MEETING JOE

In an excerpt from his new memoir, Caged Lion, attorney John Steel recalls his relationship with Joseph and Clara Pilates, and his role in saving the method from fading into history.

- John Steel

EARLY ONE BRISK FALL MORNING IN 1963, I LEFT MY APARTMENT ON UPPER FIFTH AVENUE IN NEW YORK CITY, TO OK THE BUS DOWNTOWN TO 57TH STREET AND WALKED WEST ACROSS TOWN UNTIL I REACHED A SHABBY, OLD STYLE NEW YORK TENEMENT, FRONTING ON AN ENTIRE BLOCK. I was on my way to a physical therapist highly recommended by my mother. Mom had been hounding me for at least six months to see him. She thought this man was a wizard with the human body and was certain that he could fix my chronic stiff neck. I was skeptical—just another of my mother’s many enthusiasms. My resistance finally cracked not so much to relieve the pressure on my neck as to end the pressure from my mother.

I entered the unlocked outer door of 939 Eighth Avenue and stepped into a cramped, smelly space serving as the lobby, mail room, laundry drop-off, umbrella shake-out room and entry hall for the occupants of the many small apartments. The inner-door latch was broken and provided as much security as a sign saying: “Thieves Not Admitted.”

NO SMALL TALK