Elaine Kaufman Dies

Elaine Kaufman was a 34-year-old waitress and restaurant manager from the Bronx when she opened her restaurant in 1963, serving unremarkable Italian food in a prosaic space on Manhattan's Upper East Side. With the help of a public relations pal, a fondness for interesting people and a weakness for struggling writers, she turned the humble eatery into a celebrity hangout that attracted the biggest names in film and literature and left New Yorkers wondering: how do I get a table at Elaine's?

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Kaufman died Friday at age 81 in Manhattan. As recently as a month ago, she had been working seven days a week until 2 a.m., a schedule she had kept for decades, hosting famous faces for dinner, drinks and poker games.

Rest In Peace, Elaine.