Dylan. She was entranced with his moody intellectualism and adored his attention. If I were to make a guess on the situation, I would think that whether Bob Dylan and Edie Sedgwick were ever involved sexually, Edie was far more emotionally involved than Dylan was. Dylan may have been impressed with her shine, but she was never in love with her.
Dylan’s complicated relationships with the women in his life is the subject to one of his most famous songs, “Just Like a Woman.” A song about the juxtaposition between women’s independence and vulnerability, the song has been called one of his greatest compositions, but also one of his most misogynistic. Truth is, if you are a woman and Bob Dylan writes a song about you, it is rarely a good thing. “Just Like a Woman” has been rumoured to be about both Edie Sedgwick and Joan Baez, but I don’t see why it can’t be about both of them. My personal interpretation of the song is that it’s Bob Dylan having a “dark night of the soul” moment of his infidelity and now, with thoughts of marriage, he was reflecting on “the other” women in his life prior to giving them up for a life of monogamy. I believe that the first verse is about Joan Baez, while the second verse, about a woman addicted to drugs and social status, is probably about Edie:
“Queen Mary, she’s my friend
Yes, I believe I’ll go see her again
Nobody has to guess that baby can’t be blessed
‘Til she finally sees that she’s like all the rest
With her fog, her amphetamine, and her pearls.
She takes just like a woman
Yes, she makes love just like a woman
Yes, she does, and she aches just like a woman
But she breaks just like a little girl.”
In accordance with the narrative in “Just Like a Woman,” drugs and vanity were two separate sides of Edie’s personality. Dangerously addicted to speed, and reported to be highly narcissistic, Edie was prone to exude a “spoiled brat” persona. But, underneath that cool façade, the cracks of her fragile emotional state could be recognized by those who were close to her.
Just how much contact Dylan had with Edie during the summer of 1965 is unknown, but like all of New York, he was aware of her connection with Andy, and he didn’t respect it. This is most likely the inspiration for his composition “Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat.’ A raunchy Chicago blues inspired number, the opening verses about a man’s sexual escapade with a society woman is the biggest clue that Bob and Edie possibly had a sexual encounter, but the cynicism and disrespect towards the woman also paints a bleak picture of what Bob Dylan really felt about Edie:
“Well I, see you got your
Brand new leopard-skin pill-box hat
Yes I, see you got your
Brand new leopard-skin pill-box hat
Well, you must tell me, baby how your
Head feels under somethin’ like that
Under your brand new leopard-skin pill-box hat
Well you, look so pretty in it
Honey, can I jump on it sometime?
Yes, I just wanna see
If it’s really that expensive kind
You know it balances on your head just like a
Mattress balances on a bottle of wine
Your brand new leopard-skin pill-box hat
Well if you, wanna see the sun rise
Honey, I know where
We’ll go out and see it sometime
We’ll both just sit there and stare
Me with my belt wrapped around my head
And you just sittin’ there
In your brand new leopard-skin pill-box hat”
But in the final verse, Bob talks about the woman’s involvement with another man. Could he be talking about Edie’s relationship with Andy, accusing her of being a “phony” or “sell out” and questioning Andy’s true intentions with her while taking below the belt shots at his sexuality? It’s not too much of a stretch to interpret that:
“Well I, see you got a new boyfriend
You know, I never seen him before
Well, I saw you makin’ love with him
He forgot to close the garage door
You might think he loves you for your money, but
I know what he really loves you for
It’s your brand new leopard-skin pill-box hat.”
Bob Dylan and Andy Warhol finally crossed paths in the summer of 1965 when Dylan visited the Factory and was talked into doing one of Andy’s “film tests.” Andy filmed hundreds of “tests” when he put people that he found interesting in front two stationary cameras to film them just existing. Despite popular belief, it was not Edie who brough Dylan to The Factory, but was actually artist/filmmaker Barbara Rubin, who was a friend of both men. It’s unlikely that Edie was ever there. She certainly isn’t in any of the photos that were taken during Dylan’s visit. Andy was excited to have Dylan at the Factory and also thrilled at the prospect of making a film with him. Dylan, on the other hand, felt very different. Unimpressed with Andy and the crowd at the Factory, Dylan barely participated in the screen test, simply glaring straight into the camera and looking disgruntled and bored. His resentment and disdain for Andy Warhol and life at the Factory can be seen all over his face. Dylan’s visit to the Factory was short, but Andy appreciated it so much he sent Dylan one of his “Silver Elvis” silkscreens as a thank you gift. Dylan was so disinterested in Andy and his art that he admitted years later that he traded it to a friend for a used couch.
No matter how little Edie and Dylan may have been involved with each other through 1965, eventually Bob Dylan’s people did get into her head. Unimpressed and dismissive of the Factory, Dylan recognized that Warhol’s films were poorly made and pompous, and he wasn’t afraid to say so. Furthermore, nobody in Andy’s films were paid, and Dylan, or someone in his camp, explained to Edie that she should be getting financial compensation for being the star of Andy’s films. At some point Edie was introduced to Dylan’s manager Albert Grossman, who expressed interest in signing her and reportedly said he’d aid her iin creating a legitimate acting career outside of the confines of the Factory. During these exchanges somebody, be it Dylan or Grossman or perhaps both, put it in her head that Andys film were making a fool out of her. This stuck deep into Edie’s mind, which festered and created a sense of self doubt over the work that she and Andy were doing together, as well as her true place in the art world. Soon Edie began to verbalize her reservations about Andy’s films, and while she seemed to waver in and out, possibly depending on how high she was at the moment, Andy was deeply hurt by her growing negativity about their film collaborations. Although Andy often seemed emotionless and could be verbally sardonic, he was also highly sensitive, and the deterioration of his friendship with Edie reportedly hurt him tremendously.
This led to the explosive event in December 1965 when Edie, Dylan and Andy crossed paths one final time, marking the beginning of Edie’s fall from the top of her pedestal. With numerous of Warhol’s colleagues present in this very public display of drama, the story has been told many times with various interpretations, but whoever’s side you stand on, this was the end of Edie Sedgwick as the Queen of the Factory.
Having not been involved in Andy’s last few film productions, Andy wanted to reset his working relationship with Edie and commissioned his friend Robert Heide to write a film especially for her, and he set up a meeting to discuss the film. The location of the meeting was The Kettle of Fish. You may recall that this was the place where Edie and Bob Dylan had first met almost exactly a year previous, and which Dylan was a regular at. It’s uncertain who chose this spot to mee – some say Andy while others claim it was Edie – but a group of Factory regulars assembled at the Greenwich Village spot waiting for Andy, who was late due to filming his latest movie on Fire Island. As they waited, it was reported that Edie discussed the growing friction between her and Andy by stating “‘I tried to get close to him, but I can’t. He’s like an iceberg.’
Well, Andy finally arrived, but instead of being greeted with a light and creative mood, the friction between Andy and Edie escalated. Edie began to talk openly about how his films were making a fool out of her, and how Al Grossman and “Dylan’s people” were going to make a movie with her, even hinting that Bob Dylan was going to be her co-star. Andy was obviously upset, and while he attempted to keep his cool in front of his colleagues, under his dark glasses it was reported that his very pale face began to turn very red. In retaliation, Andy dropped a bombshell on Edie. Quietly but sardonically, Andy said “Did you know, Edie, that Bob Dylan has gotten married?” Still a secret to the public, Dyland had married Sarah Lowndes in a small private ceremony a month earlier, and Andy had found out from his lawyer. Why did Andy keep it from Edie until that moment? Was it to spare her feelings or was he waiting to weaponize this information if needed?
Well, as if on cue, Bob Dylan shows up at the bar. Its murky why or how he came to be there, although some versions say that Edie had excused herself from the table at some point to make a phone call and its been speculated that she called him. The tension in the establishment turned heavy, and eventually Dylan walked up to Edie, grabbed her by the arm and was quoted as saying simply “Lets split.” Edie turned her back on Andy and his crew and walked out with Dylan.
This deliberate public rejection to Andy Warhol was the moment that Edie had slit the throat of their friendship. According to members of Warhol’s crew, the conversation that followed turned to the recent suicide of Factory regular Freddy Herko, who had jumped out of a sixth floor window. Andy apparently sardonically stated “‘I wonder when Edie will commit suicide. I hope she lets us know, so we can film it.’
And that was it. Edie’s presence at the Factory quickly vanished. The popular narrative that was created by the public is that Andy had gotten tired of Edie, who was now hanging out with Bob Dylan, and banished her from the Factory. But in her book “As It Turns Out: Thinking About Edie and Andy” by Edie’s older sister Alice Sedgwick-Wohl, Alice questions if it was Edie who set up the entire drama at the Kettle of Fish as a public break up with Andy Warhol. Alice states that Edie could be cruel and highly manipulative, and speculates that the event was a bold power move to use Bob Dylan as a weapon against Andy Warhol, but in the end Edie was not clever or secure enough to pull it off. The movies that Grossman promised never happened. Bob Dylan had been married, and whatever relationship he may or may have not had with Edie Sedgwick was clearly over. Edie had cut herself off from the Factory, and her year as the It Girl of New York was over.
In 1966 things would go from bad to worse for Edie. Now totally spun out on drugs, Edie had also blown through her entire trust fund and was broke. Reverting to shop lifting and stealing from friends and colleagues, Edie was starting to spin dangerously out of control and burn more and more bridges. At this time, Edie entered her only solid relationship during her New York days when she hooked up with Bob Neuwirth, Dylan’s road manager who was with Dylan the night he and Edie met. Although their relationship was brief, it was apparently intense. In the 1971 film “Ciao! Manhattan” Edie said of Bobby:
“”It was really sad – Bobby’s and my affair. The only true, passionate, and lasting love scene, and I practically ended up in the psychopathic ward. I had really learned about sex from him, making love, loving, giving. It just completely blew my mind – it drove me insane. I was like a sex slave to this man. I could make love for forty-eight hours, forty-eight hours, forty-eight hours, without getting tired. But the minute he left me alone, I felt so empty and lost that I would start popping pills. “
After a year Bobby ended things with Edie stating that he couldn’tdeal with her dependency on drugs.
Meanwhile, at the Factory, Andy Warhol continued to build his creative empire via The Exploding Plastic Inevitable – a series of artistic “happenings” where Andy and friends showcased an orgy of multi-media presentations including art, music, film and projection. He also found a new companion to replace Edie, statuesque German model Nico, and moved into music production, which led to him working with The Velvet Underground, who released their debut album in1967.
As for Bob Dylan, he released “Blonde on Blonde” which became one of his most acclaimed albums with four singles entering the Billboard Top 100 – “Rainy Day Woman #12 and 35,” “I Want You,” “Just Like a Woman” and “Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat.” While Edie’s light was fading on the New York art scene, visions of her seemed to be keeping her memory alive within Bob Dylan’s music.
The rest of the Edie Sedgwick story is a sad one. Still dreaming of that legitimate acting career, Edie auditioned for Norman Mailer for his Broadway production of “The Deer Park,” but done with emotionally unstable blondes for the rest of his life, Mailer turned her down. Crushed, but not yet defeated, she teamed up with filmmakers John Palmer and David Weisman on an autobiographical look at her life in New York called “Caio! Manhattan,” but filming was interrupted by Edie being put into hospital multiple times for her drug addiction, as well as for minor burns when she accidently burnt down her room at the Chelsea Hotel while freebasing.
With her life completely spinning out of control, Edie finally left New York in 1969 and returned to the family ranch in California. Edie was put in and out of hospitals and, eventually, was admitted into an asylum for addiction, eating disorders and mental illness. A shadow of her New York self, Edie fell into a deep despair unable to deal with the thoughts of failure, and longing for the stardom she left behind.
Although they had suspended filming “Ciao! Manhattan,” John Palmer and his wife Louise relocated to Santa Barbera and for a time took Edie in, attempting to nurse her back to health while retooling the film so it could be completed. Edie filmed new sequences, as well as recorded audio about her life in New York which was used over old footage. However, the new footage clearly showed a burnt out and emaciated Edie far removed from her former glory.
Edie also met a man named Michael Post while at the Santa Barbera College Hospital, who she married in July of 1971.
Edie’s story came to an end on November 16, 1971. The night before she attended an art exhibit and fashion show where she was caught on film by a crew filming the PBS docudrama “An American Family.” After the party ended, an intoxicated Edie called her husband, who picked her up from the party. According to Michael, on the way home Edie revealed reservations about their marriage, hinting at wanting an annulment. Arriving home, Edie apparently took some prescribed medication and went to sleep. However, when David woke up the next morning, Edie was dead beside him. The coroner ruled the death with the status of unknown/accidental/suicide and said the cause was due to alcohol and drug consumption. She was only 28.
But even in death, Edie continued to inspire artists as the eternal muse. Subjects of numerous books, works of art, theatrical productions and films including the completion and release of “Caio! Manhattan” in 1972. Meanwhile, beyond the music of Bob Dylan, she has been the subject of songs by a wide range of musicians including Lady Gaga, The Cult, Alizee, The Dream Academy and The Pretty Reckless.
But new interest in Edie Sedgwick hit the mainstream in 2006 when The Weinstein Company began production on a biopic called “Factory Girl,” which brought new speculation on the nature of Dylan and Edie’s relationship. During an interview with Edie’s brother, Johnathan Sedgwick, for “Factory Girl,” he claimed that at some point during the final year of her life Edie had told him that she had at one time become pregnant with Dylan’s child, but had an abortion due to her drug addiction and health issues. Whether this is true or not is anyone’s guess, but it only increased the speculation and started a new series of rumours.
In retaliation, Bob Dylan tried to legally have the release of “Factory Girl” stopped, forcing the producers to ridiculously change the “Bob Dylan” character into a fictional bohemian folk musician with a nasally voice called “Billy Quinn.” Eventually the film did get released and was moderately successful, but it proved to be a one sided and shallow look at the events of Edie Sedgwick’s life in New York City, Although it is entertaining and can be used as a quick 101 on Edie Sedgwick for people with a passive curiosity about her, it was widely criticized by the people who actually knew the players at the time, and for its vilification of Andy Warhol and Bob Dylan.
So, is it fair to blame either Bob Dylan or Andy Warhol for the downfall and death of Edie Sedgwick? I don’t think it’s that simple. I believe that Edie Sedgwick was the victim of many things, but primarily her biggest foil was herself. We seem to forget just how young she was in 1965. Only 21 when she met Bob Dylan and Andy Warhol, she was only 22 by the time she left the Factory in December 1965. Edie was still so young. Think about how little most of us know at that age, and then add a trust fund, mental illness, a ton of drugs, narcissistic vanity, a toxic celebrity culture and overnight fame. Edie Sedgwick was no more than a little girl navigating a world of glamour, hedonism, excess and drugs and she got in over her head which led to dashed dreams and broken promises. Edie lived more in a single year than most people do in a lifetime, and unable to cope with the aftermath, it killed her. What I think the real tragedy of Edie Sedgwick is that we never got to know her because she probably didn’t have the time to ever know herself, fueling her mystique as a professional muse and cultural enigma.
