King Larry
Page 34
10/10/95 Attorneys and consultants inspect the Cessna wreckage on Tinian.
12/1995 Mercedita Feliciano is born in Manila.
2/9/96 Kosack releases first draft of the Special Master’s Report.
2/16/96 Hillblom Law introduced into CNMI Legislature.
7/15/96 Johnnie Cochran arrives on Saipan to challenge Hillblom Law.
11/6/96 Dateline NBC airs program on Hillblom estate case.
5/1997 Waechter replaced as estate administrator.
8/1997 Coleman Fannin holds settlement discussions in San Francisco and Saipan.
6/1998 Excavation at Hillblom estate.
6/21/07 Federalization Bill introduced in the U.S. Senate.
6/21/07 Vietnam and United States sign historic trade agreement.
Characters
David Allen—Founder, Middleston, NV (DHL, International)
Andy Anderson—Larry’s stepfather
Grant Anderson—Larry’s half brother and trustee
Helen Anderson—Larry’s mother
Yeoryios Apallas—Deputy attorney general, State of California
David Bonderman—Investor, owner, Continental Airlines
Carla Bostom (Summer)—Larry’s girlfriend/DHL executive
Charles Brenner—Forensic mathematician
Ed “Champ” Calvo—Larry’s friend and Bank of Saipan board member
Alex Castro—CNMI Superior Court judge
James “Jim” Campbell—Political consultant, postal matters
Marilyn “Mares” Corral—DHL’s first employee
Jellian Cuartero—Purported heir of Hillblom
Adrian Dalsey—Cofounder of DHL
Peter Donnici—Larry’s personal attorney and DHL board member
Michael Dotts—Larry’s personal attorney on Saipan
Family Law and Immigration Law Clinic (FILC)—Attorneys for Junior
Mercedita Feliciano—Purported heir of Hillblom
Randy Fennell—Attorney for “Baby Doe Hillblom,” aka Jellian Cuartero
Be Lory—Purported heir of Hillblom
Adonis Gotas—Cessna mechanic
Roger Gridley—Real estate investor and friend
Joe Hill—Local counsel (Saipan) for Junior
Junior Larry Hillbroom—Purported heir of Hillblom
Naoko Imeong—Grandmother of Junior Larry Hillbroom
Barry Israel—Attorney for Junior Larry Hillbroom
Bruce Jorgensen—Hillblom’s former attorney; lobbyist on Saipan
Raoul Kennedy—Attorney for the estate
Kaelani Kinney—Mother of Junior Larry Hillbroom
Steven Kroll—Larry’s friend and former general counsel, DHL
Joe Lifoifoi—Larry’s best friend and Bank of Saipan board member
Henry Litton—Queen’s Counsel (Hong Kong)
Bob Long—SeaBee pilot/mechanic
Charles Loomis—Chairman of Loomis Corporation
Robert Lynn—Cofounder of DHL
David Lujan—Attorney for Junior Larry Hillbroom
Patrick Lupo—Chairman of DHL, International; DHL’s second general counsel
Jess Mafnas—Larry’s friend and former CNMI Speaker of the House
Bill Millard—Founder of Computerland; tax fugitive
Ted Mitchell—General counsel, UMDA
Alex Munson—District judge, CNMI, 1988–
David Nevitt—Managing partner, Carlsmith law firm
Peter Neufeld—DNA expert
Josephine Nocasa—Larry’s live-in girlfriend
Bob O’Connor—Larry’s personal attorney on Saipan and friend
John Osborn—Partner, Carlsmith law firm
Douglas Ousterhout—Craniofacial surgeon
Brad Popovich—Molecular biologist/geneticist
William Robinson—Founder, Middleston, NV (DHL, International)
Barry Scheck—DNA expert
Barry Simon—General counsel, Continental Airlines
Robert Timm—Chairman of the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB)
Mr. Toan—Assistant to Larry Hillblom in Vietnam
Froilan Tenorio—Governor of the CNMI, 1993–98
Ted Thomas—Publicist, Hong Kong
Joe Waechter—Executor and chairman, UMDA and Danao International Holdings; president of DHL Corporation, 1983–86
Companies Owned or Partly Owned
by Larry Hillblom and/or His Estate
A.R.W. (DHL ranch, cellular licenses)
AIR MICRONESIA (“Air Mike”)
AIR PARTNERS, LP (Continental Airlines)
AIR SAIPAN, INC. (Continental Airlines G.P.)
ALEXANDER DRILLING
ALEXANDER REAL ESTATE
BANK OF SAIPAN, INC.
BEL AIR APARTMENTS (Manila studio)
BVI CORPORATION (DHL)
COMMONWEALTH HOLDINGS CORPORATION (CHC)
DAEDALUS dba MCV—GUAM (cable TV)
DALAT RESORT INCORPORATED (DRI)
DANAO INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS (DIH)
DHL AIRWAYS
DHL AUSTRALIA
DHL COMMUNICATIONS (fax)
DHL CORPORATION
DHL, INTERNATIONAL
DUMBLETON PROPERTIES (real estate)
FAST CASH, INC. (pawnshop)
FIRST SKYLINE CORP. (DHL ranch)
GREEN HEIGHTS, INC. (Kannat Gardens apartments)
ISLAND AIRWAYS (inter-island airline, Hawaii)
KSPN (Saipan television network)
LAO LAO BAY, LLC (golf course)
MANAGEMENT RESOURCES, INT’L. (consulting)
MARIANAS CABLEVISION (cable television)
MARIAS FALLS INSURANCE
MATTAWAN, aka MONTERREY (DHL, International stock)
MIDDLESTON, NV (DHL affiliate)
MERIZO SHORES, LLC (Cocos Island)
MICRONESIAN TELECOMMUNICATIONS CORP.
NAOG PROPERTY (Saipan real estate)
NEWCO (DHL)
NHA TRANG, INC. (Lifoifoi building)
NIRADA, INC. (Greece real estate)
PEOPLE OF MICRONESIA (POM)
POTAWATOMIE, INC. (Coral Island condos)
PURISSIMA PROPERTIES, INC. (DHL ranch)
RED INDIANAPOLIS F. (wireless cable)
SAIPAN CATTLE CORPORATION (“Cowtown” ranch/brothel/drive-in theater)
SAIPAN CHARTER dba LEISURE TIME INVESTMENT (SeaBee airplane)
SAIPAN COMPUTER SERVICES
SAIPAN LONG DISTANCE, INC.
SAN ROQUE BEACH DEVELOPMENT, INC. (SRBD)
SAN VICENTE APARTMENTS
TAGAYTAY HIGHLANDS (PI real estate)
TAPACHAO PARTNERSHIP (condos)
ULUNIU SHORES (Hawaii real estate)
UNITED MICRONESIAN DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION (UMDA)
Acknowledgments
Two people in particular deserve mention here: Brant Rumble, a supremely patient and wise editor; and my mother, Marianne Scurlock, who read several manuscripts over the past few years and provided advice and encouragement. I should also thank Nan Graham and Susan Moldow at Scribner for their patience, as well as my agent, Melissa Flash-man at Trident Media Group, without whom there would be no book. I am fortunate that Larry Hillblom surrounded himself with interesting and intelligent people, some of whom were very generous with their time. At the top of this list are Steven Kroll and Carla Summer, as well as Mike Dotts, Bob O’Connor, Patrick Lupo, Marilyn Corral, Jesse Choper, and Jim Campbell. There were many others who gave of their time, including Parker Folse, Sandy Phillips, Peter Donnici, Douglas Ousterhout, Joe Lifoifoi, Champ Calvo, David Bonderman, Herman Guerrero, Howard Hills, John Jones, Peter Woodruff, Jose De La Cruz, Ferdie De La Torre, Barry Simon, Charles Brenner, Roy Alexander, Travis Coffman, Tim Goodwin, Alice Braziler, Mr. Toan, Joe Hill, Dave Crass, Jack Atwood, Paul Kimoto, John Veague, Raoul Kennedy, Yeoryios Apallas, Thi Be, Julie Cuartero, Russ Sands, Manny Villagomez, Manny S. Tenorio, Pete Guerrero, Jim Sirok, Pete A. Tenorio, Froilan Tenorio, Bob Christian, Roger Gridley, John Anderson, David Grizzle,
Henry Litton, George Proctor, Mary Fischer, Geoffrey Farrow, Ed Pangelinan, Roger Clark, Moses Uludong, James Ripple, Allen Hazlip, Bob Kline, Gerry Paras, Fred Radewagen, Sam MacPhetres, Manny Villagomez, Ron Shinkai, Lennis Scheline, Bud White, Mike White, Barry Israel, and David Lujan, among others. Judge Francis Tydingco-Gatewood, Marconi Calindas, Kevin Wilson, and Grant Anderson either opened doors or kept them from slamming shut. The overworked staff at the CNMI Courts Building on Saipan, particularly Bernie Sablan and Dex, fetched the Hillblom Estate case, volume after volume, day after day, so I am grateful to them indeed. Staffs at other courthouses, including the federal courthouse on Saipan, were also generous but their names I can no longer recall. Thanks is also due to the federal archives center in San Mateo, as well as the courthouse there. Then there are those whose names I am not at liberty to disclose here but whose help proved invaluable. Finally, of course, I must thank Larry Hillblom himself. If I have not done justice to his life in these pages, it has not been for lack of help or lack of effort.
Index
Page numbers in italics refer to illustrations.
Abramoff, Jack, xiv
airbills, 40–41, 45
airline deregulation, 39, 62, 307
Air Micronesia, 96–97, 101–2, 104, 111, 129, 144, 203, 222, 241, 276
Air Partners, 176, 309
Alioto, Joe, 37
Allen, David, 25
Aloha Airlines, 97
Amarich, Andon, 111
American Telephone Answering Service, 18
America West Airlines, 180
Anderson, Andy, 5, 7, 57, 67, 292, 294
Anderson, Grant, 6, 8, 25, 33, 46, 132, 247, 288, 292, 298–99, 300
Apallas, Yeoryios, 266–69, 270, 272, 275, 296, 298
Apatang, David, 262
Aquino, Corey, 264
ARW, 163
Asian financial crisis (2006), 85
Atwood, Jack, 20–21
Avery, Jack, 279
Babauta, Oscar, 258–59, 261
Baby Jane Doe, 245, 246, 247, 249–50, 251, 257, 268, 273, 296, 304, 305, 309, 310
Baby M, 247–48, 257
Baez, Joan, 10
Bank of America, 19, 24, 115
Bank of Saipan, 89, 103, 155, 164, 203, 204, 206, 212, 220, 230, 231, 244, 253, 274, 284, 307
banks, xiv
Bao Dai, 186–87
Barnett, Peter, 239
Barusch, Junior Larry, see Hillbroom, Junior Larry
Basilius, Polycarp, 210
Bauer, Susan, 303n
Beatty, Warren, 64
Bechtel, 69
Belvidere, 197–99
bills of lading, 16, 17
Black Panthers, 11
Blair, Sid, 115, 117
Boalt Hall, 8–9, 20, 37, 40, 54, 66, 88, 125, 145, 150, 298
Bolger, William, 67–68, 69, 73–74
Bonderman, David, 176, 180, 185
Brant, Sandy, 23
Braziler, Alice, 31–32
Braziler, Jimmy, 30–31, 32
Brenner, Charles, 303
Brown, Ray, 281
Brown & Root, 69
Burton, Philip, 121
Bush, George H. W., 146
BusinessWeek, 100
Calvo, Ed “Champ,” 230
Camacho, David, 263
Campbell, Jim, 57, 62–63, 64, 65, 66, 69, 70, 131
Canon, 131, 164n
Carlsmith, Curtis, 19, 59–60, 72, 75–78, 98, 126, 131, 132
Carlsmith Ball, 97, 102, 156–58, 161, 203–4, 229, 239, 244, 246, 257, 261, 284
Carter, Jimmy, 87
Castro, Alex C., 205, 206, 207–8, 217, 218, 219–20, 227, 229, 230–32, 238, 239, 243, 248, 249, 250, 254, 256, 267, 269, 275, 278, 280, 283, 284, 288, 296, 303n, 309
Cathay Pacific Airways, 55, 253
Chateau de Baie, 245
China, 121, 177
Choper, Jesse, 145–50, 173
Christian, Bob, 234–37
Chung, Po, 76, 99, 144, 163, 164, 188, 189, 191, 232, 243, 245, 271, 307
Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), 40–41, 44, 48, 61, 66, 70, 72, 76, 77, 97, 101, 132, 152, 161
desist order issued by, 26, 28, 29, 33, 35–36, 40, 41, 58, 307
DHL’s probationary period allowed by, 41
hearings on, 61–65, 66
Hillblom’s visits to, 30, 35
Clark, Roger, 123
Clifford, Clark, 101, 186
Clifford & Warnke, 101
Cochran, Johnnie L., Jr., 277–78, 279–80, 298, 310
Cocos Island, 72–74, 77, 92–93, 140
Commonwealth Holdings Corporation (CHC), 206–7, 220, 230, 231, 238, 244, 253, 254, 256, 272
compliance disposition, 31, 35, 40, 41, 46
Computerland, 120
Congress, CNMI, 118–21, 136
Congress, U.S., 61–65, 66, 120–21, 307
Constitution, CNMI, 155–56, 160
Contemporary Pacific, 159
Conti, Samuel, 28, 31, 35, 39, 41, 103
Continental Airlines, 96, 98, 99, 100–102, 103, 110–11, 112, 114, 115, 125, 126–28, 129, 152, 155, 176, 185, 270, 271–72, 308, 309
Continental Airlines v. People of Micronesia et al., 101, 112, 114, 115, 118, 126–28, 152, 183–84, 204, 308
Coombs, Guy, 216, 219
Corral, Marilyn, 18, 20, 21, 22, 25, 26, 30, 33, 34–35, 40, 45, 46–47, 57, 58, 60, 63
DHL calendar scheduled by, 19
retirement of, 18
Covenant with the United States, 86–88, 120–23, 136–37, 148, 150, 263, 307
Cowtown, 92, 115, 308
Crass, David, 6, 7, 22
Cruikshanks, Geoffrey, 244
Cuartero, Jellian, see Baby Jane Doe
Cuartero, Julie, see Jane Doe
Curtis, Russ, 94–95, 97
Dalat, 182–83, 184, 185, 191, 308, 309
Dalsey, Adrian, 16–17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25, 34, 41, 58, 59, 75, 76, 164, 307
death of, 43
in dispute with Loomis, 26, 27, 28
ouster of, 43–44, 45, 59
Dalsey, Marge, 16, 17, 20, 24, 28, 44
Danao International Holdings, 189, 191, 203, 232, 271, 308, 309
Dateline NBC, xii, 281, 283, 310
DeBon, George, 43–44
de la Torre, Ferdie, 203
Deloitte and Touche Tohmatsu, 163
DeLorean DMC-12, 90–91, 93, 102, 148, 243
Department of Finance, CNMI, 150–51, 163, 241
Deutsche Post, xiii, 303
DHL, xiii–xiv
accounting of, 17, 24, 44–45, 47
airline built by, 94
airline license issue and, 28–29, 30–31
in alliance with JAL, 140–44, 146, 150, 308
in Asia, 21, 51, 140–41, 164
Asian problems of, 140–41
in battle with USPS, 68–70, 75, 94
CAB’s release of operating certificate of, 73
Carlsmith’s accusation against, 75–78
color scheme of, 39
conception of, 16–17, 307
couriers of, 19–20, 25, 35, 40, 75–76
customer trust in, 20
desist order to, 26, 28, 29, 33, 35–36, 40, 41, 58, 307
emergency loans issued by, 230–31, 238, 243, 253
fax business of, 131
first office of, 18–19, 20, 22, 93
as freight forwarder, 44–45, 61
growing demand for, 19–20, 24–25, 140
Hillblom’s successor hired at, 131–32
insurance company of, 233
Loomis Corporation’s battle with, 26–29, 33, 34, 38–41, 43–44, 48–51, 54–56, 59, 61, 63, 70, 103, 152
money lost by, 22
network built by, 21, 24, 26, 41
pouches used by, 19–20, 44, 45
in proposed merger with UPS, 130, 132, 133–34
ranch of, 104, 270, 272, 303
sales and revenue of, 24, 48, 146
sense of doom at, 1
39
stock in, 58, 93, 270, 271, 274, 308
tax problems of, 309
value of, 271
DHL, International, 48, 143, 164, 206, 230–31, 270, 271, 274, 307, 308
DHL-US, 94
Diaz, Debra, 156
Donnici, Diane, 38–39
Donnici, Peter, 37–40, 57, 93, 103, 111, 112, 117, 130, 160, 162, 207, 213, 217, 222, 231, 268, 274, 290, 297, 300, 305, 307, 308
in battle with CAB, 70
in battle with post office, 69
Dalsey’s insult against, 44
Hillblom’s disappearance and, 200, 202
Hillblom’s estate allegedly hijacked by, 230–31, 238–39, 243, 244–45, 253–55, 270
Hillblom’s illegitimate children and, 262, 286
Hillblom’s will and, 203
JAL deal and, 141, 143, 144
on Loomis case, 39–40, 41–42, 43, 48, 49, 51
in Mitchell-Hillblom dispute, 309
shares of DHL taken from Hillblom estate by, 231, 238
subpoena of, 243
in suit against Lorenzo, 125, 127, 128
Donnici & Co., 231
Donnici & Lupo, 69, 77
Dotts, Mike, xix, 6, 155, 158, 160–61, 162, 170, 178, 217–18, 239, 249, 250, 251, 266, 284, 293, 296–97
Hillblom’s disappearance and, 200, 201, 202
Josephine as client of, 212, 213, 214–15
Drexel Burnham Lambert, 133
Dumbleton, 271
Eastern Airlines, 100
electronic mail, 70
Emergency Management Office, 200
Erasmus, 81
Fairfield, Roland, 228, 239, 242, 273–74
Faldo, Nick, 183
Family and Immigration Law Clinic (FILC), 222–23, 228, 252, 253–54, 273–74, 275, 277–78, 279
Fannin, Coleman, 296, 298–300, 310
Farber, Myron, 280–82, 283, 285, 289–90, 293–94, 295
fax machine, 131, 164n–65n
FDIC, 89, 103
Federal Express, xiv, 94, 130, 131, 132, 134, 139, 140–41
Federal Reserve, 16, 24
Feliciano, Mercedes, 247–48, 250–51, 268, 273, 283–84, 285, 288, 296, 298, 304, 310
Feliciano, Rumila, 250
Fennell, Randy, 245–46, 247, 249–51, 268–69, 272, 273, 279, 290
Ferrer, Eric, 279, 280
First American Volunteer Group, 132
Flying Tiger Line, 132–34, 139, 140
Foerster, Morrison (MoFo), 284, 285, 288, 297–98
Folse, Parker, 110–11, 112, 124, 125, 126–27, 128
Fonda, Jane, 10
Forbes, xviii
Ford, Gerald, 280
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, 111