Jul 3, 2008 12:08 am US/Eastern
Sex, Porn & Bribes Rule Brinkley Divorce Trial
Peter Cook's Graphic Internet Behavior Exploited On Stand
'Other Woman' Bianchi Admits Getting $300,000 To Be Quiet
CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (CBS) ―
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Christie Brinkley and Peter Cook during happier times.
AP
Christie Brinkley's divorce trial began Wednesday with her estranged husband's confession to a lot more than having an affair with an 18-year-old girl. And what he said left him crying on the witness stand.
It was a whirl-wind day in court, to say the least.
They arrived as if going to a funeral -- Brinkley, using her lawyers as a shield, and Peter Cook, taller than his attorneys, but still somehow hunched over, just a bit. And then there was Diana Bianchi. She was either 17 or 18 when the affair began, depending on which lawyer you listen to. He -- Cook -- was about 46 and married to Brinkley.
"I really hoped with all my heart that we could have settled this out of court," Brinkley said upon her arrival Wednesday morning. "But since we are here for trial, I want to save the rest of my comments for court."
The "other woman" in Brinkley's life, you might say, is the other, much younger woman. Bianchi, now 21 is, ironically, just a year younger than Alexa Ray, Brinkley's daughter with Billy Joel.
Alexa Ray showed up late Wednesday afternoon, and may be called to testify. Bianchi was a teenager when she caught Cook's eye. And Cook was the first witness called to the stand by Brinkley's lawyer, Robert Cohen.
Cook admitted to having sex with Bianchi 12 times, before and after he hired her at his architectural firm. He said they had sex in his office, and two properties he owned with Brinkley. However, the supermodel's lawyer spent most of the day going into detail about Cook's Internet porn habit.
Cohen: "Were you a member of the world's largest sex and swinger Web site?"
Cook: "Yes."
Cohen: "You were connected live to women?"
Cook: "Yes."
Cohen: "Did you use a webcam?"
Cook: "Yes."
And Cohen admitted he gratified himself using the webcam. When his lawyer, Norman Sheresky, took over, Cook broke down and cried on the stand because, "My son told me: 'Mommy's looking at naked pictures of your girlfriends on the computer.'"
Finally, just before 3:30 p.m., a tearful Cook finished and Bianchi took the stand.
Cohen: "How many times did you have sex with Mr. Cook?"
Bianchi: "I couldn't give you an exact number. Maybe 10 at the most."
Bianchi said Cook left money for her in odd places around the office. He gave her a key to get in at off hours. Like the money for a car:
Bianchi: "I believe it was $15,000 dollars."
Cohen: "Any other monies?"
Bianchi: "Yes."
Cohen: "What were they for?"
Bianchi: "Just odds and ends and things that I needed."
And she admitted Cook paid her $300,000 to stay quiet in what was called, "a confidentiality agreement."
Before Bianchi left, she chatted with Alexa Ray. Clearly, the two young women knew each other. And clearly, whatever else was going on, they were still friendly.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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