Sons' Astor Testimony Drives Anthony Marshall To Tears

The continuing trial over whether or not Anthony Marshall and a lawyer essentially stole the fortune of Marshall's mother—legendary philanthropist Brooke Astor—hit the waterworks yesterday when Marshall's twins son testified against him. The Post said during testimony, Marshall, 84, "hunched forward at the defense table" and "held his forehead in his trembling right hand" while, during a break, the NY Times saw him and his third wife, Charlene Marshall, "sat red-faced on a bench in the hallway. Tears trickled from their eyes."

Sons Philip and Alexander (also known as Alec) Marshall, 56, both described their father as distant and formal. Alexander Marshall said Astor asked him if he'd like her Westchester estate, Holly Hill, but declined, believing she wasn't in the best mental state. Philip Marshall, who accused his father of elder abuse when he caught wind of his grandmother's condition and surroundings in 2006, mentioned how his father and stepmother gave him the cold shoulder, angry that he had visited Astor without his father's permission. He also mentioned how when he saw Astor in 2004, she seemed "very disoriented and appeared terrified." Philip Marshall said he reminded her of his and his family's names, "she still looked terrified and I started massaging her back. I said, 'We're family. We love you.' And she relaxed, and just squeezed my hand, and started crying."

When the jury was out of the courtroom, prosecutors and lawyers for Marshall and lawyer Francis Morrissey argued over whether jurors could hear how dog poop piled up in Astor's apartment. The judge decided it would not be allowed, but Philip Marshall, who made the claim, did tell the jury, "The apartment was dirty. And I'm trying to be polite. Very, very, dirty." The Daily News' Joanna Molly says that after hearing his testimony, "I'd drive Anthony Marshall up to Sing Sing myself."