Many said Ottenberg routinely gave mirthful laughs and immense belches between bites, wiping his mouth with a shirt sleeve. “I saw his red face, his hearty grin, and the way he gobbled his food like a feudal lord,” said Lucas Adams ’18. “I was reminded of those Bruegel paintings—-the ones of medieval celebrations where everyone is drunk and lecherous and full of joy. That’s how this man was.”

“When he got up to get more, I thought, ‘There’s no way a person could put more animal in their body,’” continued Debmin. “But he did. He came back and filled his gullet with soaked chicken—-bones and all!” After dinner, Ottenberg was reported to have fallen asleep on a pile of goose feathers and warm truffles, snoring so loudly the whole castle could hear.