It appears the National Enquirer wasn't the only tabloid duped by a man impersonating Philip Seymour Hoffman friend David Bar Katz in postmortem interviews—he reportedly also gave a published statement to the Post, and claims he was "drunk" and remembers nothing.
Page Six caught up with David (not Bar) Katz, a freelance sports writer who allegedly told tabloids he was the person who found Hoffman's body on February 2nd. The National Enquirer published the interview, which quoted Katz saying he and Hoffman were "homosexual lovers," and that he watched him take drugs. The real David Bar Katz promptly sued the tabloid and received a hefty settlement.
The other David Katz, however, says he "absolutely never told anyone [his] name was David Bar Katz," and had been drinking that day. "As the day went on, I had a bunch of beers in me," Katz, who told Page Six he received a number of calls from reporters that Super Bowl Sunday, said. "I don’t remember what I said . . . but the thing about the gay lover? No, not while I was sober anyway. I don’t remember. I don’t think so." Awesome.
The Post, meanwhile, claims Katz impersonated Bar Katz to one of their reporters, saying, "Yes, I was the one who found him. But honestly, right now isn’t the time to talk about this. I don’t really want to think or talk about it right now." He also reportedly bragged about the interview on Facebook.
Bar Katz's lawyer has threatened to sue fake Katz, telling the Times earlier this week, "My goal is to have him living out of a cardboard box." The money from Bar Katz's settlement with the Enquirer will go towards a playwright's foundation established in Hoffman's memory.
