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April 6, 2001 Headlines: PinnFund/PinnLeasing Closed/ Opening on Monday as " Aloha Leasing?" Victor Harris, Esq. Receives Kudo's Financial Services Sources Now On Line at www.ALClists.com Robert New--The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly "They Were People Who Knew How to Live," Los Angeles Times In Defense of JDR Capital Bob Rodi Surfaces---Busy Signing Deals BellMicro Introduces LeaseEase with Wells Fargo Malcolm Bladrige Award Goes to Dana ( former major lessor ) ListServe is Explained to Members of the National Association of Equipment Brokers by NAELB Director Gerry Egan ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ MidAmerica Association of Equipment Lessors... ...Register now for the 3rd Annual MAEL Warm Up Weekend May 19th - 20th, and the 17th Annual MAEL Golf Invitational May 21st in Chicago, IL. Event includes warm-up weekend, invitational, reception and dinner. For details or to register, visit www.mael.org or call Alison Huhn at 312-541-6000. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PinnFund/PinnLeasing USA We reported that we thought all the offices of PinnFund/PinnLeasing were closed, and there will be millions of dollars, perhaps $100 million unaccounted for, as this may be the largest financial scandal to hit California. Here is visual confirmation: "No one is home at PinnFund/PinnLease...Shortly after Charles La Bella was appointed receiver by the U.S. Attorney, he dismissed the employees, closed PinnFund building and changed all the locks. FBI and U.S. Attorney are sorting through a lot of documentation as they follow the trail going backwards. I personally believe that numerous people will be traveling "up the river" as the evidence is tallied. Mike Freeman will have more to reveal in coming days...stay tuned! Larry B. Turner lbt@visioncapitalcorp.com> Vision Capital Corporation 858-487-6530 + + + There is a report that "Pinn Lease changed their name to Aloha Pacific and are back in business! Right now they are working out of their homes. As soon as their new office space receives the Certificate of Occupancy they are moving into it. I don't know where the new office space will be." The name is withheld as this broker may be doing business with this group again!!!! editor
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- see our April 5 Special Report: http://www.leasingnews.org/archives.htm Kudo's for Victor Harris, Esq. Having served on the UAEL Standards Committee for several terms with Victor Harris, I can attest to his diligence and dedication to adherence by the membership in the principles set forth in the Code of Ethics. Steven B. Geller, CLP Leasing Solutions LLC www.leasingsolutionsllc.com 20 Dike Drive, Wesley Hills, NY 10952 sgeller@leasingsolutionsllc.com phone:(845)362-6106 fax: (845) 354-2803 cell phone: (914) 552-0842 + + + Not only is Vic very knowledgeable and a strong advocate for the association, he knows the best Chinese restaurants in SF. Vic, I still remember the very fine dinner we had many years ago after a WAEL meeting. Jerry Withrow jerryw@wizard.com + + + _____________________________________________________________________________ ########################################################## Financial Services Marketing Lists Now Available Online at www.ALClists.com; Direct Marketers/Sales Executives Can Get Counts, Order Lists at ALC's Website
PRINCETON, N.J.----April 6, 2001--Mailing list compiler, American List Counsel, now offers online browsing and ordering for financial services mailing lists including ALC's Banking and Finance Database at www.ALClists.com. "Our website provides access to the largest selectivity of financial services prospects employed in all facets of the banking and finance industry," points out Stacey Girt, Vice President Database Commerce. "Whereas direct marketers formerly had to sift through printed list datacards and call or fax for more specific counts, they can now log on to www.ALClists.com, shop lists, get immediate counts, place orders, sign a digital agreement, pay for orders, and get their lists - all in real time." Immediately available for downloading are: 99,845 Banking Executives 40,340 Security Dealers & Traders 27,154 Financial Analysts 20,705 Savings & Loans Association Executives ALC's online Banking and Finance database offers market saturation for the leading financial geographical areas such as New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. Mailers can select by title, headquarters vs. branch offices, and amount of financial institution assets. Those looking for business leads can order telephone and fax numbers as well as the contact name and address. "The site is so user-friendly that a mailing list novice can easily find the right list for a particular market, get counts for any selection criteria, and place the order in minutes," adds Girt. "Because ALC original compilations are comprehensive in market scope, containing a deep offering of targeted data, we simplified the inquiry process with point and click drop down menus to help users navigate the lists." The ALClists.com website is designed to speed up the prospect list acquisition process. Registered users can query the lists for as many selection combinations they want and get immediate counts versus waiting for an ALC representative to look them up. However, the site does offer a "click-to-talk" feature that connects users to ALC's team of financial services list experts who further help marketers target the right audience for their offers. Register to search and order ALC lists at www.ALClists.com. --30--emb/ny* CONTACT: American List Counsel Stacey Girt, 609/580-2973 Vice President Database Commerce stacey.girt@amlist.com. ################################################################# --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Typo Kit, I hope you don't mind, but I catch typo's all the time, especially at the bottom of your newsletter.... 'Whatever Happend to?"
Terry Waggoner, Executive Recruiter Executive Solutions for Leasing and Finance, Inc. 5555 Holly Ridge Drive Camarillo, CA. 93012 Phone: 805.383.8922 Fax: 209.821.7252 Email: terrywaggoner@exsolutions.com Web Page: http://www.exsolutions.com t.waggoner13@verizon.net ( You are really very good, as it has been there over half a year and you are the first one to bring it to our attention. It has been fixed. Thank you. editor ). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Doomed Jet Got OK for Procedure Banned by FAA ("They Were Just People Who Knew How to Live.") By TOM GORMAN, SORAYA SARHADDI NELSON,Los AngelesTimes Staff Writers ASPEN, Colo.--The chartered jet that slammed into a hillside here Thursday night was cleared for an instrument approach by air traffic controllers even though such an approach required a circling procedure that the Federal Aviation Administration had banned earlier in the week, crash investigators said Saturday. The pilot was authorized to execute an instrument approach which, according to the National Transportation Safety Board, can be accomplished in Aspen only by circling to descend, versus heading straight in. Yet, the FAA had issued a ban on circling at night just two days prior to the crash that killed 18 people, most of them from the Los Angeles area. The pilot, Bob Frisbie, had been informed of the nighttime ban before departing Burbank, but FAA controllers said they knew nothing of the ban, said acting National Transportation Safety Board chairwoman Carol Carmody. "I find it troubling, no question," that the controllers didn't know that the agency that supervises them had issued the ban, Carmody said at an afternoon briefing. But she stopped short of saying the pilot should not have attempted to land. There is no evidence that the doomed Avjet-owned plane tried to circle before landing, she said. But if the pilot tried to land without circling, that would have been unsafe under the conditions that night, according to at least one aviation safety expert. The so-called "Notice to Airmen," known to aviators as NOTAM, was ambiguous, Carmody said, because it did not ban an instrument approach at the airport, but simply the circling approach. "The language is confusing, quite frankly," Carmody said. Carmody said weather was also "something we are looking at very closely." Weather conditions here change abruptly, and investigators are still trying to determine the visibility at the time of the crash. Pilots reported the visibility eight minutes beforehand to be 10 miles, compared to only 1.75 miles 10 minutes afterward. On Friday, the FAA ordered a temporary ban on nighttime instrument approaches at the airport after talking with NTSB investigators. Local pilots here said such temporary bans are typically ordered by the FAA as it investigates crashes. The NTSB investigator in charge of the Aspen probe said pilots using instruments to land must circle before actually touching down to avoid having to descend too quickly. Local pilots said they seldom circle at night--because it is safer to approach the runway straight-in. But aviation safety expert Barry Schiff said that based on the information available under the first FAA notice, the pilot "should not have executed the approach." "You cannot make the approach," he said. "It is in fact a circling approach. It was clear from the NOTAM he should have received [that] you cannot make the approach at night." FAA spokesman Mike Fergus said Saturday that his agency was pursuing its own parallel investigation into the crash. "Since the NTSB has come up with this question [about the ban not being enforced], we'll put greater focus on it," he said. The FAA ban on nighttime circling was issued as a result of a routine FAA flight check of the airport on March 19. Two planes that reached Aspen shortly before the Gulfstream III ended up flying to another airport, one of them after trying twice, Carmody said. The Avjet plane was on its first approach when it crashed. The Times erroneously reported in a story Saturday that it was on its second approach. The plane's left wing struck the ground first, and both engines were on at the time of impact, Carmody said. There was no evidence of engine failure or fire, she said. She also described Frisbie, of Fallbrook, as "well qualified." A friend agreed. "In my opinion, I think you had one of the best guys for that situation at that time," said Tony Blum, a pilot. "He had a lot of experience in that airplane, and as a charter pilot for so long, those guys see a lot of different and varied things." The NTSB team will return to Washington by Monday and wreckage cleanup, which begins today, will likely be finished by Tuesday, she said. NTSB investigators also will go to Burbank today to review Avjet manuals and the plane's maintenance records. Carmody met for an hour Saturday with the relatives of the crash victims, who flew to Aspen to claim their loved ones' remains and see the place where they died. About 30 grieving relatives were taken to the crash site off Colorado 82 at noon in a chartered bus escorted by the Colorado State Patrol. A crackling police radio announced that the road had been closed to all traffic for 15 minutes to heighten the visitors' privacy. The resulting eerie silence was pierced by the sound of several family members wailing as they got off the bus. Within two minutes, the sounds of crying subsided, and the group, largely hidden from public view by vehicles, stood quietly under a blue sky broken by large white clouds. The only other noise was a harsh reminder of the tragedy: four jet aircraft--two of them charters and two of them commercial airliners--flew just a few hundred feet above them as they barreled toward the runway about half a mile away. Some of the relatives handed nine bouquets and two single roses to two crash investigators. They carefully trod around the aircraft fragments and anchored the flowers through the top wires of an 8-foot-high fence designed to keep elk off the highway. The flowers were the first tributes left in the vicinity of the site since the crash. The jet had been chartered by Robert New, 36, a multimillionaire financier who had built the firm UniCapital into a national empire in the equipment rental industry before it went bankrupt. New had organized a lavish birthday bash for his Los Angeles business partner, Mario Aguilar. The evening began with the chartered flight and was to have ended with a catered dinner. New owns a $1.85-million Victorian home in Pitkin County, Colo., where his wife Monica and 8-year-old son Mathew live full time. It was typical of New to pamper friends and business associates, his brother Jonathan New of Miami said Saturday. New, the flamboyant former chief executive of UniCapital, had raised $532 million in its initial public offering in May 1998, and bought up 12 businesses that were rolled into the firm. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December 2000, lasting just 2 1/2 years. New and Mario Aguilar were business partners in Prestige Automobiles Inc., a luxury car rental firm in Beverly Hills. Aguilar was traveling with some of his family members, including his mother, aunt and two brothers at the time of the crash. Mario and his older brother Joe, who was also killed in the crash, had moved to a Silver Lake home last year, according to Isaac Mena, who has known Joe for eight years. Mario, who had modeled in Mexico, had also just purchased a Ferrari and a Bentley, Mena said. He enjoyed dressing in designer clothing and traveled all over the world. Mario and New spent a lot of time traveling together to Miami, Aspen and Europe. "They were just people who knew how to live," Mena said.
+ + + The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly I did not know Robert New personally. Stories of his involvement in the Unicap debacle were well circulated. However, in obituaries which were published to report his demise, the word "generous" was ubiquitous. So I can only conclude from this that while Mr.New may have had his share of character defects, he apparently had some strengths as well. I would suggest that those who rush to judgment behind the veil of anonymity look inward to themselves before pointing the finger. I also do not know if Mr. New took accountability for whatever role he played in Unipac's folding, if he attempted to make amends to anyone, or sought forgiveness from his higher power. I do know he leaves behind a grieving family. For those who were harmed by Unicapital's closing, I can only suggest that forgiveness is a powerful healer, as it forfeits any right to negativity and resentment. Sorry for having this come across as a Sunday Sermon, Kit. Jim Fleming nationalbusinesscredit@yahoo.com + + + I noticed a posting today on the Monitor Daily concerning Robert New (Unicapital) from unknown it says "What comes around goes around" that is pretty sad. What about the others on that plane did they deserve it as well? Then not being professional enough to reply with a name that is truly sad. That is the problem with this entire industry people simply will not take responsibility for there actions. Sean Wheeler 1 Lease (800) 996-7440 (800) 977-4666-fax + + + A Note to John Kenny regarding Robert New. Was the timing of the posting from "Anonymous" poor? No question about it. Was anything "Anonymous" said in his posting false, inaccurate or exaggerated? No, not at all. It is obvious that Mr. Kenny never met or had any dealings with Robert New. I think the point "Anonymous" and Steve Geller tried to make was the fact that Robert New, as President and CEO of Unicapital with a hand-picked Board of Directors, was principally responsible for the demise of Unicapital and the forced unemployment of literally hundreds of dedicated leasing professionals with little or no severance, while Robert enjoyed what has been described as a lavish lifestyle, the lifestyle of a "philanthropist with homes in Miami, Beverly Hills and Aspen", a lifestyle that allowed him, on a whim, to charter a flight to Aspen rather than fly commercial. Mr. New may have been a loving and caring father and husband. As an employer he should not have been given control of a lemonade stand, much less a multimillion dollar leasing company. As one of Mr. New's "victims", I will shed no tears. Mark Speros, Director-Broker Division Landmark Financial Corporation MSperos007@aol.com ( Please note Mr. Speros was employed by Unicapital at BSB Leasing, when they were part of this company---they are independent now, as they were before Unicapital purchased them. I have known Mr. Speros for almost thirty years and he has a very experienced eye of the leasing industry. editor ). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ In Defense of JDR Capital Terms in Letting Employees Go Hello Kit, I understand that you are doing your job reporting the leasing news, however, I think that you are way off base on the JDR Capital soap opera that is being printed here. First and foremost, I would like to say that I am indeed an ex-employee of JDR Capital. My time spent with the company has been great. I have learned a career from JDR. One in which I am proud of, they have taught me everything I know about lease/finance, and I would go back to work there in a heartbeat. I am not really sure who the "insider" would be and that would be for JDR Capital to figure out and let them go as well. I would like to say that JDR Capital was the best place to work. The owners of JDR cared, they got involved with their employees, unlike the corporate world. We did fun things together like a family would. I remember having a bar-b-que in our parking lot. The owners cooked the burgers and hot dogs, we had salads and games. It was a great time. They were so generous that when it was time to hand out the holiday bonus', the owners gave everyone $5000 each for obtaining a company goal. They did not have to do that, they just wanted to. In addition to that, the owners once again stepped up to the plate and took the entire company the Bahamas for a long weekend. Do these owners sound like bad people to you? I would like to say in their defense that severance pay was not necessary, the company had already been so good to their employees. As far as the notice is concerned, everyone there knew what was happening, we would all talk about it, wondering who was next. There was NO notice required. As far as the medical/dental, being cut off, everybody had the option to purchase COBRA for 18 months. You either paid it or you didn't. It was our choice. It makes me angry when I see the newsletter printed such horrible statements about a company that shares everything with their employees and customers. Who would be as so low as to say this information about JDR Capital? Kit, I would like to think that before! you print and article about a company that you would confirm the information with the owners of the company directly. Leave my name and information withheld.
Name With Held as requested. ( JDR Capital problems have been reported since the end of last year, and many funders, brokers, and employees are sorry to learn about their problems, which unforunately is not uncommon in today's economy. It isn't just the leasing companies. editor ) List of Recent Job Cuts By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
a number of major companies have announced job cuts in the past few months, including: -DaimlerChrysler 26,000 -Motorola: 22,000 -Lucent Technologies: 16,000 -Delphi Automotive Systems: 11,500 -Verizon: 10,000 -Procter & Gamble: 9,600 -Nortel Networks: 9,000 -Solectron: 8,200 -Sara Lee: 7,000 -ADC Telecommunications: 6,000 -7,000 -Whirlpool: 6,000 -J.C. Penney: 5,300 -Compaq: 5,000 -Supervalu: 4,500 -Xerox: 4,000 -The Walt Disney Co.: 4,000 -Textron: 3,600 -Schawb: 3,400 -Ericsson LM: 3,300 -Gateway: 3,000 -ShopKo Stores: 2,500 -AOL Time Warner: 2,400 -Standard Register: 2,400 -Sears: 2,400 -Electrolux: 2,000 -Winstar Communications: 2,000 -Visteon: 1,800 -Service Merchandise: 1,750 -Hewlett-Packard: 1,700 -American Greetings: 1,500 -Amazon.com: 1,300 -3Com: 1,200 -Freightliner.: 1,085 -Norfolk Southern: 1,000/2,000 Source: Individual companies. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- we encourage you to quote us without permission, and to send to a colleague. We are |