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Shakespeare captured a universal urge in Richard III: "A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse." August 8: A Drama of Cold Cash: Three Men on a Horse Saratoga -- Robert Irving is a musical director of the New York City Center Ballet. He is also an avid horse player. He has loved racehorses ever since he was a boy growing up in England with a vague desire to own a horse. Irving frequents the Santa Lucia Italian restaurant in midtown Manhattan. It is a sort of a horse player's Mermaid Tavern. Irving became friendly there with Pete Axthelm, the sports editor of Newsweek who adores racing almost as much as he loves journalism. Axthelm encouaged Irving's inclination to become a patron of the turf. He recommended trainer Phil Johnson to Irving because Johnson, trainer of a public stable, is a secure and comfortable guy who is not afraid to answer the kind of questions a hesitant neophyte owner comes up with.
A while later, the catalogue of the Fasig-Tipton horse auctions at Saratoga came out. Irving found an attractive colt, by Jacinto out of Croquet. He thought the pedigree promising, yet not so overwhelming that the colt would go for an astronimical sum. The gray colt, No. 94 in the sales catalogue, was scheduled to be auctioned Wednesday, the second night of the sales. When the first night's business was 20 per cent off last year's opening figures, it encouraged the buyers. The market was soft, people said, because of concern with the stock market. Most worrisome was the new bill in Congress that threatens to tighten up tax writeoffs for racing sportsmen. John Finney, a straight-talking chap who runs the sales, said, "Before this, a person could write off racing losses as a business if a profit was made one year in five. This new Metcalf bill threatens to change that so a person must make a profit three years in five. We don't know in what form the bill will be passed, but it has people jittery." Not Bob Irving. An hour before Wednesday's sales, as socialites mixed and chatted in the soft evening air, Irving, Johnson and Axthelm stood outside Barn No. 3 at the sales area and took a last look at the gray colt. "A strong neck," Johnson said. "I like him very much," Irving said. Irving settled in one of the upholstered, red loge seats toward the rear left of the theater-in-the round, Johnson and Axthelm behind him. Irving agreed to allow Axthelm do his bidding for him. "I'll stop at $15,000, right?" Axthelm asked. "Well, yes," Irving said,"but if it just means a little bit of a push beyhond that to get him. I think might go for it. We'll see." Some horses went for $40,000. The horse put up before Irving's sought-after prize went for less than $10,000. That seemed a good sign. As the gray colt was brought into the little stage area underneath the auctioneer's elevated pulpit, Axthelm gave Irving a slap of encouragement. They all smiled nervously. The opening bid on the gray colt was $5,000. It then went up to $7,000. When the board showed a jump to $10,000, there was gloom among Irving's coterie. "We're dead," said Johnson. The flash on the board was an error,however, and the next bid was for only $7,500. Then it went up to $8,000. Here, a pause, and now Axthlem, hesitantly, but prominently for all to see, raised a forefinger. The assistant caught his first bid for $8,500. It quickly went to $9,000 and $9,500 and Johnson wasn't sure if it was their bid that was holding. He kicked Axthelm. A man next to them said, "You bid twice." "I was excited," Axthelm said. "I didn't want to lose the horse, but I didn't want to bid against myself." He raised his hand almost feverishly again, and auctioneer Ralph Retler caught his bid of $10,000. There was a pause now as the auctioneer tried to milk another bid from the man who had said $9,500. The pause held. "All right," the auctioneer said, and began to count to three to complete the sale. He made one final pause between the two-and-three, looking for another bid, and then said, "Sold for $10,000." Irving, shedding his English reserve, half rose from his seat with glee. Axthelm patted him on the back. Johnson congratulated Axthelm on his cool bidding. "You were great," Johnson said. "You were so seedy looking they figured they couldn't get any more money out of you, so they let you buy it in a hurry." Irving said, "Wasn't that thrilling. I just bought my first child." Johnson said, "You're happy now, but that may be for the last time. It will be uphill after this." They moved out into the night to complete the sale and receive the congratulations of other horse people. The horse will be sent to Ocala, Fla. to be broken and readied for the races. With luck he'll be running by next spring or summer as a 2-year-old. "Yes, I have a name," Irving said. "His dam is Croquet and he's a gray. Mrs. Ogden Phipps (a patron of the ballet) is a friend of mind and she has the world's only silver mallet. I'll name him Silver Mallet. Do you like it?" Everybody agreed it was a Jim Dandy name and everybody had a drink. There was more talk all around him about a lack of money this year, but Bob Irving's thoughts seemed far off. Perhaps he was listening to the music of a horse's hoofbeats thundering down the stretch.
Silver Mallet did relatively well for Irving. He was gelded early. He then went on to win some $200,000, including two stakes in New York. Johnson said a Washington state owner who wanted to win the big race at then Longacres Park outside of Seattle, bought him from Irving when Silver Mallet was five and won the race. Irving had a few more horses with Johnson, one or two at a time, and had some success, Johnson said. Irving retired to a nursing home in his native England and died a few years ago.
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But Will the Horse Ask for a Rematch? 
