Chapter 31: Preparing to RoastTo call what Marjorie and Gene hosted barbecues was to call Shakespeare a writer, Vesuvius a volcano, Marilyn or Eartha Kitt a little sexy. Raised on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and too many country homes to keep track of, Marjorie had actually gone to finishing school, at least that’s what Howard had told Jason. Gene, on the other hand, was raised on a small ranch in Texas that was mainly there to provide beef for his oil money parents’ parties. To Gene, steak was king, pork was a younger prince with a lot of charm, but who just wasn’t going to inherit the title, and chicken was the royal that everybody loved. His job was to make them all look wonderful, and Marjorie’s task was to do the same with the guests and the party.
“Do you want to get there a li
