Rob Sedgwick grew up in a wealthy and influential family during the 1970s and ’80s, but remembers being the black sheep. While he did eventually find some success as an actor, he never made it big like his younger sister, Kyra (who now lives on the Upper West Side with husband and fellow star Kevin Bacon).
In his new book – “Bob Goes to Jail” – Sedgwick writes about his troubling teenage years … and getting arrested for storing 250 pounds of marijuana at his grandparents’ 12 room apartment on the Upper West Side.
In an interview with Town & Country, Sedgwick admits “There is no redemption narrative here,” adding that he simply “wanted to describe things I experienced because I think they are interesting and hopefully shed light on a time and place that doesn’t exist anymore.”
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Town & Country released the first paragraph of the book, which jumps right into Sedwick’s arrest at his grandparents’ white-glove building. He recounts walking into the apartment and thinking about all the incriminating evidence lying around – including weed-filled duffel bags he purchased from the former Morris Brothers on 84th and Broadway, an Upper West Side fixture from 1981 to 2007.
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Once thrown into the cop car, Sedgwick describes looking through the windows at people walking freely down Broadway, while also gazing at stores like Zabar’s, Town Shop, and the former Shakespeare & Co at 81st and Broadway.
The book’s Amazon description reads (in part):
[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=”16″] “Rob Sedgwick was born into one of America’s oldest families and Manhattan royalty. His cousin, Edie Sedgwick, was Andy Warhol’s muse. His sister is Kyra Sedgwick, the actress; his brother is painter Nikko Sedgwick; his brother-in-law is movie star Kevin Bacon, and his stepfather was renowned art dealer Ben Heller, who pioneered the careers of Jackson Pollack and Mark Rothko. So, to say Rob has struggled to stand out in a family of big personalities is a huge understatement. In his hilarious and touching memoir, Bob Goes to Jail, Rob relates his journey from lost little boy to hapless criminal with such honesty and heart that you can’t help but root for him.In Bob Goes to Jail, Sedgwick – who had the drop-dead good looks of Robert Redford and the judgment of Keith Richards – recounts how the DEA and the NYPD mistook him for a drug lord and arrested him. When his lawyer told him to get a steady job to show he was a contributing member of society, Sedgwick got a role playing a drug lord on One Life to Live.”
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“Bob Goes to Jail” is available on Amazon and directly from its publisher, Rare Bird Books.
Not to be confused with noted algorithmist Robert Sedgewick. (Had me worried for a moment!)
I knew Robert as I did photography with One Life To Live during the time he was on there. He always kinda scared me a bit. He wasn’t mean or anything, just kind of eccentric I guess. During the pandemic I had the time to organize my pre-digital files from those years and thought of him when I came across photos I had taken that he was in. He worked with some great people on there like Audrey Landers, Broadway star Anthony Crivello and a then unknown Vincent Pastore (Big Pu**y from The Sopranos). I’ll def pick up his book. Glad he turned his life around after the troubles he reveals in the book and was able to turn that negative time in his life into something positive. I’ve seen him every now & then here on the UWS, but never approached him as I doubt he’d even remember me.
I never knew Morris Brothers sold weed-filled duffel bags.