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IT USUALLY BEGINS WITH AYN RAND 277
Donahue, otherwise she would have committed suicide by now in order
to join Frank.
His death brought a renewed connection with Barbara Branden, who
reached out to Rand after more than a decade of silence. Rand welcomed
Barbara’s overture. She had a ready excuse for Barbara’s past behavior;
like her, Barbara had been tricked and traduced by Nathan. It was an
interpretative frame that glossed much of the truth but allowed the two
women to draw together for a fi nal peaceful visit in New York one afternoon.
Nathan remained an untouchable. His third wife, Devers, whom
he married after Patrecia’s tragic death in a drowning accident, attempted
a reconciliation between the two. She arrived on Rand’s doorstep one
day, urging her to speak with Nathan and heal the past. Torn between
suspicion and curiosity, Rand let Devers inside her apartment for a few
hours. Later she hardened against her, and still she refused to speak to
Nathan. He called her once, hoping in some way to smooth over their
history. She hung up immediately. 75
In the aftermath of Frank’s death, Rand had few projects and almost
no energy. She became obsessed with Hans Gudagast, a German-born
movie actor who resembled Frank. While writing the Atlas script she
had envisioned him playing the role of Francisco D’Anconia. Then
Gudagast, now using the name Eric Braeden, grew a moustache, ruining
his resemblance to Frank. Ayn pined for a photo of him without facial
hair. When she discovered one in a magazine she had the idea to derive
a full-size photo from the small thumbnail. Ignoring the pleas of her
solicitous housekeeper Eloise, Rand plunged out into the rain to a photo
studio in Times Square. Without a coat or umbrella she was caught in
a downpour on her way back home. She fell ill with a cold, a dangerous
malady for a woman of seventy-six with a history of lung cancer. 76
Only a few days later she addressed the annual meeting of the National
Committee for Monetary Reform, a group dedicated to the restoration
of the gold standard. The NCMR’s founder was a devoted fan of Rand’s
work, and he lured her to the group’s New Orleans conference with the
promise of a private rail car. With Leonard and Cynthia Peikoff, Rand
traveled down the eastern seaboard of the United States in executive
luxury, much as Hank Rearden and Dagny Taggart would have done.
She spoke to a roaring audience of three thousand hard money enthusiasts,
defending the morality of profi t and production. By the time the
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