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Jeffrey Epstein was a key reason for tensions at the top of Apollo Global Management that recently spurred the exit of two of its three remaining co-founders — and the awkwardness began a decade ago, The Post has learned. 

It was in 2011 that billionaire Leon Black — who on March 22 revealed he was stepping down from the helm of the giant buyout firm sooner than expected amid controversy over his Epstein ties — first floated the idea of working with the now-dead pedophile to his fellow co-founders Josh Harris and Marc Rowan, according to sources close to the situation. 

That’s despite the fact that Epstein had been convicted three years earlier for soliciting prostitution from a 14-year-old girl. In the meantime, Black had continued to associate with him — and was prodding Harris and Rowan to hire Epstein to do some work for them and possibly for Apollo, according to the sources. 

“Leon affirmatively recommended Epstein — it was more than a passing comment,” one source said. “He wanted Apollo to hire him.” 

Leon Black is stepping down from Apollo Global Management amid controversy over his connection to Jeffrey Epstein.REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File Photo

Harris and Rowan — repelled by Epstein and concerned about damage to Apollo’s reputation — said no, and the conversations never advanced, according to the sources. Nevertheless, tensions between the co-founders over Epstein — particularly between Black and Harris — persisted, and became a key issue as Black announced his surprise exit from the firm in March. 

Last week, Harris said he was exiting the firm, leaving Rowan, the sole remaining co-founder, to serve as chairman and chief executive. 

“These assertions, made by an unnamed source, are completely untrue,” said a spokesman for Black. 

“Apollo never discussed or considered hiring Jeffrey Epstein,” an Apollo spokesman said. 

According to sources, however, Black had been pitching Harris and Rowan on Epstein’s prowess when it comes to tax- and estate-planning — the same services for which, it was revealed earlier this year, Black had racked up an eye-popping tab of $158 million with Epstein. Beyond that, insiders said Black was signaling that Apollo might hire Epstein as a consultant on investments — or possibly enter into investments with him, the sources said. 

Marc Rowan was concerned about damage to Apollo’s reputation with ties to Jeffrey Epstein.REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian/File Photo

Black, despite being turned down by Rowan and Harris, “doesn’t like taking ‘No’ for an answer,” according to a source briefed on the situation. And for years he continued to float doing various projects with Epstein to his cohorts at Apollo. 

That, in turn, helped heighten tensions between the three executives — particularly Black and Harris, who were locked in a rising power struggle as Harris steadily took on more day-to-day responsibilities running the $455 billion private-equity powerhouse, sources said. 

“It’s been a slow burn between Josh and Leon since,” a source said. “Leon would bring Jeffrey [up] and he was rebuffed in ways big and small.” 

Tensions over Epstein came to a head in January, when Harris demanded that Black step down over concerns that his Epstein ties would tarnish the firm, sources said. 

In response, Black named Rowan his successor as CEO — a surprise move given that Harris had been taking on an increasingly crucial operational role while Rowan had been taking on fewer duties at the firm, according to sources.

Joshua Harris revealed last week he will be leaving Apollo Global Management.Heidi Gutman/CNBC/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images

An investigation by the law firm Dechert whose results were made public in January concluded that “while Black did not try to pressure his co-founders to use Epstein, he did positively comment on the substantial value of Epstein’s services and, at Epstein’s repeated request, did try to introduce Epstein to his co-founders.” 

“In the end, neither co-founder hired Epstein or consulted with him on their personal matters,” the report released Jan. 22 said. 

While the report did not give a specific timeline for the disagreements over Epstein, “Dechert has also determined that Epstein unsuccessfully sought to pitch business opportunities to certain Apollo senior executives, none of which were pursued by Apollo or those executives,” according to the report. 

As previously reported by The Post, Epstein was listed as a director on the board of Black’s charity, the Black Family Foundation, between 2001 and 2012. 

At the time, Black’s reps insisted that Epstein had been listed as a director for the four years following his conviction solely because of a clerical error.

In the race to attract diners, Big Apple restaurateurs are spending big bucks to transform their newly expanded outdoor seating areas from urban jungle to the South of France. 

Ugly city scaffolding at Marea on Central Park South has disappeared under an intricate swath of vines popping with blue and white flowers. 

The Catch rooftop in the Meatpacking District and Lola Taverna in the West Village are both literally dripping flowers, while Fresco by Scotto, which reopens next month, has been transformed into a Capri lemon grove. 

The striking installations can cost $30,000 to $40,000, but it’s worth it, restaurateurs say, because it boosts revenue by drawing in diners eager to forget they’re eating in a former parking spot. 

Plus, the new nature-meets-urban landscapes are the perfect draw for social media pics. 

At Fresco by Scotto, which reopens in June, the Scotto family has spent more than $100,000 on their new outdoor space, which is filled with lemon trees to resemble Da Paolino, a famous Italian restaurant in Capri. 

“Midtown is dead. We knew we had to up our game and build a spectacular place,” Elaina Scotto told Side Dish. “A designer could take a year, so we called our friend Larry Scott.” 

Scott, a top event planner, told Side Dish he created a “Europe-meets-the-Hamptons-meets-New York City vibe.” for after the pandemic. 

“It’s an escape from the city, a jewel of tranquility — until you turn around and see Duane Reade and the cement,” Scott quipped. 

The lemon trees at Fresco by Scotto’s outdoor dining area.James Messerschmidt

The exterior of Fresco by Scotto’s outdoor dining set up.James Messerschmidt

Although $100,000 sounds like a big investment, Scotto says “it will pay back almost immediately,” including through rentals for private parties. 

Marea on Central Park South was a leader of the urban floral trend taking over Manhattan, having installed its vines last July during a dark time for the industry. 

“The idea came from our circumstance, the scaffolding and a bus lane,” said Ahmass Fakahany, founder and CEO of the Altamarea Group, which owns Marea. 

“I spent some time walking around Central Park and decided not to give up and close Marea but to see if we could turn it around into something beautiful.” 

“It was a time when people wanted positivity,” Fakahany said of the period when restaurants were first allowed to resume limited sit-down dining outdoors. “It was an investment in our survival and our future, and it brought in a lot of new clients who wanted to be part of the experience.” 

Flowers outside of the entrance to Marea in Manhattan.Marea

The outdoor dining area at Marea in Manhattan.Marea

After transforming Cafeteria’s white, modern outdoor space, which seats 200 people outside and 100 people inside, with branches and a romantic pergola, sales increased 30 percent, said restaurateur Mark Amadei of the Chelsea eatery. 

“The streets were getting a little bleak,” Amadei said. “New York is about reinventing itself again and again and again.” 

Spiro Menegatos, of Nerai, also says his $40,000 floral installation above his pandemic-inspired outdoor eating pergola will pay for itself. 

“I don’t have a baseline to compare it to because we never had the space before, but I think people come here because of it,” Menegatos said. “If you stand here for an hour, you’ll see 20 people stop and take pictures. We have a bench with a sign and it definitely helps create buzz.” 

The outdoor dining area for Nerai restaurant in Manhattan.Courtesy of Javier Romero

The floral installations at Marea, Cafeteria, Nerai, Lola Taverna and Catch were created by Carlos Franqui, a fashion stylist-turned-founder of Floratorium, whose striking floral exteriors seem to serve as sirens to people walking by. 

“People walking by will stop to take photographs,” Franqui said. “It’s free advertising. People share pictures, and it brings in more business.” 

Even Martha Stewart has stopped to snap a few shots of his work, he said. 

“When Mother Martha stopped to snap and share our work, that was a very reassuring moment,” Franqui said.

Peloton may be angling to sidestep its woes with a new gadget that has nothing to do with riding on a stationary bike. 

The fitness company, forced this month to recall thousands of its $4,300 exercise treadmills over customer injuries and the death of a child, is quietly testing a new device called The Tiger, sources told The Post. 

The handheld gadget, about the size of an old Sony Walkman, can be attached to a TV or computer and provides instant feedback on customers’ workouts, said a source close to the company. 

It was not clear what sort of workouts Peloton would be offering, but The Tiger is equipped with software that will assess customers’ form and movements. 

A small child got pulled underneath the moving Peloton treadmill.U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission/YouTube

There is also a cover that slides over the lens when it’s not in use, presumably so customers don’t feel like they are being watched. 

The Tiger was well underway before the recall, the source said, and is likely to be unveiled in the fourth quarter of this year. 

“While our R&D team is always working on ideas, we have no new products to announce at this time,” Peloton spokeswoman Jessica Kleiman said. 

Analysts have expressed concern about Peloton’s post-pandemic growth as people return to gyms. 

Peloton had to recall 125,000 of its Tread + treadmills due to reports of a child’s death and others being injured.Adam Glanzman/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Federal prosecutors will be allowed to highlight Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes’ taste for globe-trotting and celebrity in her upcoming fraud trial, a judge ruled, after her attorneys argued that such details could enflame jurors’ “class prejudice.”

Holmes’ glamorous lifestyle included traveling by private jet, driving an expensive SUV and staying in pricey hotels while hobnobbing with influential friends and backers like former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and former Defense Secretary James Mattis.

US prosecutors in Holmes’ upcoming trial, which is slated to start in August after Holmes’ attorneys requested a delay due to her pregnancy, argued that the disgraced businesswoman’s lavish lifestyle and relationships with powerful people incentivized her to commit fraud. 

Holmes’ attorneys retorted in February that details about Holmes’ lifestyle should not be admitted because they could spark “class prejudice” in jurors.

Theranos was once valued at $9 billion and Elizabeth Holmes’ standard of living reflected wealth on that scale.BACKGRID

Judge Edward Davila, who is overseeing the case, threaded the needle between prosecution and defense by determining that information about Holmes’ travel, salary and taste for celebrity are admissible evidence, but that details on other aspects of her lifestyle are not. 

“The Government may introduce evidence that Holmes enjoyed a lifestyle as Theranos CEO that is comparable to those of other tech company CEOs. This includes salary, travel, celebrity, and other perks and benefits commensurate with the position,” Davila wrote in a court document filed Saturday in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.

“However, references to specific purchases or details reflecting branding of clothing, hotels, or other personal items is not relevant, and the prejudicial effect of that evidence outweighs any probative value.” 

Elizabeth Holmes enjoyed luxe accommodations before her downfall for making false claims about her company’s technology.BACKGRID

Holmes, who was indicted for fraud alongside former Theranos chief operating officer Ramesh Balwani in 2018, was once the world’s youngest female self-made billionaire. Her now-defunct company, which falsely claimed it had developed technology to perform rapid medical tests using minuscule amounts of blood, was once valued at $9 billion. 

Uber Technologies on Monday launched its COVID-19 vaccine rides program in partnership with the White House, offering all Americans an up to $25 discount for each of their trips to and from a vaccination site.

Customers who have booked a vaccine appointment can request a ride through the Uber app and either incur no charges if the trip costs less than $25, or receive a $25 discount for their journey, the company said.

Drivers will receive the full payment for the trip, Uber said.

With two of the three COVID-19 vaccines available in the United States requiring two separate shots, Uber would pay a maximum of $100 per passenger under the program. A company spokesman said Uber does not have an estimate for the number of vaccine rides it expects to provide.

U.S. President Joe Biden two weeks ago announced the partnership with Uber and its rival Lyft in an effort to boost COVID-19 vaccination rates at a time when U.S. demand for vaccines has declined.

Many states are offering incentives, from free food and drinks to a chance at winning a lottery, in order to get more Americans to roll up their sleeves for a COVID-19 shot.

Biden has set a target of getting 70 percent of U.S. adults inoculated by July 4 so the country can be safely reopened for celebrations and small Independence Day holiday gatherings. As of Thursday, 48% of Americans have received at least one vaccine dose, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

For Uber and Lyft, the vaccine efforts also come as the companies seek to have drivers and riders return to the road and recover revenue lost during the pandemic.

Lyft has said customers booking a vaccine ride will receive a $15 discount per trip.

The nationwide rides discounts build on existing vaccination programs Uber and Lyft launched at the end of last year to assist vulnerable communities lacking healthcare and transportation access.