I started kindergarten in Crystal Falls. After an uneventful year, I advanced to the first grade.  My teacher was Miss Dawson.  I was seated near the front of the classroom.  We were learning how to write.  I was left-handed and everyone was taught as if they were right-handed -- the writing paper had to be tilted to the left.  Writing with my left hand, with the paper tilting left, my hand ran over the ink and smeared it.  I wanted to turn the paper to the right to avoid smearing.  Miss Dawson would not allow that.  I then refused to talk to her or participate in class discussions and was sent to the back of the classroom, where I remained for six weeks.  Miss Dawson ultimately agreed to let me turn the paper to the right so the ink would not smear. Afterward, Miss Dawson allowed all left-handed students to tilt their paper the way I had suggested. I would not have remembered these details except that another teacher, Miss Cassidy, told me about it when I was in the fifth or sixth grade.

 

Beginning at age eight, I started attending Camp Ba-Ta-Wa-Ga-Ma for a week each summer.  The cost was $8 a week; that was all we could afford so I never got to stay a second week even though I would have liked to. The camp was originally a depression-era WPA camp, which was taken over by Iron County as a camp for children of county residents.  It continues in operation today. The camp was administered by K.W. Schulze, the Crystal Falls Superintendent of Schools and run day-to-day by "Lars" Cameron, the school superintendent in Gladstone.  K.W.'s son Brian and Lorna, the daughter of "Lars", are still active at camp. (Brian is the brother of Ken, my friend in high school. Lorna married Bill Addison, the brother of my good friend, Tom) I regularly went to camp until I reached the maximum age; I worked at camp with Ken while I was in high school and spent one summer as a counselor after graduating from Michigan State. I was recently asked to serve on the camp’s Board of Directors.

 

When I was in the first or second grade, Mom could no longer afford to pay for electricity and the "lights" were turned off.  We used a kerosene lamp.  (We were without lights until I was in high school, got a job and got the electricity turned back on. I had a telephone installed at the same time; prior to that, I had to go next door to “borrow” the phone.) Dad had by now moved to Escanaba, where he worked as a Hardware Department Manager for Montgomery Ward. One time he visited with two lady friends from Florida, Harriet and her sister, Marcella. Dad married Harriet a little later and she and Dad petitioned the County Court in Crystal Falls to takeover my custody.  I was called to the court. I told the judge that Harriet didn't have any children and had told me she didn't want any.  The judge left me with my mother.  I did visit Dad and Harriet twice a year, once in August for the State Fair and again, after Christmas.  They visited his mother (my grandmother) and her husband regularly; they lived on a farm near Crystal Falls, and after selling the farm, moved across the street from Mom and me. During those visits, I was always invited to join Dan and Harriet for a meal.

 

I’ve never forgotten, during these early years, kids in the neighborhood walking on the street and pointing to the house where I lived, saying (or yelling) very loudly, “There’s Crazy House!” It didn’t happen often, but it happened!

 

I took my first "piccolo" music lesson in the third grade.  This was my introduction to music.  I then started playing the trumpet and in the fourth grade was asked by Mr. Stender, the band teacher, to join the high school band.  I will never forget the help Mr. Stender gave me.  He also introduced me to my first piece of more serious music, Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue". That was the beginning of my life-long interest in music. I later became fascinated with percussion and changed over, participating first in the "junior" band and then the high school band.  

 

The fourth grade was also my introduction to art. Mrs. Dove was the art teacher and thanks to her, I've had a lifelong interest in art.  I remember drawing a "tree without leaves". I loved the intricacies of the branches.  I have, today, a drawing similar to it (not done by me) hanging in my bedroom.I remember Mrs. Temple from the sixth grade as very helpful -- the help from the Temple family continued in high school where Mr. Temple was an English teacher and sports coach.

 

I had three good friends, Don Trepasso, Terry Davidson and later, Ken Schulze, who was one year younger and one grade behind me in school. Tom Addison, who was three years younger, became a good friend after high school; he and his wife are, today, two of my best friends. Don's dad owned a local gas station; Terry's dad was one of three local dentists. Ken's father was the local Superintendent of Schools (and Camp Administrator). Tom's dad was one of the local doctors. My mother had known Terry's mother and Don's parents since she was a kid. Although we "chummed" around together; my friends were more into sports than I was.  Don was killed in a horrid automobile accident in the ninth grade.  His younger sister Doris (Dolly) came to Crystal Falls at the time of the last class reunion to look me up, having heard I would be there. Terry is a professor at the University of Michigan. Ken is a doctor in Wyoming. I didn't get to know Tom, who is now a doctor in the Bay Area, very well, until I graduated from Michigan State and we worked one summer at Camp. Terry's dad was my dentist and did a lot of work for me after I started my newspaper route; Tom's dad and Dr. Palm treated me medically at little or no cost. 

 

To make extra money, I started selling Christmas cards, door-to-door during the summer, after fifth grade, and then started my newspaper route, which I continued until I was in the 10th grade and found a "stock boy" job at J.C. Penny. In my freshman year, I started a lunchtime job in the school cafeteria so I could get a free lunch and have seconds, thirds or fourths if I wanted more lunch. The subject of my family, and its finances, came up with the manager of J.C. Penny. He agreed to pay me in cash so my mother’s welfare payment would not be reduced because of increased family income.  That's when I had the “lights” turned back on. During my junior year I started work as a desk clerk at the local hotel on Sundays.  My mother was concerned about me working at the hotel, and possibly seeing people doing "strange" things.  I went to work there anyway. At the end of my senior year, Mrs. Kennedy, who, with her husband, owned the hotel, offered to hire my mother as a dishwasher since she knew Mom would need the money when I left for the summer and then went to college.  Mom took the job.

 

I wasn't into sports, but became fascinated with cheerleading at the football and basketball games.  Cheerleaders were elected; they were then all girls. (George Bush - the second -- hadn't been elected a cheerleader at Yale yet.) I ran and won.  I was a cheerleader during my freshman and sophomore years.  I didn't run again -- embarrassment might have had something to do with it.  I had suffered a lot of teasing -- particularly at out-of-town games.

 

We were fortunate to have Latin instruction in high school.  Mrs. vonZellen was the Latin instructor and also taught English (together with Mr. Temple) and coached the debate team.  Latin proved to be key to my understanding how the English language was constructed.  Mrs. vonZellen thought I would be good in debate and I joined the team.  We regularly did well in the Upper Peninsula high school competition.  One time we won the finals; another, we were runner-up.  Terry, Ken or Leila were generally my debate partners. I also won awards for speaking -- I believe they were called "declamation" contests; there were competitions with other area high schools; Diane Boyd was a good friend who participated in these competitions. (Diane's Dad owned a very successful local construction company, which operated throughout the Midwest; my uncle {the one from Iron Mountain} was the accountant.)  There was debating in the fall and winter; declamations in the spring.

 

I was always interested in geography and where different places were located. I was also an avid fan of current events, but since we didn’t have radio or TV, I would visit my aunt and uncle, Helmi and Leander, to watch television. They lived two blocks away.  Since I enjoyed reading about current events, I ordered my first subscription to a magazine when I was 15.  The magazine was TIME – and I was able to keep up to date with current events.  There was a music series in Iron River.  Visiting artists performed and you could purchase a subscription.  I didn’t have access to a car and couldn’t afford the tickets.  A few times, I was invited as a guest of the Davidson or Schulze families. I appreciated those invitations and learned a lot.

 

My first travel experience to a big city was in the fall of my sophomore year, a Michigan/Minnesota football game in Minneapolis. Mr. Schulze, who graduated from Michigan, was taking a friend of his and his son Ken, who asked me to go along. My other big city visit was either a little before or after that - to Wausau, Wisconsin for the Rotary Conference. I enjoyed both trips, especially seeing big cities!

 

Rotary had a Youth Program; there were youth representatives from each club at the Rotary conferences.  I was one of two chosen to represent the Crystal Falls Club; Wausau was the first of three conferences I attended. I particularly remember, while we were in Minneapolis, Mr. Schulze said we might see (but did not) a new entertainer, a piano player named Liberace. Mr. Schulze pronounced the name, LiberACE. When I got back home, I mentioned LiberACE  to a  neighbor who give me the correct pronunciation; she had gone to high school with Liberace in Milwaukee.  Funny!

 

Because of my interest in history and current events, I became fascinated with the career of former President Truman.  I remember writing him a letter, addressed to him at his library, in my junior year.  I received a nice personal answer with Truman’s autographed picture.

 

I had joined the school newspaper as a freshman and became Editor-in-Chief in my junior year. This was unusual; the Editor-in-Chief was generally a senior. During my senior year, I was also Editor-in-Chief of the Class Yearbook. The Yearbook is a good remembrance.  Costs were a problem.  I thought the pages devoted to advertising were wasted; those pages should have editorial so we could save on the cost of paper.  I persuaded all advertisers to agree to one print line -- "Compliments of (let's say) The Miller Department Store" -- at the bottom of “their” page; the rest of the page would be editorial. Everyone agreed to this new format. We saved paper costs; our yearbook was both an editorial and financial success.  

 

I joined the Crystal Falls Youth Center as a sophomore and became President in my senior year. We sponsored youth events like dances after games, and other youth community events. In my freshman year, I joined with three sophomores to form "The Four Tunes". We were a dance band and played at school events and also at weddings and other family-type affairs. I played “traps” (percussion). It was another way to earn a few bucks!  Unfortunately, "The Four Tunes" ended after three years, when the other three graduated from high school.

 

I also participated in the statewide  "Student Driver Education" program sponsored by the State of Michigan Police Department. We held regional and statewide conferences. I first represented Crystal Falls in my sophomore year; I didn't drive then, but they wanted me.  I took driver education during my junior year and got my license and continued to participate in the Driver Education program

 

Entering high school, we could take classes either in preparation for college or not. I chose college preparation. Diane, Terry, Glenn Westin and I seemed to be the ones everyone thought would go to college. Diane said more than once that she and I were the “oddballs” in the class – completely different from everyone else. I applied to Michigan, Michigan State (MSU) and the University of Chicago. I got the best scholarship deal from Michigan State, so went there. (Tuition and a small amount for other expenses.)  Terry went to Michigan; Diane to Northwestern; I don't remember where Glenn went. (Glenn was tall and a very good basketball player. Glenn’s family moved to Crystal Falls, where his father became manager of the local A&P grocery, when Glenn was already in high school.)

 

While I was in high school, Harriet showed me an article about her in the Chicago Tribune. She was identified as a great cook (She was -- I remember having my first lobster for the delayed celebration of my 14th birthday; she got me interested in good food.) In the article, she mentioned how much she enjoyed cooking for her step-son when he visited.

 

I'll never forget the Boyd family.  When Diane was turning 17, her Mom called and asked me to come to Diane’s birthday party.  I thought there would be a lot of kids there.  There weren't. Only, Mom, Dad, Diane and I.  Diane later jokingly said her parents must have had something in mind. I had the first cocktail of my life. Mr. Boyd later offered to pay for my college education if I would agree to return to Crystal Falls after four years and work for him.  I thought about it, and reluctantly, said "No".  I was afraid to make such a long-term commitment.

 

High School graduation was in June 1956. I was one of the top 5 in grades (not Valedictorian or Salutatorian). We had elections for the “Best” in various categories; I was elected "Best Dancer".

 

Dad and Marcella came to graduation and gave me $321 as my graduation gift to be used towards the cost of my college education.  I did not receive any additional financial help from them.  My cousin and I went to Milwaukee to look for summer jobs.  Couldn't find one.  There were "busboy" positions available, but I didn't drive a bus (says something about me).  I did later find out I didn't have to drive a bus to be a busboy but decided I didn't want to “bus”. I called Dad and went to Escanaba where he got me a job as a stock boy with Montgomery Ward.  At the end of summer, I took a real bus to East Lansing for MSU Orientation and then was scheduled to return to Crystal Falls for final packing. I hitchhiked to save a few bucks. I was surprised to be picked up by the local Crystal Falls City Attorney, who knew me from the Youth Center.  He asked if I had heard from my mother.  I said I hadn't; he proceeded to tell me that Mom had been committed by the local court to Newberry State Hospital, because of her continuing illness.  Her sister and brother-in-law (formerly from Iron Mountain and now from Amasa) had made the request for hospitalization.  I got home, visited the relatives, packed in the empty apartment and left for college.

 

 

On to Michigan State 

 

As soon as I got to East Lansing, I found a job in my dorm's cafeteria as a server.  I worked there for a few months before finding a job as a bellboy, then desk clerk and later, Night Manager at the campus hotel, Kellogg Center.  MSU was well known for its hotel school.  I was uncertain about a major but chose Economics since the curriculum was wide-ranging and it didn't tie me down in any specific area.  

 

I really had to work hard and study to make sure I made good grades and earned enough money to pay my expenses. I did, however, find time for some student government and during the first two years participated in the college orchestra, playing percussion.

 

Students thought the Lecture-Concert Series was too high brow.  I agreed.  Tickets to all events were free to students since the cost of the Series was included in tuition. Many students did not go to these events. There was much discussion on campus, and within the faculty and administration, and it was agreed that there should be a student rep on the University Lecture-Concert Committee. Since I was the Student Government rabble-rouser, I was appointed. The committee members included the Director of the Series, Dr. Paul and various University Deans.  We agreed, at the request of the students, to offer more movies. 

 

Shortly after joining the Committee, Dr. Paul asked me if I had ever been to a ballet.  I had to say "No". He suggested that as a Committee Member, I should experience a performance. He offered to get me two special seats (behind him and his wife) for a performance the next week. A little known ballet company was in town -- the Royal Danish Ballet! -- with "Sleeping Beauty".  I saw it and liked it. I was asked if I'd go again.  I said I'd have to think about it; the performance was more fun than I had expected. That began a lifelong commitment to enjoying the performing arts.  

 

Dr. Paul asked if I would help him find "supers" for ballet and opera. I had to ask what a "super" was. I was told that supers performed in non-singing, non-dancing roles in operas and ballets.  The first time, I didn't know how if I could find guys (supers were generally guys), and if I did, would those guys go backstage at a ballet or opera? I talked to guys in the cafeteria line and got the six I needed.  After those guys had conversations with people in the New York City Ballet and Opera and the Royal Danish Ballet and told their friends, I didn't have problems getting "supers". The word spread.  Guys asked me when I needed more "supers". I didn’t have to recruit, just pick from the waiting list.

 

To increase student interest, I began writing a column in the campus newspaper about the events in the Lecture-Concert series.  I did a number of interviews.  Two, I particularly remember, one with Mary Martin and one with Paul Butler, the Chairman if the National Democratic National Committee. Beverly Sills was great when I was the waiter in "La Traviata".  She told me how nice she thought it would be if I got to New York for work or more schooling. Melissa Hayden from the New York City Ballet was also very encouraging. Conversations with people like the "Dragon Lady" from “South Viet Nam (sister-in-law of the country's President) were fascinating.

 

Since MSU was a land-grant college, all male students were required to participate in the ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corp) Program during their freshman and sophomore years. Student government objected to this requirement.  We thought ROTC should be a volunteer program. This was before the Viet Nam War; MSU was then helping the US State and Defense Departments with many programs involving South Viet Nam.  The President of MSU, Dr. John Hannah, was a former Asst. Sec. of Defense for Manpower under Eisenhower. (I was told that I, who wanted to be an officer in the Navy, would not qualify as a military officer, since I was deaf in one ear, but I could be drafted into the Army.)  After the faculty debated their position on the matter, and found they agreed with the students, the faculty needed a person to present their position to the governing board. The faculty appointed a student -- me -- to make the presentation.  After I graduated, during my first year in law school, I was pleased to get a call from the MSU Provost, Dr. Miller, who congratulated me by saying that the MSU Trustees had accepted the student/faculty ROTC position and that they would recommend to the US government that ROTC participation be made voluntary at land grant colleges.  The US government later accepted that position and MSU became the first of the land-grant colleges to make ROTC a voluntary program.

 

During my first year at MSU, the fellow next to me in my Communication Skills Class was from Grosse Pointe, Michigan. (Our instructor was Glendon Swarthout, the author of "Where the Boys Are".)  His family had moved to Iowa so he would not be going back to Grosse Pointe for the summer.  He had worked the previous summer as a ticket taker for Bob-Lo in Detroit; the company ran boats carrying 2,500 passengers from the foot of Detroit’s Woodward Avenue to Bob-Lo Island, an amusement park in Amhurstburg, Ontario.  He suggested that we take a hotel room one block from the Bob-Lo office and spend the summer working at Bob-Lo.  I agreed. We worked crazy hours, but were paid by the hour with overtime. I worked there two summers.

 

During spring break in my junior year, four of us decided to go to New York. It was great! The Waldorf!  A Broadway show: Lena Horne in “Jamaica”! Greenwich Village! I thought it would be nice to go back.  This was after all, the city through which all of my grandparents entered the USA.  The entry clerk at Ellis Island got the spelling of Martinen incorrect; there should be another "t". The summer after my junior year, I stayed in East Lansing (instead of going to Bob-Lo) with a good job at Kellogg Center, and took a few classes, which allowed me to graduate in March instead of June, one term early.

 

In my junior year, I was in the first group of students to enter MSU’s Honors College. I graduated with a degree in Economics, Summa Cum Laude. As mentioned earlier, I had decided on Economics because I didn't know what I wanted to do after graduation. Economics gave me the opportunity to go into business or to study law. At MSU, I did take quite a few English history courses. I had become increasingly interested in law, particularly after having been exposed to constitutional law and its English antecedents.

 

I had to decide what to do when I graduated.  It was either get a job -- and there was a good offer at Michigan Bell -- or continue schooling. I was intrigued with the idea of law.  I had talked a little with John Voelkner (then on the Supreme Court of Michigan, formerly Prosecuting Attorney in Marquette, who as Robert Traver wrote "Anatomy of a Murder") after I found that he and his wife regularly attended the Lecture-Concert Series, and was encouraged to study law.  I looked at different scholarship opportunities and learned about the Root-Tilden Program at NYU with its emphasis on community service. I was then thinking that I might want to go back to a small town and practice law, just as Justice Voelkner. The Root-Tilden Program paid tuition and all living expenses.

 

I applied to Michigan, Chicago and NYU and was accepted by all three.  NYU accepted me into the Root-Tilden Program. That Program was then, and remains even more so today, one of the finest legal preparatory programs in the country. The Program selected up to two students from each of the Federal Judicial Circuits; I was selected from the 6th Circuit, after an interview in Cincinnati.

 

As planned, I graduated in March. Commencement was held in the school auditorium. President Hannah presented diplomas personally. (In June, commencement in the football stadium is a huge affair and not as personal.) Tony Nissen, a friend of mine from Iron Mountain, and an occasional debating opponent in high school, graduated the same time I did; he was next to me in the diploma line. As I stepped up to Dr. Hannah, Tony was surprised to hear Dr. Hannah saying, "Congratulations, John.  Thanks for everything you've done and good luck in law school." Tony didn't realize that Dr. Hannah and I had meet a few times in connection with the ROTC matter; he also supplied a recommendation to NYU. 

 

After graduation, I worked at Kellogg Center until going back to Camp in Crystal Falls to work as a counselor.  That summer at Camp Ba-Ta-Wa-Ga-Ma was the best!  I got to organize overnight camping trips (and did so many nights with the kids under my supervision), swim and enjoy the beautiful country I grew up in. I also got to renew a friendship with Tom Addison.  We double-dated and had a great time. We did a lot of water-skiing at his parents’ cottage on Fortune Lake. After camp finished, I went back to MSU to work until the NYU law school year started.

 

On to New York University Law School

 

I took the train to New York; it was fall, 1960.  I went down to NYU and met my roommate, Fred Rosen. His parents were there; a Jewish couple from upstate New York.  I mentioned the Jewish family I knew in Crystal Falls and then we talked about where to go for lunch.  When we discussed the cost of lunch, I remember saying something like "I don't want to Jew you down" -- which was a phrase used in Crystal Falls and MSU.  I'll never forget it.  Stupid! Truly a boy from a small town with a lot to learn!  We had lunch. They still talked to me.  I felt I had to apologize, and did!

 

The next day, I called Doris Kemp.  Doris was the sister-in-law of a registered nurse, Katie Nichol, with whom Harriet, a practical nurse, worked in Escanaba.  When Katie heard I would be in New York, she said I should contact Doris. (Doris' husband, Phil, had been a very successful New York attorney; he died just two months before I came to New York.  He and Doris were returning from Europe on the Ile de France, when he suffered a heart attack and was taken off the ship in a coffin.) I found when I arrived that Katie was in New York visiting Doris.  Doris lived on Washington Square, one block from my dormitory. I was invited for dinner.  

 

Doris became a good friend -- her home cooked meals every so often were much appreciated. I liked to listen to her opinions. Doris was a Republican.  I remember her mentioning that she thought I would like meet a neighbor; she knew my politics leaned toward Democratic. She introduced me to Eleanor Roosevelt who was, at that time, representing the US at the United Nations. I continued to visit Doris throughout law school and afterwards until she died after the turn of the century. (Doris became very fond of my Peruvian friends who she invited for dinner when they were in New York and regularly had young Ana Maria over for Thanksgiving when she was in college in Pennsylvania. Doris and I made a trip to Peru.)

 

Law school was intense; I needed a lot of time to keep up with the course work.  I was not particularly fond of the procedural courses but enjoyed international and constitutional law.

 

During the first year everyone read about the terrible earthquake in Concepcion, Chile.  Some of us in the Root-Tilden Program got the idea that we should volunteer to help rebuild in the area and contacted the University of Concepcion and offered to spend the summer (their winter) working on University housing construction projects. Our offer was accepted and the University of Concepcion agreed to provide room and board for the 10 of us. We proceeded to get a foundation to provide the cost of airfare.  We got it and, for some reason, unknown to me, I was delegated by the group to make travel arrangements.  I researched different airfares and found the two cheapest required an overnight in either Panama City or Lima. Even with the cost of the overnight, those fares remained the cheapest! The overnight in Lima, with travel on LAN Chile proved to be the more cost effective of the two. I remember flying over Cuba and thought, wishfully, how nice it would be if bad weather forced us to land there. Remember, these were the early days of the Castro regime. We arrived in Lima. During the day it was cloudy with overcast sky. We had no time for organized sightseeing. We stayed downtown overnight at the Riviera Hotel. I did not like Lima and thought this was one place to which I'd never return.  Little did I know that I would return to Lima -- and greatly enjoy those visits – more often than any other city outside of the United States.

 

Departing Lima, we first landed in Santiago, and continued down to Concepcion. We soon found that the University did not want us working on construction projects, but mixing with students.  Each one of the 10 of us was assigned to a different dormitory. We learned some Spanish and went to classes. It became clear that the University wanted to have its students meet Northamerican Gringos so they (the students) could determine for themselves if North Americans were really the monsters many claimed they were..  This was the time when the Socialists under Allende were attempting to take over the government.  The influence of Castro was strong. We were there for two months. I believe the Chileans and Northamericans grew to understand each other a little more. Prior to our return to the US, the University administration invited us to their lodge in the Andes, above a lake, outside of Los Angeles, for a week-end of skiing.  I had never been skiing and couldn’t make it down the mountain without falling.  The mountain scenery was magnificent; I hoped I would be able to try skiing again! Our discussions with the university administrators were interesting. I also took a trip with a fellow student to the south, down to Puerto Montt. I knew I wanted to come back.

 

Our return to the USA was scheduled to allow time to go home before returning to school. I didn't have the money for travel to Michigan and then to New York.  I wrote to Marcella (Harriet's sister in Orlando, Florida.)  A registered nurse; she ran a hospital.  She said she would take care of my expenses. I told her that I didn't want the money as a gift, but would work to earn it.  She found some work for me and I stayed with her in Orlando. At the time, a male friend of hers was in the midst of selling land to Walt Disney to set up a "Disneyland in Florida".  It would be a few years before I would visit Disneyworld.  I took Greyhound to Escanaba to visit Dad and Harriet. They took me to visit Mom in the hospital. Then back to New York and the second year at law school. 

 

Years later, Harriet suffered a stroke in early summer, and given her strong personality, tried to hang on.  Ultimately, she died in the fall. I met Marcella, by chance, as we both changed planes in Green Bay to get on the same flight to Escanaba for the funeral – she was coming from Orlando and I from New York. She told me, during our stay in Escanaba, that she thought Dad would have a tough time on his own and wondered if I would object if she talked with him, sometime in the future, about marriage. I told her I thought it was a good idea. That Christmas, Dad asked if I would spend Christmas with him in Orlando where he would be visiting Marcella.  He knew I usually went to Peru for Christmas.  I told him I would, with a condition. He questioned my imposing a condition, but asked what it was.  I said he had to take me to DisneyWorld.  He said DisneyWorld was for kids. I told him if I wasn’t his kid, he had a problem.  I went to Orlando, we went to DisneyWorld. I was later the best man at Dad and Marcella’s wedding.

 

During the second year at law school, law students would look for clerking positions in law firms, for the following summer.  I thought I had one in Cleveland, but that fell through and I had to get a job. I contacted Bob-Lo; I was hired as purser on one of the ships.  Since this would be international maritime travel, I needed a Coast Guard license designating me as a Purser.  I got the license and spent the summer in Detroit working on the Bob-Lo ships.

 

My second year grades were not at the level needed to continue my Root-Tilden stipend; I became a John Ben Snow Scholar with a reduced stipend.  I had to go to work to pay the new expenses. I found a job clerking at Cahill, Gordon, Reindel and Ohl. Most of my time was spent writing summaries of testimony in TWA v. Hughes, a lawsuit TWA brought against its major shareholder, Howard Hughes.  As a result of my reading, I learned a lot about airlines and the travel industry. I later joked with TWA employees and asked what "TWA" originally stood for.  Of course, they said "Trans World Airlines"; I had to tell them that this was the new name. The original name was "Trans Western Airlines". I remember listening to President Kennedy's Bay of Pigs speech one night, working at Cahill.

 

NYU asked those of us who had been to Chile if we would room with students in the graduate-level Latin American Law Program. My roommate, Hugo Novoa, was from Buenos Aires.  Next door was Eugenio Aramburu, another Argentine. I was lucky to meet Eugenio's dad when he visited. Great guy with great stories!  Eugenio’s father was a general, retired from the Argentine Army; he led the overthrow of Juan Peron and became President in 1955.  He turned over the government to a democratically elected President in 1958.

 

During this third year at law school, I, fortunately, had the opportunity, while working part-time at Cahill, to learn how the law business operates and what I would have to do if I started practicing law.  For some reason, the commuting and the (perceived) importance of wives and family didn't appeal to me. I also became interested in a client of the firm, W.R. Grace and Co., which I knew had extensive interests in South America, particularly Peru.  Their presence on the West Coast of South America was so great that PanAm couldn't get landing rights to operate flights on its own and had to establish a company, Panagra, owned half by Grace and half by PanAm, to fly to the South American West Coast from the United States. Grace also operated a steamship/cruise line in the Caribbean and on the South American West Coast. Grace had established this first Caribbean Cruise operation, Grace Line, years before Carnival was born.

 

After graduation, I took a room in my friend Tony Nissen's apartment. Tony had just graduated from Princeton with a PHD in Economics and moved to New York to work for the Federal Reserve Bank. I worked at Cahill throughout the summer and studied for the bar exam. I also ”worked” the Hudson River piers looking for a steamship company to hire me as a purser. The guys at Cahill didn't think much of my idea and said I should stay at Cahill. Some steamship companies said I was overqualified and wouldn't consider me.  Grace Line was included in my visits; I talked with Oscar Hogar, Grace’s Port Purser; he didn't say "No". I had asked Grace's counsel at Cahill to recommend me for a job at sea. I also asked Doris Kemp to talk to Grace since she was a very well respected Grace National Bank investment client. Mr. Hogar later called and offered me a job. I never found out if I got the position because of my interview, a recommendation from Cahill or Doris or because Grace needed someone in a hurry, and I had my Coast Guard papers. I took the bar exam and then became a Junior Purser on the Santa Rosa, sailing every Saturday from Pier 57 in New York on two-week trips to the Caribbean. Doris was initially concerned that I was not going to practice law, but ultimately agreed, I made the right personal decision.

 

Sailing with Grace Line

 

The Santa Rosa was 20,000 tons and carried 250 passengers, in great style, and some cargo. (To compare, the Queen Elizabeth was 59,00 tons.)  We had nine pursers on board, a Chief Purser, two Assistant Pursers and the balance split over the three 8-hour shifts. (This is my memory; the split may have been slightly different.)  We worked seven days a week; we earned a salary with overtime. I started as a Junior Purser, and then worked as an Assistant Purser, preparing Payroll and dealing with the crew. There were about 225 guys in the crew.

 

During the one or two days I was in New York, I generally stayed in Tony's apartment if he was traveling or if he was not, I stayed at the Waldorf, my favorite hotel, which provided great rates for Grace employees.  After Tony married Myra, I sometimes used a spare room with them and also stayed in their apartment when they took an extended trip to Europe.

 

I remember on my first voyage, going into the Dining Room for breakfast the first morning.  A guy with four stripes on his shoulders (I had two) sat down at the same table.    We talked.  Nice guy.  The sea was getting rough and another officer came over; the guy left with the officer.  I then went out to the deck on the bough of the ship where passengers were not allowed. Beautiful sea!  I later learned the waves -- we were in the Atlantic -- were 40 feet, most unusual.  The 2nd Mate, in the bough, asked if I had permission to be there.  I said I didn't know I needed permission. (This location on the ship was much like that in one of the scenes in the movie ”Titanic”.) The bough phone rang.  It was the captain.  He ordered that I come up to the bridge. I went.  The Captain -- it was the guy who had sat down at the breakfast table a little earlier -- ordered me to never do that again. He said I could have been thrown overboard with the fierce wind and waves.

 

I liked Chinese food.  A large part of the ship's staff was Chinese and had their own dining room. Soon after starting work, I got to know a few Chinese, including the ship's chef.  He asked me to join the Chinese crew in their Dining Room.  I did.  On my second dining room visit, who was there?  The captain!  He, too, was there as a guest of the Chinese crew.  He asked me why I was there.  I told him I liked Chinese food and my Chinese friends asked me to join them.  He told me it's an honor to be invited to the Chinese Dining Room -- very few non-Chinese were asked.  He told me I should be very honored -- it took him months before he was invited! I was asked within days!  We later joked about this.  My introduction to shipboard life!

 

The Santa Rosa sailed from New York to the Caribbean.  We regularly berthed or anchored in Aruba, Curacao, Cartagena, and at various times in Bermuda, San Juan, the Virgin Islands, Port-au-Prince, Santo Domingo (then Ciudad Trujillo) and Santa Marta.  I liked Santo Domingo, San Juan and Port-au-Prince because they were great cities with history and beaches.  The others were only beaches! I remember the first time I went to Cuidad Trujillo.  It was shortly after Trujillo, the dictator, had departed the presidential palace; the ship had not visited the port recently.  The guide was new to taking care of ship passengers.  I told her that I, and my passengers, wanted to see the Presidential Palace where Trujillo had lived.  She took us into the private rooms, including Trujillo's bedroom and shared gossip about what went on there.  I loved Port-au-Prince, particularly the Hotel Oluffson.  The Haitian art was intriguing.  I have quite a few pieces.  This got me into picking up different pieces wherever I traveled.  Unfortunately, I never got to Havana while I was with Grace.

 

After two years, I was asked to become an Assistant Purser on the “M” Class ships, smaller ships carrying 125 passengers and cargo.  The passenger and officer accommodations were great!  My stateroom, later, as a Chief Purser, was better than most accommodations on cruise ships today .The ship sailed from New York to Port--au-Prince, Santa Marta or Cartagena, Cristobal, Balboa, Buenaventura, Guayaquil and Callao.  The trips lasted three weeks.

 

On these "M" Class ships, there were three Pursers, the Chief and one Assistant who took care of passenger matters and another who took care of crew matters, including, most importantly, payroll. I started out on the Santa Magdalena as the assistant taking care of crew matters, with the Chief Purser Bill FitzGibbon. While on the Magdalena, I applied to Harvard Business School and was accepted.  I spent one semester and determined that I could not afford to complete the two-year program and went back to sea.  I was assigned to the Santa Mercedes as the Assistant Purser, taking care of passenger matters.  Mike Astudillo was the Chief Purser.

 

Here's where I had to begin a lot of social activity with passengers and, as an officer, had a table in the dining room with passengers as guests. I greeted passengers when they boarded the ship on embarktion. I had sailed on the Mercedes for only a short time, when, on embarkation in New York, a Peruvian family came onboard.  They had just returned from a round-the-world sailing on Cunard's Caronia. Mother, father (who didn’t like to fly), aunt, two daughters and one son.  The Garcia Alvarado family. I later introduced Mike to Ana Maria, the elder sister. Josephina was the younger.  Mike and I double-dated the sisters when the ship visited Peru. I also ran around Lima with the brother and we made trips into Northern Peru, including Cajamarca, where he had friends; Cajamarca was the city where Pizarro and the Spaniards had confronted the Inca chief, Atahualpa. Josefina later married a guy she had met on the Caronia; Mike married Ana Maria.  I was the best man at their wedding.  I'm the godfather of their granddaughter, whose mother went to college in Pennsylvania – and while in college visited me in New York. She spent every Thanksgiving with Doris while she was in school. The family members continue to be my best friends.

 

After Mike got married, I took his position as Chief Purser. I made a rule.  I would know every passenger's name by the end of the first week of the cruise.  It started when I introduced each passenger to the Captain at the Captain's Cocktail Party, the second night out. 

 

At one cocktail party I remember meeting a family (older mother and father and younger daughter and son-in-law. We talked and the next day I saw three of them, but not the father. When I didn’t see him the following day, I asked where he was. I was told he appeared to be ill.  I arranged for our doctor to treat him. Unfortunately, father died, as a result of a problem known before he set sail. Where to put the body?  We had two days to go at sea before the next port. My suggestion? Take the empty space in the refrigerated container behind the pool.  We carried him there without telling anyone except the family and took the body off, after the family had earlier departed, at the first port that would give us the least problems regarding a dead body.

 

I talked to many interesting people.  I remember the brother of Frederick Ashton (who grew up in Peru and was then a choreographer and Director of Britain’s Royal Ballet); brother told all sorts of gossip about the ballet world.  Intellectually, the best conversation was with Justice William Brennan of the US Supreme Court.  

 

As we crossed the Equator, we always had a King Neptune Party. Those who had never crossed the Equator on a ship were "initiated".  I remember first meeting Juan Velasco Alvarado when he boarded the ship. I occasionally had a drink with him and his wife.  I told him he would be initiated. I personally threw him into the swimming pool. Some crew members told me throwing him into the pool was insulting. After all, they said, the guy would soon become the head of the Peruvian Army.  Velasco laughed when I told him this.  After the trip, he sometimes stopped down to see friends off on the ship and always said “Hello”. He asked me to visit for drinks.  He later became President.  He always laughed about his "initiation".

 

One time, we were late arriving into Buenaventura, Colombia.  Our entertainment had already returned to Cali.  We needed passenger entertainment!  I got on the ship's phone to Grace’s port agent and asked him to go over to the Casa de Amor and tell them to clean the place up because we were coming.  The Casa had a good orchestra. I told the passengers about our new plans.  We entered the Casa, had snacks and drinks and enjoyed the orchestra with dancing.  The passengers, including two nuns from my dining room table, liked the idea of joining locals having a good time.  No one seemed to realize that we were in a house of ill repute -- the best in Buenaventura, and that city had quite a few.  This was another type of shore life about which I had learned quite a bit.

 

One sight I'll never forget is passing the Queen Mary traveling north to its final berth in Long Beach, California.  I was on the bridge with the captain and we blasted the ship's horn as we passed and waved to the Queen Mary crew.

 

During vacation, I traveled quite a bit in South America.  I went to Santiago to take Spanish lessons, staying with one of the guys who had been in the NYU Latin America Law program, and his wife.  I remember a cruise on Chile's Inland Water Passage.  One night there were only two of us in the dining room  -- a 10-year old and I, everyone else was seasick  -- as we passed through the rough seas of the Golfo de Penas (Gulf of Sorrows).  The sight of the shipwrecks – including the masts of these partially sunken sailing ships, shifting from side to side in strong winds -- as we passed by in the light of a bright new moon, will never be forgotten.  

 

On the same trip I got over to Buenos Aires.  The Arumburu's were about to have a baby and Eugenio’s wife was in the hospital; Eugenio asked if I wouldn't mind having dinner with him and his Mom and Dad.  Why not? I’d never met Mom.  I'll never forget it.  Mrs. Aramburu told about moving into Los Olivos (the Presidential Mansion) and finding Evita's clothes still in the closet.  She didn’t know what to do with them. She gave them to charity.  Like her husband.  Honest.  Thought of the people.  Nothing for her personal benefit!  I did express my wonder if I would achieve anything, after having gone to law school, passed the bar exam and now, working on a ship. I'll never forget Sr. Aramburu's comment.  He said if I could learn as much as I already had learned and make it to Argentina, I'll succeed in whatever I try.  His comments were totally unexpected and made me feel good.

 

I'd done a lot of independent travel in Peru and Ecuador. This convinced me that the excursions we offered on board to passengers were not as complete as they should be.  I came up with new ideas, tried them out on our ship and then found that Grace started to use my new shore excursion ideas on other vessels.  (Eduardo Proano mentions this innovation in his recently published book about the history of Ecuador's Metropolitan Touring.) This was my introduction to tour operation. I remember mentioning to Eduardo that I really wanted to visit Ecuador's Galapagos Islands -- and had wanted to do so since I had read "Origin of Species" -- but while reading Darwin’s book, didn't think I’d ever be in South America.

 

A little later, Eduardo told me his company was going to purchase a ship in Greece for cruising in the Galapagos.  Would I be interested in working for them to develop the itineraries, develop ship services, including menus, and hire the crew?  I jumped at the idea.  I got a six-month leave of absence from Grace and moved down to the InterContinental Hotel in Quito. After about two months, I received a telex from Jesse Davies, the Asst. Port Purser at Grace.  He told me that Grace needed me back right away.  I told him I couldn't leave this project, especially since Metropolitan Touring was a client of Grace. My leaving would not only hurt the project but it would make Grace look bad. Jesse told me I would lose my job if I didn't return.  I decided I had to stay in Ecuador. 

 

Shortly afterward, I flew up to Panama City to meet the ship from Greece, the “Lina A”, as it entered the Panama Canal. The "Lina A" was a small ship; it carried only 60 passengers.  Going through the Canal, it was scheduled to share the locks with another ship.  Which ship?  The Santa Mercedes!  I waved to fellow crewmates and officers as we passed through the locks.  What a surprise!  

 

We arrived in the Galapagos and I stayed there three months to make sure everything worked. Fortunately, everything did!  This was the first cruise operation in the Galapagos and that operation continues to be very successful today. I was asked to stay in the Galapagos and later was offered the opportunity to become a partner in Metropolitan Touring. I didn’t want to commit my life to the Galapagos; I didn't have the money to purchase the partnership (and didn't realize then that I may have been able to get some investors to help me).  I returned to New York.

 

It was now Spring of 1970. Grace would not take me back. I considered law firms and the travel business.  The travel business won out. Why?  If was fun, yes! But, there was a more important reason.  After the traveling I had done during my six years with Grace --- both onboard and during vacations, I thought about my country and the ones I had visited. I always thought about the problems we had in the United States. Class. Color. Education. Poverty. You name a problem, we had it! Problems they were, BUT, other countries had more serious problems than we did and very often there was no way people in foreign countries could express their concern and do something about it.  I began to think it was important to get people in the USA to travel so they could see first-hand that even with our country’s problems, we still had a GREAT country. (When traveling there was always the possibility that you would find a way to solve a problem, which we had not yet discovered at home.  We would not only appreciate our country a little more but, improve it!)   This was the time of the Viet Nam War; I heard a lot about Dr. William Sloan Coffin.  His anti-government activity would not have been allowed in most countries.  While my travel was principally in the Western Hemisphere, I did know from reading that I would probably reach the same conclusion if I had traveled in other parts of the world -- and I wanted to travel to those other parts to confirm my feelings. 

 

I had a number of interviews.  One was with Gateway Holidays, which offered many first class escorted tours to Europe and a much smaller number to the South Pacific; Globus was the superior tourist product.   Both brands were owned by the same company, headquartered in Lugano, Switzerland.  In the United States, the two brands operated as separate corporations, International Escorted Tours, Inc. operated Gateway Holidays; Group Voyagers,  Globus.  The companies operated out of adjoining offices at 342 Madison Ave. in Manhattan. Fred Maier, the Executive Vice President hired me; I was to be his assistant. The two tour operations were later combined as Globus-Gateway and ultimately, just Globus, when the Cosmos brand was added at the budget end.  I'll refer to the company as Globus, as the family of brands is currently known. The company also had sales offices in England, Australia and New Zealand.

 

Becoming a Tour Operator

 

Globus was owned by two Swiss families,  Albek and Mantegazza. The company was started by Sergio Mantegazza'a father who initially ran boat excursions on Lake Lugano on the Italian/Swiss border. The father hired Werner Albek, who had married a member of the Mantegazza family, to help him. When the father died, Werner became the "senior partner" (my term) and Sergio assisted. I was introduced to Werner soon after I was hired.  He later told me he needed an additional person in Lugano to help him coordinate activity in the United States; he wanted me to meet Adelbert Steiner before he started working in that new position;  Adi, as he was known, would soon be visiting New York.  I met Adi, and shortly afterwards, he began working in Lugano.  A year or two later, Werner introduced me to his son Mario, who had just begun working for the company; I remember Werner telling Mario that “This young man (me!) can teach you a lot.” Interestingly, Sergio's son, Paolo was born in 1970, and I remember having a conversation with Sergio about 15 years later, when Sergio asked me to help his son learn the business in any way I could. (Sergio had two older children, Fabio and Dolores, both of whom started to work in the business, but they stayed in Lugano and/or England. Werner died in the mid-70’s; Mario took his place; Sergio then became the ”senior partner”.

 

I ended up handling the transaction to purchase a condo for the owners at the Essex House in New York. We held meetings there when they where in New York. We moved the company from Manhattan to Forest Hills and then Rego Park.  I swore I would never move again, but did, in 1990!  We considered many different places before moving: Delaware, Connecticut, Nebraska, and Colorado where we visited Pueblo and Denver.  Pueblo, south of Colorado Springs, offered us a deed, free of charge, to a building on Main Street if we moved there. A local steel plant had closed and Pueblo wanted the jobs we would offer.  Realty in Denver was depressed and a real bargain.  We looked at many buildings and found one I liked in Littleton. Fortunately, the others liked it, too! Three floors with approximately. 40,000 square feet, and a basement for private parking. It was built for an insurance company, which never moved in. A finance company had repossessed the building, which now had two tenants, who occupied very little space – the rest of the building had never been occupied.  The cost was $4.2 Million, which was reduced to $2.5 Million while we looked at it. I asked for time to think. I later offered $950,000 and settled for $975,000. Now, I’d be able to go sking and carry out on the promise I made to myself years before on that mountain in Chile! 

 

I remained Assistant to the Executive Vice President until 1973. Fred Maier was re-assigned to Lugano and I took over as Vice President, reporting to the head of the Chicago Sales Office, Don Streicher. (Sales for Globus in the USA were made from offices in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York.  Only the New York office was owned by Albek/Mantegazza.  All operations for the three offices were handled by New York. I continued as Vice President until 1977, when we eliminated the Chicago office and combined all Chicago activities in New York.  I became the Managing Director/CEO and later President/CEO. 

 

In 2006, Time-Warner published “100 Places to See in Your Lifetime Heaven on Earth”. I’ve visited 85. I’m working on the other 15.

 

Highlights:

--Increased Globus and Cosmos outbound and domestic independent and escorted tour passenger volume from approximately 15,000 passengers to over 250,000

--Brought in sales increases yearly, except in 1986 (the year of both the Achilles Laurel tragedy and the TWA aircraft incidents at Athens airport), and in 1991 (Gulf War)

--Expanded touring possibilities from Europe and the South Pacific to six continents

--As a result of my vacation travels, developed additional itineraries to offer the traveling public

--In early out-sourcing, found a travel bag manufacturer in Hong Kong to provide travel bags.

--Developed the "University of Touring" concept to train travel agents how to sell escorted tours

--Developed the first tour operator cooperative newspaper advertising program using lower local advertising rates, rather than the more expensive national rates, in 155 areas throughout the USA

--Developed the use of public relations to promote travel products to an extent not previously experienced in the travel trade

--Developed the idea of taking a page in a trade publication and using that page for text we wanted to present to the trade – an “advertorial” rather than traditional advertising; I developed the idea with Travel Trade; the idea proved to be very successful and was then used by other travel suppliers in Trade Trade and other publications

--Developed concept for tour operators to sell passenger insurance to travelers through travel agents, which brought a minimum of an additional $20 per passenger to the bottom line

--Operated charter air programs with 100% load factors

--Established scheduled air services as a high margin profit center

--Led effort to develop new computer system software to ensure improved performance in Tour Reservations, Inventory and Accounting

--Instituted the process to integrate in-house IT systems with the GDS to book air using either blocked air space or currently available GDS air inventory from multiple carriers

--Developed plan for members of the United States Tour Operators Association to become immediately eligible to take credit cards and enjoy lower rates for such charges at a time when banks did not view the travel industry favorably

--Used legal expertise to handle and resolve potentially costly and damaging litigation

--Was one the first tour operators to have tour inventory in all GDS systems for travel agent bookings

--Developed an eighteen-member sales team to cover the country; previously, a sales team did not exist

--Organized the relocation of the company from New York and Los Angeles to a new Denver headquarters; the Chicago office had previously been combined with New York

--Developed a new management team in Denver, while at the same time increasing sales; only 12 of 245 staff moved from New York to Denver

--Successfully defeated two attempts by employees to unionize (union tried to win over Globus, and because of Globus' good reputation, had hoped to unionize other tour operations)

 

Boards:

--Academy of Travel and Tourism, New York and Denver: 1988-2000

--American Society of Travel Agents, Tour Operator Program: 1994-1999, Chairman 1996-1999

--United States Tour Operators Association Board of Directors: 1994-1999, Secretary 1996-1997; Treasurer 1998-1999; Chairman, Automation Committee,1995-1999

--Group Voyagers, Inc. (d/b/a Globus and Cosmos): 1978-1998

--Vista Travel Ventures, Inc.: 1999-2001

--Condominium Association at 366 Broadway, New York: 1981-1990; Secretary 1982-1987

--Edbrooke Condominium Association, Denver: 1994-2001, Treasurer 1995-1996, President 1997-2001

 

Industry and Other Recognition

--"Tour Operator of the Year" by Travel Agent Magazine in 1996

--One of the "Top 25 Most Influential Executives in Travel" by Tour and Travel News in 1996

--Described as "one of the best known and widely respected executives in the industry," August 18, 1997 issue of Travel Agent Magazine

--Described as "a person of unquestioned integrity," June 11, 2001 issue of Travel Trade

--Listed in both "Who's Who in America" and "Who's Who in the World"

 

It was clear from the start that computer automation would be key to the company’s success.  We didn’t have automation when I first became employed. Computers were soon to be installed.  To understand more, I took a programming course.  I wrote all programs needed to meet my class requirements; the instructor said there were absolutely no mistakes. I’ve always said that I wanted to make sure I maintained my perfect programming record. I did! I didn’t write any more programs!  I understood the needs, but accepted the fact that I must hire computer experts to move ahead.  We established a computer department and as we moved along, realized we had to upgrade the staff.  I hired Peat Marwick’s consulting arm to lead the search for a new computer department head and advise on possible system upgrades.   Marvin Golland, a Peat Marwick partner, and his associate, Ed Kucharski, were assigned to help me.  We conducted many interviews and agreed that no one person fully satisfied our criteria. I asked the two guys what we should do.  Marvin said we should continue the search. (We went to lunch in a Forest Hills restaurant with a history of being a Mafia favorite. Because of that, I always jokingly suggested we take a back table, looking forward, so we could see whoever came in the door.)  At  lunch, I suggested we had the person who met all our requirements, sitting right at the table – Ed Kucharski.  Ed accepted the position and together, over the years, we worked on the projects listed above, under Highlights, and developed systems envied by others.

 

We gave a travel bag to each passenger who departed on a tour. I had read articles about manufacturing items outside of the United States, later called ”outsourcing”, and got the idea I should buy our travel bags in Hong Kong rather than the USA. They would cost less.  I made arrangements to go to Hong Kong.  I first put an ad in Hong Kong’s South China News and Post advising that I would be in Hong Kong and asked all interested travel bag manufacturers to make an appointment.  I received many responses.  Those who made appointments knew I would not accept any offers of meals or entertainment; I’d have dinner only with the manufacturer I selected.  I selected the supplier. We had monkey for dinner – and quite a few interesting meals during future visits.  We saved $2 a bag. With 100,000 passengers, that’s a $200,000 annual saving. Those savings increased each year, as our business increased.

 

When I went to Hong Kong, I thought it would be silly to fly back the same way I came.  So, I took

vacation time and stopped in New Delhi, Tehran, Istanbul, Athens and Frankfurt.  This was my first time around the world. I did sightseeing in each city and liked what I saw – and realized how much of each country I was missing. I knew I would have to return and see more of each country.  I later did just that! Tom Addison was then stationed in Frankfurt with the Air Force; I stopped in to say “Hello” to Tom and his family.

 

Ira Schloss worked for Thomas Publishing Company; he was responsible for the start-up of a new travel reference book, “The World Travel Directory”. While talking with various industry sources, he had been encouraged to talk with me regarding the project. It would be a product listing of travel suppliers from around the world.  It sounded like a good reference source; I encouraged it; Susan Black was hired as the first publisher. The book immediately became a well-respected industry source of information.

 

During one of our Globus sales meetings, we discussed the possibility of binding our five brochures together and distributing the bound edition to travel agents to keep as a reference source.  I liked the idea but didn’t think travel agents would keep a bound copy of just one supplier’s product readily available.  I thought it better to somehow get a bound volume containing many tour operator products.  That way travel agents and consumers could compare one tour product to the other.  If our tour products were as good as we believed, our products would look even better when compared with the competition. I had “The World Travel Directory” in mind

 

I became interested in travel insurance purchased by travelers.  This insurance was purchased from travel agents, but seemed frightfully expensive. I thought consumers should be able to find an insurance product that offered them a better deal.  I wanted to find an underwriter who would provide Globus with a custom travel insurance plan with great consumer benefits at an excellent price, with which Globus could make a little money and guarantee a commission to the travel agent. As I narrowed the prospects down, I emphasized that customer service was key to my decision. I had tentatively decided on who would be selected but wanted first to spend some time in their customer service center to convince myself that our passengers would be handled very well.  I told TripMate in Kansas City that I would like to visit. As we discussed the upcoming visit, I said that I did have a condition that must be met before I could visit.  What was it?  I wanted to visit the Harry S Truman Museum in Independence, Missouri, not far from Kansas City. I found that the customer service at TripMate was excellent and we did visit the Truman Museum. 

 

I always liked videos and wanted to use videos as part of the public relations effort.  The cost of using a video production company proved to be too expensive.  I then thought I should try and get some people just entering the business and they could produce the videos for less money.  I placed an “ad” on the bulletin board at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, looking for a film student or group of students who would make videos for us.  There were many applications and I conducted eight interviews, finally selecting one group of three guys:  Rob LoScalzo, Jim McManus and Jack Perez. We got great results; then Jack left to work in Hollywood; we replaced him with Frank Coraci. These were the first paying jobs that any of the guys had in film production. They traveled all over the world making videos; we distributed the videos to consumers and travel agents to promote our products. Frank later went to Hollywood as did Jim. A fellow student at NYU had been Adam Sandler. Frank directed Adam’s “Wedding Singer” and The Waterboy”; Frank also directed the remake of “Around the World in 80 Days” with Jackie Chan. Rob produces video and film for corporations and associations.

 

I had read about gay travel and thought that groups like gays should work well in the escorted market.  Since there was no way Globus could handle the business as part of its regular operation, I suggested to a friend of mine, Peter Schulze, that he establish a gay travel operation and I would arrange for him to use the Globus product.  I supported the operation financially.  The firm was named "Our Family Abroad" because there had been a newspaper story about gays identifying themselves in groups as "Our Family".  Legal problems developed, which were costly, and the company ended up using the name "Family Abroad".  This was one of the first gay travel companies and was in business from 1995 through 2000.  As more gay travel developed and many destinations encouraged gay travel, the emphasis in gay travel switched to individual (FIT) travel rather than escorted groups.

 

I had picked up quite a few artistic items including paintings, during my travels.  I had used many in the New York apartment and put them in storage when I moved to Denver. I added some new purchases to the items in storage and arranged to hang some of the in the Denver office.  Early in 1997, I thought it would be good to hang all of the paintings in the office so people could see them. The company agreed that this was a good idea. I had the shipped to Denver and had them cleaned and some, reframed.  I did this at my own cost. I thought I would be at Globus for many more years.

 

Beginning in 1997, company consolidation efforts began to focus on the tour operator industry. I was approached by four venture capital firms, beginning in 1997 and continuing into 1998; They all wanted me to head “their” consolidation effort among tour operators. I really wasn’t interested. I had plenty to do at Globus and enjoyed it.  In August, at our annual "sales" meeting in the Bahamas, Adi told me that the owners wanted me to become Chairman of Globus USA with Paolo as President/CEO.  I was surprised but we agreed to work out an arrangement to everyone's satisfaction. Paolo told me that he would be hiring new executives to report to him for the various administrative activities; he said I would be pleased to know that it would take five people to replace me.  He did hire the new executives. As we moved into 1998, I began to feel I was not part of the Globus operation I had run for so many years.

 

I began to think again about the venture capitalists.  Chris Osborne, a partner at the firm I ultimately selected, Thoma Cresey Equity Partners, has said that when he first talked to me, I was decidedly uninterested in participating in any venture, although I didn't mind helping provide tour operator industry information. I parted company with Globus on December 31, 1998 and formed Vista Travel Ventures (the name was my idea) in February 1999.  My parting agreement with Globus provided that all personal items I had in the Denver office would remain there unless either party wanted them removed from the office.  If there were removed, I would pay any charges.

 

Life at Vista Travel Ventures

 

I visited many different companies in search of those that would fit the needs outlined in my memorandum. We ended up selecting two for our initial purchases, Kingdom Vacations in Pennsylvania and Leisure Travel Development (LTD) in Seattle, with offices in San Francisco and Houston. Of course, we hoped to add more companies to the list.

 

Kingdom offered the opportunity to obtain the use of a tour operator software system, which Kingdom was developing jointly with IBM.  Added to this was the tour business, which was based, mainly, on Kingdom’s association with DisneyWorld. AAA travel agents were an important distribution source. LTD was in the dive vacation business and offered the beginning of what I believed would be profitable niche tour operations.  LTD also had an “infant” internet travel sales company, ”TravelGavel”, in which I had great interest. 

 

In addition to companies in the USA, I had visited tour operators in South America, which we considered for purchase. Those included Metropolitan Touring in Quito. Since there was the possibility that trade with Cuba would open up (and ultimately did not), I visited Havana (finally!) with a friend of mind and his wife.  Juan Hurtado was a former Prime Minister of Peru; he introduced me to various Cuban government officials involved with tourism

 

The Kingdom and LTD purchases were made in January 2000. Due to financial considerations, the venture capital folks decided, in May 2001, to not continue funding the operation. In a press release, we said the company closed its doors because of 1) IBM's decision to cease involvement in development of the tour operator software system, 2) the decision by DisneyWorld, the principal supplier to Kingdom, to make better deals directly with travel agents (especially AAA) rather than through Kingdom, and 3) A decline in the business environment.  The venture capital folks lost $12,198,914.

 

Life Goes On

 

I continued to occupy an office in the Vista Travel Ventures space and help Tom Connelly, who took over to wind down the company. I was also looking for a job.  I didn’t have much luck, especially given the demise of Vista Travel Ventures. My salary ended May 18, 2001. A Spring Break student tour operator, located in Denver, which Chris Osborne had asked me to visit and consider as a purchase, asked me to help them with operations. I found them in precarious shape. I worked with them in the fall but did not receive a salary after December 31.  I was able to keep an office.  We all hoped their situation would improve. I tried to develop new Spring Break destinations, but the company didn't want to go beyond Cancun and Mazatlan.

 

The passenger travel insurance concept I had started at Globus had now been taken up by tour operators and cruise lines.  In June of 2002, Jim Irwin suggested that I join him at Safe Passage International to market travel insurance plans to travel suppliers.  It sounded interesting.  Brad Finkle, at TripMate, my underwriter at both Globus and Vista, agreed this was a good idea.  For the next 12 years I developed custom insurance programs for travel companies and travel associations. 

 

 

AND ------

 

In 1973, I was invited to participate on a travel familiarization sponsored by PanAm, sailing down the west coast of Africa on the Europa. Peter Schulze represented the cruise line, Hapag Lloyd, and Dick Cable, PanAm.  Dick was assigned as my roommate.  We got along well.  After the trip was over we often got together for a meal or drink. Eventually, we decided we got along very well and moved in together. Dick was diagnosed with AIDS in 1987 and died on December 31, 1990.  Dick was a member of the New York City Gay Men's Chorus; I've commissioned music in his memory. In March, 1999, I met J.R.T. We became and remain, good friends, but don’t live together.

 

Although I wasn’t into sports, I found athletics very worthwhile.  Around 1976, I remember reading an article in the New York Times about gymnastics being good for conditioning; a gym two blocks from where I was living was mentioned.  I signed up for gymnastic classes and continued until I moved to Denver.  I tried to find a gymnastics class in Denver, and had the realtor, who worked with me to find the Globus office building, help me.  I was told I was too old to be covered by insurance for a gymnastics class.   I didn’t feel too bad when I found that anyone over 19 was too old to be insured. I joined the local athletic club and started a daily regimen of exercise and swimming.  I continue to follow that regimen today!

 

One day in 2003, I felt dizzy on the way to the gym and fainted when I got there.  I had a heart valve change -- this requires open-heart surgery. I was told that this was a genetic problem. I was healthy before the operation and continue to be in even better after the operation. The heart surgeon told me that I should think of myself as a Mercedes: the car is in great condition and needs a valve replacement; after replacement, everything works even better. 

 

 

-------- AS A RESULT OF MY  JOURNEY

 

Many people traveled to various parts of the world on tours my company operated. The tours provided not only great value but helped, I sincerely hope, convince the travelers we live in a great country.

 

I provided a good benefit to consumers and travel suppliers – having developed the concept of passenger travel insurance, custom designed for each individual supplier or association. The concept is used industry-wide.

 

I provided good jobs with great benefits for everyone at Globus.

 

I discovered myself.