The Late Great Who?: A Historic Fiction 1987 - 1999

By Ben Jakob

Continuing the saga where the previous novel (Not My People) left off, this adventure follows our heroes and villains on their escapades across the globe. The reader will form emotional attachments with the charac

• Language: English
• Publisher: The Pro Doodler
• Release date: Oct 25, 2020
• ISBN: 9780990589150

Book preview

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

No book of this magnitude would be complete without expressing thanks and appreciation to certain individuals.

First and foremost, I would like to humbly express my never-ending gratitude to the Big Boss, without whose help I would not be anything or have anything.

I would also like to thank my dear wife whose patience with me is unending. I thank her for allowing me the time and space to be able to write this book and bring it to the light of day.

Thank you to my honored parents and in-laws who have raised me and encouraged me and without whom I would not be the man I am.

Finally, I would like to say thank you to the following people.

L. Marcus for her encouragement and numerous suggestions.

Bernie Williams from Perth, Western Australia for his help with the poems.

The first time a historical figure is mentioned, there will be an asterisk (*) by their name.

Except where noted, the Torah thoughts in this book are original thoughts from the author.

DISCLAIMER

This book is intended for entertainment purposes only.

This book is a work of historical fiction. The main characters of the story never existed and are purely a product of the author’s imagination. However, some of the episodes are based on historical events. The book is historical fiction because the lives and deeds of the fictional characters have been melded into actual historical events. Although the dialogues involving historical figures recorded herein never took place, I have attempted to reflect their true personalities and philosophies, in character for the individual.

For your convenience, an alphabetical index of the historical characters contained within can be found after the novel.

Even though numerous episodes in this book are based on history, overall it is a work of fiction. Names of fictional characters were chosen at random and are not meant to represent any historical figures.

Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to:

My children, Tziki and Nofar, and my grandson Shoham.

OTHER TITLES BY BEN JAKOB

Doomsday Bunker Book – On being prepared for a disaster

Doomsday Bunker Book, Underground Edition – On being prepared for a disaster

Addendums for Doomsday Bunker Book – On being prepared for a disaster

CADD Manual for House Location Drawings – Written for a specific company, but adaptable for any company that uses CADD for house location drawings.

Viduy – A translation of the Viduy Written by the Chida, ZTL.

The Quality of Light – A manual for photographers on lighting

Kitchen Guide – Tips and tricks for the kitchen

Not My People – A Historic Fiction 1976 – 1986

Below the Surface – The Conclusion

Doomsday Prepper Lessons – A Prepper’s Guide to Surviving Catastrophe

APPROBATION

A close up of a deviceDescription automatically generated

Haskamah for my dear friend Rabbi Ben Jakob:

We know that the entire Torah, written and oral, was given at Har Sinai; Since Shlomo HaMelech said that there is nothing new under the sun (Koheles 1:9).

We know that we aren’t allowed to add to Hashem’s praises beyond the words already given since that would imply that Hashem’s greatness has a limit. Similarly, one might think that adding to the Torah, which is complete, would indicate a lack of appreciation for its perfection--but we see it’s not this way. The greatness of Torah is revealed when someone seeks the emes, truth, and tries to uncover, through toil and arduous work, what is hidden inside. The true Torah of Moshe shines forth from the desire to reveal what is hidden and to clarify it, thereby sharing the detailed understanding the person acquired from their toil.

Even though the Torah is perfect, it was given in such a way that a human being can bring forth new insights, a fresh perspective to what is already given. The desire to reveal the Torah to others and illuminate it in practical ways through chiddushei Torah is what the oral Torah is about. Sometimes the way to a person’s soul is through stories and fiction written in a Torah perspective. I see Rabbi Jakob’s desire to show people a way to find Hashem in our generation. Each soul at Har Sinai received its own revelation; no two have the same spiritual experience because no two people are exactly alike. Rabbi Jakob shares the experience through his chiddushei Torah written in fictional stories. I hope that Hashem gives him the strength to continue spreading to the world the holy words of Torah to inspire us to bring the best out of ourselves.

Rabbi Jakob is a tomim (pure-hearted one) in the most flattering sense of the word.

I wish Rabbi Jakob much success in all his endeavors.

With blessings,

Rabbi Moshe Steinerman

Jerusalem, Israel

www.Ilovetorah.com

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

DISCLAIMER

DEDICATION

OTHER TITLES BY BEN JAKOB

APPROBATION

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

PROLOGUE

1987

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1988

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1989

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1990

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1991

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1992

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1993

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1994

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1995

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1996

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1997

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1998

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

1999

RIVKAH APPLEBAUM

INDEX OF HISTORICAL FIGURES

GLOSSARY

INTRODUCTION

Although this novel can stand on its own, to have a better understanding of the stories and the characters herein, it is strongly recommended that you read the first volume, Not My People. A brief synopsis of the first novel’s fictional characters who appear in this novel follows:

Abu Sharif, Mohamed

A terrorist who was born in 1963 in Al-Awja, Iraq; for a short time, he had pretended to be Jewish. He wreaked havoc in New York under the auspices of The Palestine Liberation Group. He had an underground bunker in White Lake, New York that he owned with Ahmed Yousef Al Rashim. At the end of the first novel, he was hiding in his bunker and contemplating his future.

Abu Sharif, Sarah

Born in 1945. Mother to Mohamed Abu Sharif. She lived in Al-Awja, Iraq with her husband.

Applebaum, Elana

Born in 1944. Yisrael Applebaum’s wife. She was an elementary school teacher. She was the mother to Yaakov (Born 1963), Tzipporah (Born 1965), Michal (Born 1969), and Yochanan (Born 1973)

Applebaum, Tzipporah

Born in 1965, she was the younger sister of Yaakov Applebaum. Tzipporah was a tomboy and loved the outdoors.

Applebaum, Yaakov

Born in 1963, he was an investor who was highly skilled in martial arts and a budding talmid chacham. He married Rivkah Somers, on September 28, 1986

Applebaum, Yisrael

Born in 1941, he was married to Elana Applebaum. He was the father to Yaakov (Born 1963), Tzipporah (Born 1965), Michal (Born 1969), and Yochanan (Born 1973). He was a chemist and former military officer.

Archer, Emily

Born in 1964, Emily was the daughter of Judge Richard Archer. At the end of the first novel, she had just started dating Bert Sobol. She taught computer programming.

Archer, Judge Richard

Born in 1939 he was a Federal judge. Divorced from Susan Silverman, father of Emily Archer and Bob Silverstein.

Bates, Alesha

She was a tow truck driver with her boyfriend Rafe Bradford. At the end of the first novel, she was in prison for armed bank robbery.

Baumgarten, Lev

Born in 1964, he lost his kidney to a scammer, Henry Davis. He was a shamash to Rav Horowitz. He received a beracha from Rabbi Mishovsky that he would always be healthy. Eventually, he moved to Israel.

Benjamin, Jake

Born in 1942. He owned a company where he was a draftsman and the author of the book, Doomsday Bunker Book. Jake was married to Tikva Benjamin and living in Brooklyn. Their son Yehoshuah was abducted and rescued safely.

Benjamin, Tikva

Born in 1944. She was married to Jake Benjamin and living in Brooklyn. She worked for her husband’s company doing the books. Their son Yehoshuah was abducted and returned safely. She was a Shadchan.

Benjamin, Yehoshuah

Born in 1973 and was abducted on June 6, 1983, as a young child, and was rescued physically unharmed.

Bradford, Rafe

He was a tow truck driver with his girlfriend Alesha Bates. At the end of the first novel, he was in prison for armed bank robbery.

Coombs, Donny

Abducted Yehoshuah Benjamin on June 6, 1983, and held him for two weeks. He was in prison.

Connors, Liam

Police officer

Davis, Henry

Born in 1962. A conman who swindled Lev Baumgarten out of his kidney. Was in prison from 1984 for fraud and embezzlement.

Feld, Laura

She was a server at Glatt Chow restaurant. She dated the late Asher Siskind and then later, Moshe Sharf.

Ginsburg, Rabbi Meir

Rosh HaYeshiva in Brooklyn, New York.

Greene, Avinoam

Born in 1953. Mortgage broker and real estate broker. He was sentenced to spend time in prison from 1984 – 1992 for his scams.

Henderson, Steve

Photographer. Prepper. Lived in Queens with his wife Vanessa, and their children.

Horowitz, Rabbi Shimshon

Rosh HaYeshiva in both Jerusalem and Brooklyn.

Jackson, Peter

Police officer

Leipzig, Adolf

A German recluse who lived in Argentina. Ahmed and Mohamed met him and he gave them some help and information. At the end of the first novel, he had already died.

Melody

Bank teller

Mendelssohn, Menashe

Manager at Glatt Chow restaurant

Mishovsky, Rabbi Baruch

Born in 1934. Prescient rabbi, a survivor of the Holocaust, a talmid chacham, and Kabbalist. Married to Rebbetzin Shulamis Mishovsky.

Mishovsky, Rebbetzin Shulamis

Wife of Rabbi Mishovsky. Born in 1936, a survivor of the Holocaust

Na’amah

Was in a wheelchair until Rabbi Mishovsky gave her a beracha and she was cured.

Osborn, Stewart

Owned a construction company

Outterbridge, Batsheva, nee Schneider

Born in 1963. Married to Chaim Outterbridge.

Outterbridge, Chaim

Born in 1958. Nutritionist, ger tzedek. Married to Batsheva Schneider.

Samuel, Mordechai

Born in 1959. Red hair, talked with a lisp, 6’-4". Was in prison until 1992 for running a Ponzi scheme.

Sharf, Moshe

The assumed name of Mohamed Abu Sharif when he was pretending to be a Jew.

Silverman, Bob Wayne

Born in 1966. Son of Judge Archer. Has OCD.

Singer, Rabbi Dov

Born in 1957. Assaulted by Mark Franklin in Baltimore, MD in 1980, he was left disabled. Moved to New York and opened a Shul. Was married to Zahava Singer.

Singer, Zahava

Born in 1959. Assaulted by Mark Franklin in Baltimore, MD in 1980. Moved to New York. Was married to Rabbi Dov Singer.

Siskind, Asher

Lived in New York. Owned a men’s hat shop. He was poisoned by a terrorist in 1985 and died from a hemorrhagic fever. Had a younger brother Danny.

Siskind, Danny

Brother to Asher Siskind and worked at his brother’s hat shop and took it over after his brother, Asher died.

Sobol, Bert

Owned an auto mechanics shop and was a martial arts expert. Was a vigilante and killed someone while defending someone else, for which he spent time in prison. He started dating Emily Archer, whom he saved from being murdered.

Somers, Rivkah

Born in 1965. Married Yaakov Applebaum in 1986. She started a computer company with her husband Yaakov.

Somers, Shoshanna

Born in 1967. Rivkah Somers’ younger sister – the two sisters were inseparable and had similar personalities. She spoke with a stutter. Worked with Rivkah and Yaakov in their computer business.

Stan

Captain of the wrestling team in high school.

Thatcher, Irwin

A drug dealer and an all-around bad guy. Killed Yona Glick in 1981. At the end of the first novel, he was in prison.

Weiss, Nachum

Born in 1961. Had refused to give his ex-wife a get. He eventually did. Spent time in prison for abusing his wife.

Yousef Al Rashim, Ahmed

A terrorist born in 1963 in Al-Awja, Iraq. At the end of the first novel, he was in prison for a failed bank robbery attempt in New York. He was part owner of an underground bunker in White Lake, New York, with Mohamed Abu Sharif. He wreaked havoc in New York under the auspices of The Palestine Liberation Group.

PROLOGUE

1961

Israel

Sarah

Klein, born in 1945, was raised by domineering parents who were strict and had to know where she was at all times. She had no freedom and resented her over-protective parents and everything about them. Sarah came from a traditional Israeli family where the lighting of Shabbos candles was followed by dinner in front of a TV. The family drove to shul on Shabbos morning, had lunch, and then drove to a soccer match in the afternoon.

Sarah had nothing to do with her mother’s parents, Noson Nuta (named for the previous Grand Rabbi of Lelow) and Bashe Kaminski, as her parents considered them radicals and fanatically religious. They did not want to live that lifestyle as it was too restrictive for them and they wanted the freedom that their irreligious way of life afforded them. All Sarah knew about her maternal grandparents was that the Nazis wiped out most of their family and her parents had barely escaped the inferno. They had lived in Lelow, Poland before the Nazi murderers destroyed the town. The family had been close to Grand Rabbi Moshe Mordechai Biderman*.

Sarah was an intelligent and promising young woman who rebelled and got herself into some trouble, often by staying out late and associating with the wrong crowd. What little of their religion the family practiced, her parents forced on their only daughter, Sarah; to her, it felt like a vise. She sensed that they were being hypocritical by only keeping some things and not others. She could not live this duplicitous lifestyle and decided to shirk it all off and become completely secular.

As a senior in high school, while studying for her bagrut, she went to a club in Tel Aviv where she met a young man who was swarthy in complexion. Sarah was light-complexioned and thin with long dark hair. They studied together where he helped her prepare for the examinations and they became good friends and spent a significant amount of time together. They started dating and eventually fell in love and he promised to take good care of her.

Her parents knew very little about the young man as she never brought him around, but he seemed to calm Sarah and she mellowed out a bit. They liked that effect on her but were concerned that she never talked about him or introduced them. At first, she did not realize her boyfriend was an Arab, thinking he was a Sabra. After a while, he came clean and revealed to her who he was, but at that point, she was so infatuated with him that she no longer cared.

Her boyfriend took her home to Iraq to meet his family, which included a wife and two children. Sarah was shocked to see that her beau was already married and wanted another wife.

Because of the other wife and children, Sarah was hesitant to marry her boyfriend but his family put significant pressure on her until she acquiesced. She was forced to hide her being Jewish from everyone except his parents. His parents were pleased that their son brought home such a pretty young woman and they had no problem that she was Jewish; as long as that information was kept to herself.

The day before the hastily put together wedding, Sarah changed her mind and wanted to return home to her parents. She looked for her passport but it was nowhere to be found. She became desperate and panicky and realized that she had fallen into a trap. She begged her boyfriend and his parents to return her passport and let her return home, but her pleas fell on deaf ears.

In desperation, Sarah sent a letter to her parents for their help, but there was nothing they could do.

The couple quickly married to the consternation of her parents who were unable and unwilling to attend the wedding. On the other hand, his parents were happy with the match. Immediately following the wedding, he refused to let her out of his sight and he became a domineering tyrant and controlled every move she made. It was reminiscent of how her parents treated her but this time she was forced to stay mostly in his small one-room shack while he spent time with his other wife or friends in nearby Al-Awja. She felt she had just left one cage and entered a worse, more confining one.

She regretted her decision to leave the comforts and relative security of her parent’s house and move to Iraq. Maybe I should have explored my roots there before jumping so callously into a marriage with an Arab. Sarah looked around the small bare room and cried about her predicament.

After their marriage in 1963, they moved to Al-Awja, Iraq, to be with his other wife and children, and they had a son. In secret, Sarah had the child circumcised when he was eight days old by a mohel. She named him Moshe after her father’s father. To everyone else, including his father, the child’s name was Mohamed.

Sarah doted over Moshe and protected him from his father in any way she could. When she was alone with Moshe, she sang him the few Jewish songs she remembered from her youth. Sarah regretted leaving her family and Judaism behind, but there was no escape from her confinement and predicament. She never did find her passport and was afraid to go to the police lest she would be stoned for refusing her husband’s orders. The most she could do was secretly to instill something of Judaism in her young son. She did everything she could to give him some sense of Jewish life in secret, but she was unaware of much of the traditions. She felt her situation was reminiscent of the Spanish Maranos of the past, trying to hide being Jewish while trying to hold onto something of their heritage.

Sometimes in the middle of the night, she would have nightmares of her trying to engulf and protect her son while calling out to him, Moshe, Moshe.

SARAH SAW MOHAMED RUNNING FOR his life. He was panting heavily while running down a dark alley; she was chasing him and yelling something unintelligible from behind him. As Mohamed was running, he quickly glanced around but did not seem to recognize his surroundings.

He was running at full tilt and was short of breath with his arms flailing about in all directions. He was barely able to call out to his pursuer, What do you want from me? Sarah could barely make out his words and was trying to catch up to her son to protect him.

He stumbled and found himself sprawled face down in a puddle in the alley. He was in pain from the scrapes and bruises sustained from the spill. His clothing was torn, he was dirty, wet, and bleeding.

He turned over and suddenly Sarah was standing over him with tears in her eyes and trying to reach out to him. He called out in tears, "Ema?" (Mother)

She cried out to him, Moshe, what are you doing? Where are you going? Mohamed was startled. Sarah reached out to him with both her arms to engulf him in her warm embrace, but he was trying to fight her off and get away from her.

At the same time, Mohamed was frightened and crying for his mother to save him.

Suddenly she was violently woken from her nightmare by her husband hitting her and she realized that it was all a dream. A horrible dream. She wondered what it might portend for the future.

1962

Parris Island, South Carolina

After high school, Yisrael Applebaum joined the military. He was a proud American and wanted to serve his country, just as did his father. One aspect of military training is hand-to-hand combat training. It is rigorous and will cause the new soldiers pain as they learn the techniques. It also helps to toughen them up for a real fight.

On his first day at hand to hand training, Yisrael was standing at attention in line with the rest of the recruits under a cloudy sky. The drill sergeant called for a volunteer for a demonstration of techniques. It is not something one volunteers for as the volunteer is going to get hurt.

Upon hearing the request for a volunteer, Yisrael stepped forward, much to the surprise of his fellow soldiers.

The drill sergeant was taken aback as he had never seen a volunteer step forward before.

Are you volunteering?

Yes, sir! You called for a volunteer, sir! I volunteer, sir! he bellowed in the typical military fashion.

Hit me.

Are you sure, sir? he cocked his head to the right questioningly.

Yes, you buzzard; now hit me!

Okay, he said as he shrugged his shoulders and lunged forward.

With a smooth motion, Yisrael slid his right foot back into a right forty-five-degree cat stance and immediately delivered a right front snapping ball kick to the instructor’s midsection causing him to bend forward at the waist, as his entire body moved away.

Yisrael then planted his right foot toward twelve o’clock and delivered a left front snapping ball kick to his chin, which caused the instructor’s head and chest to snap up.

He then planted his left foot forward into a left neutral bow facing twelve o’clock, delivered twin torqueing heel palm thrusts under his ribcage. This knocked the wind out of the instructor causing him to drop to the ground.

The next thing the confused drill sergeant knew, he was picking himself up off the ground and dusting off his uniform. He was angry and shocked as no one had ever bested him in training, let alone a newbie.

The drill sergeant said, Let’s try that again. Hit me!

Are you sure, sir? Yisrael asked again.

Yes, you buzzard, now hit me, now! responded the prepared instructor.

Okay, he said while shrugging his shoulders.

Yisrael lunged forward to his left with his left foot toward nine o’clock into a horse stance facing twelve o’clock and swiftly delivered a right thrusting blow to his opponent’s midsection and then using his left hand, he grabbed the instructor’s left shoulder and pulled it down to check his height. This action canceled out the instructor’s leverage and thus prevented him from delivering a knee kick.

Simultaneous with this action, Yisrael executed a right hooking inward horizontal heel palm strike to his left jaw hinge. This move disoriented the drill sergeant.

Yisrael immediately circled his right foot clockwise, around, and to the back of the instructor’s right leg toward three o’clock and buckled it by heavily stomping his right foot into a horse stance.

While doing this, he had his right-hand circle counterclockwise with the aforementioned action and cocked at his right shoulder with the palm up.

Without hesitation, he pivoted to the left toward nine o’clock into a left forward bow as he thrust his right heel palm strike to the jaw of the instructor. This action tripped his opponent over Yisrael’s right leg landing him in the dirt.

The frustrated drill sergeant was again on the ground, bewildered and befuddled. The embarrassed instructor balled his fist and pounded the ground as he picked himself up.

One more time, but this time I’m ready for you! he yelled as he took a defensive pose ready for the unusual, and skilled man in front of him.

As you wish, sir!

However, the drill sergeant decided to take the offensive, I have to beat this guy, I have to show the class who’s boss, he thought to himself as he lunged forward with both hands toward Yisrael’s shoulders.

Standing naturally, Yisrael stepped forward between the instructor’s legs with his right foot into a right forward bow while thrusting both of his forearms forward, thus using them as wedges on the inside of the drill sergeant’s arms.

He continued the flow of his actions as he converted the movement of his arms into two rolling upward-outward claws having his right-hand roll counterclockwise and his left clockwise to his opponent’s eyes. Stopping the instructor’s forward momentum and blurring his vision temporarily.

Yisrael then pivoted into a right fighting horse as he executed a right upward elbow strike to the chin of the instructor. During the same course of action, he grabbed the instructor’s right arm with his own left-hand and slid down to the man’s right wrist, grabbed his right wrist with his own left-hand, and jerked that arm down, past, and below his left hip. This stunned his opponent and caused him to bend over at the waist.

Yisrael pivoted into a right neutral bow and brought his right knee up into the chest of the instructor causing him to jerk up and back and fall onto his back.

The other men were standing around the quad with their mouths agape astounded, as the drill sergeant again had to pick himself up off the ground. They all cheered for Yisrael. This was unheard of; this was unthinkable; never before had anyone bested a drill sergeant, let alone thrice. Maybe one could have gotten in a sucker punch and floored the instructor once, but never three times in a row. Other soldiers, not in the class, had seen the spectacle and watched history in the making. They could not believe what they had just seen by the young man’s swift movements.

The drill sergeant’s tone changed to something more placating and conciliatory, What’s your name, private?

Yisrael Applebaum, sir!

Hmmm. I used to know someone by the name of Colonel Sam Applebaum. Are you related, by any chance?

Yes, sir. That’s my father, sir!

Your father taught me everything I know about hand-to-hand combat fighting.

Yes, sir. It seems to me that he taught me a little bit more than he taught you, sir. Everyone in the area watching this spectacle was roaring with laughter while Yisrael stood there with a straight face.

Yisrael became the assistant trainer. He would have been the senior instructor except for his low rank.

Eventually, Yisrael joined the Marines where he also excelled in his training.

November 1971

West Coast of the United States of America

In 1971, thirty-three-year-old Richard Archer was an up and coming lawyer in the law firm he was working for. He had to travel from New York to Seattle, Washington for a client, Mr. Emanuel Berger. He arrived in Portland, Oregon and while waiting for his connecting flight to Seattle was reviewing his files on the case.

A few months before, the Federal Bureau of Investigation narcotics agents barged into and searched the home of Emanuel Berger for drugs that they never found. In the process of the search, the agents damaged Berger’s house and property and even arrested him in front of his wife and child. The Feds filed drug charges against Mr. Berger, which were later dropped by a U.S. Commissioner.

Working on an anonymous tip, the agents went into action looking for drugs. The problem was that they had the wrong address, confusing Chesapeake Avenue with Chesapeake Boulevard. What was worse, they had no search warrant for either address and no drugs were found at Berger’s house. Berger wanted to sue the federal agents and the State of Washington for violation of his Fourth Amendment rights protecting him from unreasonable searches and seizures. The FBI violated these rights and he wanted recompense and justice. He also wanted to prevent this from happening to other individuals in the future.

Richard Archer opined that the victim of such a deprivation could sue for the violation of the Fourth Amendment itself, despite the lack of any Federal statute authorizing such a suit. The existence of a remedy for the violation was implied by the importance of the right violated.

The Government claimed that the violation allowed for only a State Law claim for invasion of privacy and that the Fourth Amendment provides no cause of action but only a rebuttable defense for the FBI agents.

The District Court agreed with the State and dismissed the suit for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction and for Archer’s failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court granted certiorari on the secondary issue of whether a plaintiff can bring a claim in Federal Court based solely on an alleged violation of his Fourth Amendment rights.

Archer opined, I am of the opinion that Federal Courts do have the power to award damages for violation of ‘Constitutionally protected interests’ and that a traditional judicial remedy, such as damages, is appropriate to the vindication of the personal interests protected by the Fourth Amendment.

The attorney particularly emphasized the special importance of Constitutional rights. He presented that it was well settled, even undeniable, that a suit for an injunction based on a Constitutional right had been long recognized in the Federal Courts. However, a suit for damages should be as or more acceptable.

The Supreme Court laid down a rule that it will infer a private right of action for monetary damages where no other federal remedy is provided for the vindication of a Constitutional right, based on the principle that for every wrong, there is a remedy. The court reasoned based upon a presumption that where there is a violation of a right, the plaintiff can recover whatever he could recover under any civil action unless Congress has expressly curtailed that right of recovery, or there exists some special factors counseling hesitation.

Wednesday, November 24, 1971

Portland, Oregon

At Portland International Airport in Oregon, a man carrying a black attaché case approached the flight counter of Northwest Orient Airlines. Dan Cooper purchased a one-way ticket on Flight 305, a thirty-minute trip to Seattle, Washington.

Richard Archer boarded the same flight seated at 20D and was next to another passenger seated at 20E. The other passenger was studying law at a local college. They conversed about the merits of the case Richard was bringing on behalf of Berger.

A few minutes later, Dan Cooper boarded the same aircraft, a Boeing 727-100, and took seat 18C in the rear of the passenger cabin. He lit a cigarette and ordered a bourbon and soda. Mr. Cooper was in his mid-forties, five-foot-eleven inches tall, about 180 pounds with close-set piercing brown eyes. He wore a black lightweight raincoat, loafers, a dark suit, a neatly pressed white collared shirt, a black necktie, and a mother of pearl tiepin.

Flight 305 was approximately one-third full when it took off on schedule at 2:50 p.m., local time. Cooper passed a note to the flight attendant seated nearest to him in a jump seat attached to the aft stair door. Assuming the note contained a lonely businessman’s phone number, she dropped it, unopened, into her purse. Cooper leaned toward her and whispered, Miss, you’d better look at that note. I have a bomb.

She was shocked at what she heard and with apprehension retrieved the note from her purse.

The note was printed in neat, all-capital letters with a felt pen. It read, I have a bomb in my briefcase. I will use it if necessary. I want you to sit next to me. You are being hijacked.

Nervously, the young flight attendant did as requested, and then quietly asked to see the bomb. Cooper cracked open his briefcase long enough for her to glimpse eight red cylinders attached to wires coated with red insulation, and a large cylindrical battery. After closing the briefcase, he dictated his demands: "$200,000 in negotiable American currency; four parachutes (two primaries and two reserves); and a fuel truck standing by in Seattle to refuel the aircraft upon arrival. The frightened flight attendant nodded her head indicating comprehension and rushed to convey Cooper’s instructions to the cockpit; when she returned, he had donned dark sunglasses.

Passenger Richard Archer noticed the goings-on and discussed them with his seatmate. When he saw the flight attendant returning with a nervous look on her face, he became apprehensive. He mentioned this to his seatmate. Another passenger at 20F scoffed at them saying they were making a big deal over nothing. That man is probably just flirting with the flight attendant. Nothing to worry about.

The pilot contacted Seattle-Tacoma Airport air traffic control, which in turn informed local and federal authorities. The thirty-six other passengers were informed that their arrival in Seattle would be delayed because of a minor mechanical difficulty.

Passenger Richard Archer did not believe it and nervously discussed the situation with his seatmate.

The president of Northwest Orient authorized payment of the ransom and ordered all employees to cooperate fully with the hijacker. The aircraft circled Puget Sound for approximately two hours to allow Seattle police and the FBI time to assemble Cooper’s parachutes and ransom money and to mobilize emergency personnel.

Cooper was familiar with the local terrain and recognized Tacoma and McChord Air Force Base. He was calm, polite, and well-spoken, not your typical hardened criminal. He was not given to being nasty or cruel, nor demanding or demeaning to those who were his victims. He politely requested a second bourbon and water.

FBI agents assembled the ransom money from several Seattle-area banks – 10,000 unmarked twenty-dollar bills, many with serial numbers beginning with the letter L indicating issuance by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, most carrying a Series 1969-C designation. The Feds made a microfilm photograph of each of the bills.

Cooper rejected the military-issue parachutes initially offered by authorities, demanding instead civilian parachutes with manually operated ripcords. Seattle police obtained them from a local skydiving school.

At 5:24 p.m., Cooper was informed that his demands had been met, and at 5:39 p.m., the aircraft landed at Seattle-Tacoma Airport. Cooper instructed the pilot to taxi the jet to an isolated, brightly lit section of the tarmac and extinguish the lights in the cabin to deter police snipers. Northwest Orient’s Seattle operations manager approached the aircraft in street clothes (to avoid the possibility that Cooper might mistake his airline uniform for that of a police officer) and delivered the cash-filled knapsack and parachutes via the aft stairs. Once the delivery was completed, Cooper permitted all passengers, and several of the flight attendants to leave the plane.

While the plane was in Seattle, he requested meals for the remaining flight crew.

During refueling, Cooper outlined his flight plan to the cockpit crew: A southeasterly course toward Mexico City at the minimum airspeed possible without stalling the aircraft - approximately one-hundred knots (120 mph), at a maximum 10,000 feet altitude. He further specified the landing gear remain deployed in the takeoff/landing position, the wing flaps were to be lowered fifteen degrees, and the cabin to remain unpressurized. The copilot informed Cooper that the aircraft’s range was limited to approximately 1,000 miles under the specified flight configuration, which meant that a second refueling would be necessary before entering Mexico. Cooper and the crew discussed options and agreed on Reno, Nevada, as the refueling stop. Finally, Cooper directed that the plane take off with the rear exit door open and its staircase extended. Northwest’s home office objected, on grounds that it was unsafe to take off with the aft staircase deployed. Cooper knew better and countered that it was indeed safe, but he would not argue the point; he would lower it himself once they were airborne.

An FAA official requested a face-to-face meeting with Cooper aboard the aircraft, which was denied.

RICHARD ARCHER WAS IN THE terminal as he watched the plane take off for its next unscheduled stop and wondered about it and the remaining flight crew. Richard was debriefed by the FBI and sent on his way. He hoped everyone would be okay and wondered if he would ever hear the results of the hijacking. Little did he know that Cooper would be the cause of the largest manhunt in U.S. history to that time and for a long time to come.

AT APPROXIMATELY 7:40 p.m., THE 727 took off with only Cooper, the pilot, flight attendant, copilot, and flight engineer aboard. Two F-106 fighter aircraft scrambled from nearby McChord Air Force Base followed behind the airliner, one above it and one below, out of Cooper’s view. A Lockheed T-33 trainer, diverted from an unrelated Air National Guard mission, also shadowed the 727 until it ran low on fuel and turned back near the Oregon-California state line.

After takeoff, Cooper told the flight attendant to join the rest of the crew in the cockpit and remain