Leasing News

Alert---Mar Vista Financial, Villa Park, California

Jamie Chisick, founder and president of Mar Vista Financial, Villa Park, California, is a co-founder along with his brother Brad Chisick of Nationscapital Mortgage, found guilty in 2005 in Olympia, Washington and ordered to pay $712,527.19 in restitution to 120 Washington state consumers.

The Department of Financial Institutions "found that Nationscapital conducted business from unlicensed locations, used bait and switch tactics, violated trust account requirements, and failed to maintain books and records. In many cases borrowers believed they had obtained low rate, fixed mortgages at little or no cost. In fact, they had purchased high rate, variable mortgages at substantial cost.

"The court found Nationscapital's owner Jamie Chisick and corporate managers Michael Buff, Kevin Kraus and Darin Williams guilty as charged. They failed to provide required disclosures and misled consumers about their loans. In his oral ruling, Judge Hicks stated, "...I come away with a strong feeling that Mr. Chisick is like the Typhoid Mary of the brokerage industry and it's his kind of behavior that is exactly why we have regulations in the state of Washington. It's abominable.

"Jamie Chisick is banned from the industry in Washington State for 20 years and must pay fines totaling $292,800.00. Michael Buff, Kevin Kraus and Darin Williams are each banned from the industry for five years." (1)

Another firm involving Jamie Chisick, First Alliance Mortgage went bankrupt. (2) In this case, an appeal was made regarding baring the FTC and other state agencies from taking action:

"...the governmental actions could bind First Alliance's officers and directors in ways that the bankruptcy proceeding does not. Only the corporate entities are debtors; the officers and directors are not parties to the bankruptcy proceeding. Some of these individuals are named defendants in Florida's action. In addition, injunctive relief obtained in any of the governmental actions against First Alliance itself would run to those in active concert or participation with it and also possibly successors and assigns, thus reaching the individuals even after a demise of First Alliance. The potential need for relief against these individuals is demonstrated by recent actions taken by them. In addition to the lawsuit filed by Brian Chisick in Washington State, within a month of the petition date, Jamie Chisick, the son of Brian Chisick and the former director of First Alliance's Loan by Mail Division, incorporated a new lending company, Mar Vista Financia1." (3)

The Leasing News telephone call to Mr. Chisick was not returned.

The National Association of Equipment Leasing Brokers has Mar Vista listed a a "funder" and in good standing.

The company has an A+ record at the Better Business Bureau:
http://www.la.bbb.org/Business-Report/Mar-Vista-Financial-13158488

The California Department of Corporations has Jamie P. Chisick named as president of Mar Vista Financial with an expired license as of 5/17/2008
http://www2.dre.ca.gov/PublicASP/pplinfo.asp?License_id=01280771

Jamie P Chisick
Mar Vista Financial
1224 E Katella Ave Ste 207
Orange, CA 92867-5065
Telephone 714-628-1156
Email jchisick@yahoo.com

The California Department of Corporations has Jamie Phillip Chisick as an officer of Nationscapital Mortgage Corporation expired as an officer on 11/15/02 and the corporation 11/16/02

Current Address of Mar Vista Financial:
Mar Vista Financial
17853 Santiago Blvd., #107-486.
Villa Park, CA 92861

(1) State Wins case against Nationwide Press Release
http://leasingnews.org/PDF/Nationwide_Found_Guilty.pdf

(2) Alliance Mortgage
http://leasingnews.org/PDF/spokesman.pdf

(3) Alliance Mortgage
http://leasingnews.org/PDF/First_Alliance_SACV00.pdf

Ralph Petta to Receive Award February 2

Leasing News Advisory Board member Ed Castagna, Nassau-Assets will be presenting the Leasing News Person of the Year Award for 2009 to Ralph Petta, Interim President, Equipment Leasing and Finance Association at the Equipment Leasing and Finance Founding Industry Future Council dinner on February 2nd, Washington, DC.

The Industry Future Council, now in its 29th year, meets annually to examine and deliberate the trends, challenges and opportunities impacting the equipment finance industry. On February 1 to 2, this year’s council of equipment finance leaders will be peering into the crystal ball to answer “What are the challenges and opportunities the future will bring our way?” The annual invitation-only meeting is hosted by the Equipment Leasing and Finance Foundation, and this year, has established lofty goals for the IFC participants and subsequent report.

Facilitator Joseph C. Lane, Vice Chairman, Sinter Capital and Past Chairman, Equipment Leasing and Finance Foundation, will challenge this high quality mix of "thought leaders" to think strategically, focus on “what could be” for the industry and develop a framework for readers of the Industry Future Council Report to apply the Council’s analysis to their own businesses.

Because the Industry Future Council Report is relied upon by so many different constituencies, it is critical that it reflect the input and analysis of a broad representation from the industry, so each market segment will be represented. Participants of past IFC meetings included industry leaders, ELFA Business Council Chairs and members of ELFA’s Executive Committee.

The Report will be available in March, online from the Foundation store, at no cost to Foundation contributors. Non-donors may download a copy for $95.

Confidence in Leasing Basically Unchanged

Confidence in the equipment finance market is 58.7, virtually the same as the December 2009 index of 58.8, according to the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation Monthly Leasing Confidence Index for the Equipment Finance Industry (MCI-EFI) for January.

MCI-EFI survey respondent Harry Kaplun, President, Frost Bank, in San Antonio, Texas, said, “I feel mildly positive about the industry. Pent up demand in several equipment categories would trigger more capex financing in 2010."

Here are comments from the ELFF report from three market segment leasing officers:

From the Small-Ticket Sector:

Ron Arrington
Global President
CIT Vendor Finance

“While we forecast capital expenditures to continue to be modest, we also expect a mild uptick in 2010, largely as a result of pent up demand caused by the challenging economic conditions over the past 18-24 months. This is, of course, dependent upon continued improvement in the underlying economy.”

From the Middle- Market Sector

Aylin Cankardes
President
Rockwell Financial Group

“There is a slight increase in customer demand for financings and we are seeing a more competitive pricing structure chasing that business. Capital availability is still at a cautionary stance, but strong credits are able to command low interest rates as everyone is courting them. Our sales team is seeing a higher request for quotes in the 1st Quarter already compared to last year, which is a positive turn.”

From the Large Ticket Sector:

Roland Chalons-Browne
President
Siemens Financial Services

“In the medium and long term the outlook is good. There are fewer players today but with the anticipated increase in capital investment over the next 12 to 18 months there should be plenty of opportunities for profitable business.”

The report also found:

“67.5% of the survey respondents indicate they expect the “same” access to capital to fund business while 32.5% of executives expect more access to capital to fund equipment acquisitions over the next four months.”

“When asked, 22.5% of the executives reported they expect to hire more employees over the next four months, up from 15.6% in December, and 57.5% expect no change in headcount over the next four months.”

Full Report:
http://www.leasefoundation.org/IndRsrcs/MCI/

Sales Make it Happen

by Christopher Menkin

"What can you learn from GreatAmerica Leasing?"

All departments, particularly sales, can learn from the success of GreatAmerica Leasing as explained by its founder Tony Golobic in Monday's Leasing News issue.

The first and most important decisions is one of the keys to their success: Who is the customer? Who "owns" the customer?

Is it the lessee that is performing at the beginning, during, and at the end, with the collector of the payment keeping in communication, providing service, and caring about obtaining repeat business?

GreatAmerica would agree with the concept of better communication with the party making the lease payment, but that is not their answer to either who is the customer or who “owns” the customer?

"We define our customer a little differently than most financing companies. “GreatAmerica founder Tony Golobic said in the article. “We resolved that the equipment dealers/leasing brokers are our customers and that the lessee is the customer of the dealer/broker. The dealer/broker, our customer, puts food on our family tables.

"This foundation guides our prospecting and marketing efforts and has engendered great trust with our customers. Not all equipment dealers, just like not all leasing brokers, are the right customers for us. We want just the best ones; the ones who have long-term vision, who want to build strong and lasting relationships with their customers and with us..."

When the sale is over, the vendor is often the party remaining in contact with his customer, providing service, asking or referrals, and hearing appreciation or complaints about the leasing company the vendor referred. Most vendors want to make another sale or get a referral or keep a reputation in their industry circle.

It also may be the vendor has a captive funding source, but runs into situations that they will not accept or a client over the credit limit, and keeping them happy is more important than ignoring them.

GreatAmerica also has a "Truth in Leasing" document:

"Our ethical focus has underscored our direction as a whole, ranging from the definition of our customer (above) to the creation of our Truth in Leasing Statement, which is a document we give our customers to give to their customers," he explains. "It’s an industry-first statement that is essentially a leasing bill of rights for the lessee and outlines what they can expect when they enter into a standard agreement with GreatAmerica. It also draws a line in the sand by capping residual positions and stating there would be no hidden fee tactics common in many leases."

Except for the more formal "commitment letters," most often utilized on leases over $100,000, the average proposal is boiler plate from over 30 years ago designed with "non-legal" language, often designed to enable the "company" to keep an advance rental with stupid sentences. There are too many companies who know the credit and situation will not get approved, but want to keep the advance rental. Often it is treated as a "draw." Many companies will split or pay a percentage to salesmen when the transaction does not go ahead.

There has been a trend in this down economy to eliminate independent leasing brokers for a more loyal "employee" who is also trained in the company mission and ethical standards.

"We used to work with a large number of brokers, but 80% of our business was done with just a handful," GreatAmerica Tony Golobic explains. "That didn’t work well and we pared the number down. We will continue to focus on this process with the goal of doing an increased amount of business with a smaller number of brokers. It’s a matter of finding the right brokers with the right vendor programs with whom we can develop strong and lasting relationships. It may sound strange but our goal is to have fewer brokers for whom we do a lot more."

The last sentence has been spoken by many companies over the last two years in not accepting new brokers, and cutting back on existing brokers who do not get many approvals, or worse get the approvals but the lease not signed.

In cutting back their own staff, and being able to provide less service, the funder wants to rely on those who get leases approved and signed, service them better, give them better service, and hopefully obtain leases that pay out.

The "Executive Bios" from the company web site also divides the company into sections where they maintain the majority of their business: Office Equipment Group, Distribution Group, Communications & Development, Direct Programs and Healthcare. There are also sales leader groups and business origination groups.
http://www.greatamerica.com/about/executive-bios.aspx

"The mission of GreatAmerica, plain and simple, is to help our customers become more successful," GreatAmerica Tony Golobic describes in the Leasing News article. "Each of our five business units specializes in their respective industries, immersing itself into the market it serves and tapping into the complex dynamics that go into making a business successful. Our expertise is gained through intense and continuous research into the industry served by that unit, business councils, industry events and internal training. The knowledge gained through these activities informs all levels of the company and creates a fertile environment that fosters innovative thinking and problem solving."

It all goes back to the theme, "Who is the customer?" GreatAmerica is different.

"The relentless pursuit of our vision to reach the standards of excellence so high in everything we do that we have no competition has enabled us to grow to an asset size of over $1 Billion. We have never stopped growing, not even in the past two years. We now are looking forward to the day, not far away, when we will reach $2 Billion. We will do that by getting better every day and by truly helping our customers become more successful. Each time a customer hangs up the phone with one of our team members, we want them to think: 'Wow, it was a great day - the day I started doing business with GreatAmerica!'

SEATTLE

Meet and learn from Mr. Terry Winders, CLP

Leasing #102 columnist for Leasing News,
long time educator and trainer

Sales and Operations
click here for course information and to register

April 12th until Noon on the 14th
Seattle, Washington
Hosted by Financial Pacific

$395.00 Paid in Advance for first person from company
$345 with each additional attendee

"Certified Leasing Professionals attending this seminar will earn CPEs (Continuing Professional Education)
Credits toward their recertification"

Two More anti-Evergreen Legislation

The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association State Government Relations Committee are reviewing two more states on Evergreen clause legislation. While the EFLA is in favor of "transparency,” the track record shows not near the end of the lease.

Leasing News asked Chris Walker, CLP, Vice -President, Business Development, and president of the CLP Foundation about GreatAmerica and Evergreen clauses:

"We don’t have an evergreen clause in our lease agreement. For FMV or 10% PUT leases we charge month to month, for dollar-out we stop billing. We notify the lessee on the final invoice that the lease is ending. Our motivation for treating the lessee fairly is based on our belief the lessee belongs to our dealer/vendor/broker, if we upset the lessee we may be costing the dealer/vendor/broker a relationship they spent years building. This would be counter to our “Customers for Life’ philosophy’."

Leasing News has stated its editorial position that "Winter Green" and "Evergreen" clauses have a purpose, but it should be mandatory that the lessee be notified in advance.

Leasing Industry leaders in small ticket have been warning those lessors who are abusing this type of provision that if it continued that our industry would attract regulation. It is happening. What will they require next? Escrow accounts for Advance Rentals. Interest rates on capital lease contract? Regulation for leasing as mortgage brokers, real estate, accountants, attorneys. Will every leasing broker have to become a CLP!!!

Indiana House Bill 1328 introduced by House Small Business and Economic Development Committee member Representative David Yarde would require a “merchant” providing “the maintenance, repair, lease, or sale of personal property; to a recipient under a contract with an automatic renewal clause to provide written notice to the recipient not later than 30 days before the contract automatically renews.” The term "merchant" includes corporations or “any other legal entity that has entered into a contract with a recipient” and the definition of “recipient” attempts to encompass every corporate entity the drafters could envision. As always, I welcome your comments sent to me at dbrown@elfaonline.org

Notice to the lessee must include: “(1) the renewal date of the contract; (2) a statement that the recipient must notify the merchant if the recipient intends to terminate the contract at the expiration of the contract term; and (3) information on any promotions or discounts available, additional fees or costs, or any increase of fees or costs.”

The term "automatic renewal clause" for purposes of this bill “means a provision in a contract that provides that the contract is automatically renewed unless the recipient provides notice to the merchant that the recipient intends to terminate the contract at the expiration of the contract term.”

SENATE BILL 345-FN

AN ACT relative to automatic renewal of contracts.
SPONSORS: Sen. Houde, Dist 5; Rep. Pierce, Graf 9
COMMITTEE: Commerce, Labor and Consumer Protection

ANALYSIS

This bill makes it a violation of the consumer protection act for a contract for services to include an automatic renewal provision that does not require written acceptance of the additional term of service by the consumer.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struck through.]Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
10-2755
03/05

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Ten

AN ACT relative to automatic renewal of contracts.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 New Paragraph; Consumer Protection; Acts Unlawful; Automatic Contract Renewal. Amend RSA 358-A:2 by inserting after paragraph XIV the following new paragraph:

XV. Including in a contract for services an automatic renewal provision that does not require the consumer to accept, in writing, an additional term of service prior to the expiration of the current term. Under no circumstances may a contract for services be renewed more than 90 days before the contract's expiration date.

2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2011.

ELFA and Evergreen/Winter Green Clauses
by Christopher Menkin
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Jan2010/1_08.htm#elfa

The Secret of Our Success
by Tony Golobic, GreatAmerica Leasing
http://leasingnews.org/archives/Jan2010/1_25.htm#greatamerica

CLP Spotlight---An Interview with Hal Hayden, CLP

January, 2010 Circular
Certified Leasing Professional

“The leasing business has been an interesting and fun adventure for me, and I've even made a little money along the way! Even better, I've gotten to know some terrific people that have become good friends.

“I first learned about equipment leasing when I was fresh recruit at IBM, where we always offered leasing as an option for our mainframe computers. (Yep — I'm that old!) When the personal computer became a viable business solution, IBM did not want to lease them so I started a small company in Austin, Texas to offer PC leasing through the reseller channel. My wife, Cathie eventually joined the business and we learned a lot of great lessons over the next ten years as we grew and branched out into other markets. We joined WAEL when there were only two or three members from Texas and I studied hard to prepare for the first version of the CLP exam. (It caused me some "brain damage", but I passed!) Then, when we were ready for a change, we sold the company and moved to Prescott, Arizona, a small town in the Northern high country of the state.

“I continued to enjoy new challenges, such as developing a program for leasing enterprise software licenses, which was considered a somewhat sketchy proposition in the late 90's. In 2004 I had learned a bit about the fledgling wireless internet business and decided, along with two partners, to develop a program for funding all of the equipment needed for a growing wireless network. We launched Agility Solutions (now Agility Ventures) with a good understanding of the wireless business model, but no easy way to find the best operators and no funding sources interested in this type of transaction. We decided the best solution for funding was to raise the money ourselves by creating a private investment fund. After all, how hard could it be?

“Well, of course it turned out to be a long and difficult endeavor, but eventually we had developed a good funding mechanism and built a nice little niche business for ourselves, which we still enjoy today. Once again, I have really enjoyed the challenge of developing a new lease product for an untapped market and also creating our own source of funding. The lessons I have learned along the way — from my early days as a broker studying for the CLP exam - have served me very well in recent years.”

What does your perfect day start with?
“My perfect day starts with a mountain-bike ride on the trails in the national forest right out of our back door. Then I like to stop at the local funky coffee shop for a strong cup to take to my office, which is in ‘downtown’ Prescott on the courthouse square, in a very old bank building with lots of character.

Would you like to share an interesting hobby or accomplishment?
“I've been crazy about flying all my life — everything from hang gliders to the beautiful Beechcraft Bonanza we are lucky enough to have now. Earlier this year I became a volunteer for a national organization called Lighthawk, a group of pilots who volunteer their aircraft and services for conservation efforts. For my first mission, I was asked to fly two photographers over the North Rim of the Grand Canyon so they could get some shots of the uranium mines perched right on the canyon's edge. There have been concerns for years about the minerals leaching into the river below and efforts were underway to stop any new mining permits on the Rim of the Canyon.

“Within two weeks of our flight, the resulting photos were used in a presentation to Ken Salazar, the Secretary of the Interior, and a moratorium was immediately issued for the any new permits. It’s fun to get results!”

Hal Hayden
Agility Solutions
(928)541-0771
hhayden@agilityventures.com
www.agilitysolutions.com
Agility Solutions; we fund all equipment used by Wireless Internet Service Providers.

### Press Release ############################

Californian Pleads Guilty to False Tax Refund Conspiracy

Used Social Security Numbers of Deceased Persons,
Stolen Employer Identification Information

WASHINGTON – Haroon Amin of Upland, Calif., pleaded guilty Monday to conspiracy to defraud the United States, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced yesterday.

In December 2008, Amin and Ather Ali of Diamond Bar, Calif., were indicted by a federal grand jury in Riverside, Calif., on charges of engaging in a scheme to file false returns with the IRS using the names and Social Security numbers of deceased individuals. Ali is scheduled to begin trial on March 2, 2010.

According to the indictment, in 2002 and 2003 Amin and Ali filed at least 250 fraudulent tax returns, falsely stating that the deceased individuals earned wages from which income tax was withheld. These false returns claimed more than $2 million in income tax refunds. Although the IRS rejected the bulk of these refund claims, a number of refund checks were issued and delivered to addresses controlled by Amin, Ali and their co-conspirators, including to various mailboxes opened by Ali using false forms of identification. Most of these refund checks were then delivered overseas to be deposited in bank accounts in Armenia and Pakistan.

Amin admitted that he was a knowing participant in this scheme. According to the indictment and statements made at the plea hearing, Amin and his co-conspirators obtained deceased individuals’ Social Security numbers and other identification information from the Internet. The returns filed as part of the scheme had fictitious Form W-2 wage and tax statements as attachments. Amin created fake W-2 Forms using employer identification numbers that he had obtained from an acquaintance who was a certified public accountant.

Judge Robert H. Whaley scheduled Amin’s sentencing for June 22, 2010. Amin faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.

John A. DiCicco, Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Tax Division commended the efforts of agents from the IRS Criminal Investigation Division in Laguna Niguel, Calif, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles E. Pell and Tax Division trial attorney Joseph A. Rillotta, who are prosecuting the case.

More information about the Justice Department’s Tax Division and its enforcement efforts is available at http://www.usdoj.gov/tax

#### Press Release #############################

    1772 - The "Washington and Jefferson Snowstorm" occurred. George Washington reported three feet of snow at Mount Vernon, and Thomas Jefferson recorded about three feet at Monticello.
    1778 - Marines landed at New Providence, Bahamas; the American flag flew over foreign soil for the first time. The first American soldiers sent forth from the fledgling nation's shores were a detachment of Marines. That amphibious raid--the first in what remains today a Marine specialty--aimed to seize guns and gunpowder from a British fort.
    1805 - Southeastern New York and New England was in the middle of a 3 day snowstorm. Snow fell continuously for 48 hours in New York City where two feet reportedly accumulated.
    1810-The third U.S. Census recorded a population of 7,239,881, an increase of 1,931,298 over 1800. Black population rose by 481,361 to 1, 278, 1100. The center of population moved to a point 40 miles northwest of Washington, DC.
    1830-The landmark Webster-Hayne debates took place from January 19 to 27 th . They began when Senator Samuel A. Foot of Connecticut offered a resolution to restrain sale of public lands in the West. Sen. Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri replied by declaring that eastern interests were trying to check the prosperity of the West. He was supported by Sen. Robert Y. Hayne of South Carolina, who defended states rights. Hayne stated that “the very life of our system is the independence of the states, and that there is no evil more to be depreciated than the consolidation of this government.” Sen. Daniel Webster of Massachusetts replied by criticizing the tendency of some senators “to habitually speak of the union in terms of indifference , or even of disparagement.” The debate evolved into a discussion of the powers of the Constitution and the nature of the Union. In his speak of Jan. 26-27, Webster declared that the states were sovereign only in that area where their power is not qualified by the Constitution, and that the Constitution and the government were sovereign over the people. “Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable!” was included in the speech delivered by Daniel Webster of Massachusetts in debate with Sen. Robert Y. Hayne of South Carolina. Webster held that the union was stronger than the separate states, and that its acts could not be nullified by them.
    1850-Birthday of Samuel Gompers, one of the key figures of the U.S labor movement, born in England. In 1863, Gompers emigrated to New York with his family and soon joined his father working as a cigar maker in various New York sweatshops. Although he became heavily involved in the cigar makers' union, Gompers was hardly an advocate of labor's more left-leaning tendencies. As he rose to prominence in the union, Gompers gradually articulated his belief in strikes and boycotts tempered by responsibility and reason. In addition, he focused almost solely on economic goals and hailed binding contracts as a key to improving the lives of workers. In 1886, Gompers spearheaded the formation of the American Federation of Labor (A.F. of L.) He ruled the A.F. of L. for forty years, save for 1895, when a brief burst of socialist sentiment forced him out of office. Gompers shaped the A.F. of L. into his conservative ideal, leading the organization to eschew overt political affiliations, most notably radicalism, in favor of broad patriotic values. However, as employers and politicians increasingly marshaled tough tactics to quell the rising tide of labor, Gompers was forced to choose sides, and in 1908, he supported William Jennings Bryan's failed run for the Oval Office. A few years later, Gompers became a fierce ally of President Woodrow Wilson, and Gompers used the pulpit of the A.F. of L., as well as the recently formed Pan American Labor Federation, to push the government's policy in World War I. Gompers passed away in Texas on December 13, 1924.
    1870 - At the then Indian Asbury University, Kappa Alpha Theta, the first women's Greek letter society, or sorority, was founded. The university is now called DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana.
http://www.kappaalphatheta.org/kat_v35/home/home_body.cfm
    1880 - Thomas Alva Edison patented the electric incandescent lamp.
    1885-Birthdy of Jerome Kern, American composer born at New York City; died there Nov 11, 1945. In addition to scores for stage and screen, Kern wrote many memorable songs, including “Ol' Man River,” “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes,” “I Won't Dance, “ “The Way You Look Tonight, “ “ All the Things You Are,” and “ The Last Time I Saw Paris.” 1888 - In Washington, D.C., the National Geographic Society was founded.
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/
    1894 - The University of Chicago played its first basketball game, beating the Chicago YMCA Training School 19-11. The University of Chicago became the first basketball team to play a full schedule of games, ending with a 6-1 record.
    1900-Birthday of Hyman Rickover, American naval officer, known as the “Father of the Nuclear Navy.” Admiral Rickover directed development of nuclear reactor powered submarines, the fist of which was the Nautilus, launched in 1954. Rickover was noted for his blunt remarks: “ To increase the efficiency of the Department of Defense,” he said, “ you must first abolish it. “ The four-star admiral retired ( unwillingly) at the age of 81, after 63 years in the navy. Born in Russia, Rickover died at Arlington, VA, July 9, 1986 and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
    1908-Birthday of trumpet player Oran “Hot Lips” Page.
http://legacyrecordings.com/hotlipspage/
http://music.lycos.com/artist/bio.asp?QT=A&QW=Hot+Lips+Page&AN=
Hot+Lips+Page&MID=48223&MH=
http://www.legacyrecordings.com/hotlipspage/main.html
http://www.musicweb.uk.net/encyclopaedia/p/P3.HTM
http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/recordings.asp?oid=8019
    1918-Birthday of bandleader Skitch Henderson, best known for “The Tonight Show” with Steve Allen and then Johnny Carson.
http://www.newyorkpops.org/html/skitch_henderson.html
1918 Tarzan of the Apes, first Tarzan film, released
The first Tarzan film, Tarzan of the Apes, is released. The silent movie, based on Edgar Rice Burroughs' novel, was the first in a long line of Tarzan productions. Olympic champion swimmer Johnny Weissmuller starred in 11 Tarzan movies from 1932 to 1948 and contributed Tarzan's signature yodel to the TV show, which ran from 1966 to 1969. The character was also featured in a radio show starting in 1932 and a long-running comic strip.
    1927-The Harlem Globetrotters opened their first tour with a game in Hinkley, IL. Founded by Abe Saperstein as a spin-off form the great Harlem Renaissance team, the Globetrotters quickly became fan favorites around the world.
http://harlemglobetrotters.com/
    1927-Birthday of jazz pianist Don Shirley, Kingston, Jamaica.
http://www.donshirley.com/
http://artists.spun.com/don_shirley
http://www.donshirley.com/bio.html
    1930 –Birthday of Bobby ‘Blue' Bland (Robert Calvin Brooks) (Roll Hall of Fame singer: That's the Way Love Is, Call on Me, Turn on Your Love Light, Ain't Nothin' You Can Do; original group: The Beale Streeters with Johnny Ace) , born Rosemont, TN. His grainy vocal style is a mixture of gospel and blues, and he had considerable influence on singers as diverse as Rod Stewart and Al Green. "Call on Me" and "That's the Way Love Is" was a double-sided million-seller for Bland in 1963. But white audiences didn't begin to buy his records until he recorded his "California Album" and "Dreamin' " in the early '70s. They proved to be the most popular LPs of his career. When I lived in New Orleans for a long summer in 1958 with my friend Warren Luening, Jr., and his family. Bobby “Blue” Bland was number one of the radio. I could do a pretty good impression of Bobby “Blue” Bland, including imitating his stand and manners. I knew most of his songs by heart. I have never missed a chance to see him when he was in the San Francisco Bay Area, including spending my birthdays after midnight, at his New Year's Eve Show at the San Carlos Circle Star ( B.B.King also shared the stage. )
http://www.rockhall.com/hof/inductee.asp?id=68
http://data.sonicnet.com/artists/news/620757/01262000/bland_bobby.jhtml
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/stores/artist/glance/-/101654/
002-1241397-9042458
    1931-Birthday of Rudy Maugeri, baritone singer and arranger for the Crew-Cuts, born in Toronto, Canada. All four members of the group were students at St. Michael's Cathedral Choir School in Toronto. They were discovered in 1954 by Mercury Records while they were singing in Cleveland under the name of the Canadaires. They became the Crew-Cuts after the popular hair style of the time. One of the first white groups to record rock 'n' roll versions of black rhythm-and-blues hits, the Crew Cuts are best known for their 1954 million-seller "Sh-Boom."
http://www.fullyalivecenter.org/morebios.htm
    1939 – Birthday of Julius Lester, re-teller of legends and folklore of the American South, born St. Louis, Missouri. Since the early 1970's, Lester has served as a professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
http://www.eduplace.com/kids/hmr/mtai/lester.html
http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/~kvander/cool6.html
    1941-Birthday of vibe player Bobby Hutcherson, Los Angeles, CA
http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/hutcherson_bobby/bio.jhtml
http://www.grunthos.demon.co.uk/dialogue.htm
http://www.npr.org/programs/jazzprofiles/oldsite/010613.bhutchersonplay.html
    1943-The first air attack on Germany by the Army Air Force in World War II was made by the 8 th Air force led by Brigadier General Haywood Shepherd Hansell III from bases in England. The targets were naval bases and docks at Wilhelmshaven and factories in Emden in northwest Germany. The Americans lost three planes on the mission, two Liberators and one Flying Fortress. Of 64 planes participating in the raid, 53 reached their target The German loss was 22 fighter airplanes and 3 bombers. The 8 th Air Force's Its B-17 Flying Fortresses, capable of sustaining heavy damage while continuing to fly, and its B-24 Liberators, long-range bombers, became famous for precision bombing raids, the premier example being the raid on Wilhelmshaven. Commanded at the time by Brig. Gen. Newton Longfellow, the 8th Air Force was amazingly effective and accurate in bombing warehouses and factories in this first air attack against the Axis power. B-17 Flying Fortresses, capable of sustaining heavy damage while continuing to fly, and its B-24 Liberators, long-range bombers, became famous for precision bombing raids, the premier example being the raid on Wilhelmshaven. Commanded at the time by Brig. Gen. Newton Longfellow, the 8th Air Force was amazingly effective and accurate in bombing warehouses and factories in this first air attack against the Axis power.
    1944 - Casey Stengel resigned as the manager of the Boston Braves a post he held since 1938. He went on to become manager of the New York Yankees in 1948. Famous Stengelisms include: "The Yankees don't pay me to win every day - just two out of three"; "The secret of managing a club is to keep the five guys who hate you away from the five guys who are undecided"; and "You have to draft a catcher, because if you don't have one, the ball will roll all the way back to the screen."
    1945 - The Russians liberated the Auschwitz concentration camp, where the Nazis had murdered 1.5 million men, women and children, including more than one million Jews.
    1947---Top Hits
For Sentimental Reasons - Nat King Cole
A Gal in Calico - Johnny Mercer
Ole Buttermilk Sky - The Kay Kyser Orchestra (vocal: Mike Douglas & The Campus Kids)
Rainbow at Midnight - Ernest Tubb
    1948 - Wire Recording Corporation of America unveiled the first magnetic tape recorder, the ‘Wireway' machine containing a built-in oscillator. It sold for $149.50.
    1955---Top Hits
Mr. Sandman - The Chordettes
Let Me Go, Lover! - Teresa Brewer
Earth Angel (Will You Be Mine) - The Penguins
Loose Talk - Carl Smith
    1956 - Elvis Presley's smash single, "Heartbreak Hotel" was released by RCA Records, who had just purchased Presley's contract from Sun Records for $35,000. The song sold 300,000 copies the first week and would eventually sell over a million, becoming Elvis' first Gold record.
    1958- Birthday of country singer Tracy Lawrence
    1958 -- Little Richard enters Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama. It's a school for blacks run by the Seventh Day Adventist Church. Little Richard explains while flying over the Philippines on tour, the wing on his plane caught fire and his prayers that the flames go out were answered. As a result, he says he's giving up rock and roll so he can serve God.
http://www.littlerichard.com/
    1959-Birthday of Anthony Cris Collinsworth, sportscaster, former football player, born Dayton, OH.
    1961 - Leontyne Price debuted at New York's Metropolitan Opera House, singing the role of Leonora in "Il Trovatore". Price was the seventh black singer to make a debut at the Met, the first was Marian Anderson in 1955.
    1962 - Elvis Presley received his 29th gold record for Can't Help Falling in Love, just weeks after receiving one for the soundtrack to his seventh movie, Blue Hawaii.
    1962 - The house band from New York's Peppermint Lounge, Joey Dee and The Starliters had the number song in the US with "The Peppermint Twist".
    1962-Benny Goodman Band enplanes for Soviet tour; first jazz band to play Russia.
    1963---Top Hits
Walk Right In - The Rooftop Singers
Hey Paula - Paul & Paula
Tell Him - The Exciters
The Ballad of Jed Clampett - Flatt & Scruggs
    1964- Senator Margaret Chase Smith (R-MA) announces her candidacy for the presidency of the United States at a Women's National Press Club luncheon. In her statement she acknowledged that many think that "No woman should ever dare to aspire to the White House - and that this is a man's world and should be kept that way." She received 27 votes at the national convention which nominated Barry Goldwater.
    1966 - Oswego, NY, was in the midst of a five day lake effect storm which left the town buried under 102 inches of snow.
    1967-Three American astronauts, Virgil I. Grissom, Edward H. White and Roger B. Chaffee, died when fire suddenly broke out at 6:31pm in Apollo I during a launching simulation test, as it stood on the ground at Cape Kennedy, FL. First launching in the Apollo program had been scheduled for Feb 27, 1967. Technicians, along with the head technician, had tried to postpone the flight, worried about the fittings of an “O” ring and cold temperatures preventing a proper seal.
    1967 -- During a preflight test for what was to be the first manned Apollo mission, a fire claimed the lives of three U.S. astronauts; Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee. After the disaster, the mission was officially designated Apollo 1. The Apollo program was designed to land humans on the Moon and bring them safely back to Earth. Six of the missions (Apollo's 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, and 17) achieved this goal. Apollo's 7 and 9 were Earth orbiting missions to test the Command and Lunar Modules, and did not return lunar data. Apollo's 8 and 10 tested various components while orbiting the Moon, and returned photography of the lunar surface. Apollo 13 did not land on the Moon due to a malfunction, but also returned photographs. The six missions that landed on the Moon returned a wealth of scientific data and almost 400 kilograms of lunar samples. Experiments included soil mechanics, meteoroids, seismic, heat flow, lunar ranging, magnetic fields, and solar wind experiments.
    1967 - Residents of Chicago, IL, began to dig out from a storm which produced 23 inches of snow in 29 hours. The snow paralyzed the city and suburbs for days, and business losses were enormous.
    1967 - EVANS, DONALD W., JR. Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Specialist Fourth Class, U.S. Army, Company A, 2d Battalion, 12 Infantry, 4th Infantry Division. Place and date: Tri Tam, Republic of Vietnam, 27 January 1967. Entered service at: Covina, Calif. Born: 23 July 1943, Covina, Calif. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. He left his position of relative safety with his platoon which had not yet been committed to the battle to answer the calls for medical aid from the wounded men of another platoon which was heavily engaged with the enemy force. Dashing across 100 meters of open area through a withering hail of enemy fire and exploding grenades, he administered lifesaving treatment to 1 individual and continued to expose himself to the deadly enemy fire as he moved to treat each of the other wounded men and to offer them encouragement. Realizing that the wounds of 1 man required immediate attention, Sp4c. Evans dragged the injured soldier back across the dangerous fire-swept area, to a secure position from which he could be further evacuated Miraculously escaping the enemy fusillade, Sp4c. Evans returned to the forward location. As he continued the treatment of the wounded, he was struck by fragments from an enemy grenade. Despite his serious and painful injury he succeeded in evacuating another wounded comrade, rejoined his platoon as it was committed to battle and was soon treating other wounded soldiers. As he evacuated another wounded man across the fire covered field, he was severely wounded. Continuing to refuse medical attention and ignoring advice to remain behind, he managed with his waning strength to move yet another wounded comrade across the dangerous open area to safety. Disregarding his painful wounds and seriously weakened from profuse bleeding, he continued his lifesaving medical aid and was killed while treating another wounded comrade. Sp4c. Evan's extraordinary valor, dedication and indomitable spirit saved the lives of several of his fellow soldiers, served as an inspiration to the men of his company, were instrumental in the success of their mission, and reflect great credit upon himself and the Armed Forces of his country.
    1968 - Seven weeks after singer Otis Redding's death, his song "(Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay" was released. It hit #1 on March 16, 1968 staying at the top for a month. In 1960, Redding began his recording career with Johnny Jenkins and The Pinetoppers on Confederate Records. He sang duet with Carla Thomas and charted 11 hits. Redding, from Dawson, Georgia, died in a plane crash at Lake Monona near Madison, Wisconsin. The crash also killed four members of the Bar-Kays. "The Dock of the Bay", Redding's only number one song, was recorded three days before his death.
    1968 - The Bee Gees gave their first American concert as a group, earning $50,000 to play at the Anaheim Convention Center in California. The Beatles were paid the same amount to perform at the Hollywood Bowl a few years prior.
    1970-John Lennon writes, records and mixes "Instant Karma" during a nine hour session. Phil Spector produced the effort with George Harrison on guitar, Billy Preston on piano, Klaus Voormann on bass and Alan White on drums.
    1971-The first US postage stamp depicting a Jew was the three-cent bright red-violet postage stamp to commemorate the centenary of the birth of labor leaser Samuel Gompers, one of the founders of the American Federal of Labor. The stamps were printed by rotary press, 70 stamps to the pane.
    1971---Top Hits
Knock Three Times - Dawn
Lonely Days - Bee Gees
Stoney End - Barbra Streisand
Rose Garden - Lynn Anderson
    1972 - The New Seekers received a gold record for I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing on this date. The song was an effective campaign tool for Coca-Cola television commercials.
http://www.lyricsfreak.com/t/the-new-seekers/51115.htm
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00000E28F/
inktomi-musicasin-20/002-1241397-9042458
    1973- DVN Day. The US and North Vietnam, along with South Vietnam and the Viet Cong, signed the official "Agreement on ending the war and restoring peace in Vietnam." Signed at Paris, France, to take effect January 28 at 8 AM Saigon time, thus ending US combat role in a war that had involved American personnel stationed in Vietnam since defeated French forces had departed under terms in the Geneva Accords in 1954.
---Ends the longest war in US history. This is the same agreement as was drafted the previous October. 23,000 American troops still left in Vietnam. & announcement of (?) draft end. 3 million Americans are enlisted in the military
55,000 Americans have died in the Vietnam war
· Great Exp: 58,000 dead / 153,000 wounded / 35,000 widows & orphans created
· 275,000 Americans experience a death in their family
· 1.4 million saw someone in their family wounded
· 6.5 million served in armed forces, 1 million+ saw combat
Peace negotiations between the United States and North Vietnam had been ongoing since 1968. Richard Nixon was elected president that year, largely on the basis of his promise to find a way to "peace with honor" in Vietnam. Four years later, after the deaths of thousands more American servicemen, South Vietnamese soldiers, North Vietnamese soldiers, and Viet Cong fighters, the Paris Peace Accords were signed, and America's participation in the struggle in Vietnam came to a close. Most Americans were relieved simply to be out of the Vietnam quagmire. The war against communism in Southeast Asia cost over 50,000 U.S. lives and billions of dollars, in addition to countless soldiers wounded in the line of duty. At home, the war seriously fractured the consensus about the Cold War that had been established in the period after World War II--simple appeals to fighting the red threat of communism would no longer be sufficient to move the American nation to commit its prestige, manpower, and money to foreign conflicts. For Vietnam, the accords meant little. The cease-fire almost immediately collapsed, with recriminations and accusations flying from both sides. In 1975, the North Vietnamese launched a massive military offensive, crushed the South Vietnamese forces, and reunified Vietnam under communist rule. Contrary to popular belief, both the Korean War and Viet Nam War were bad for the economy, resulting in areas of high unemployment, high inflation, and a larger disparity in income between the wealthy and not wealthy. Richard Nixon inherited this from Lyndon Johnson who in turn took over from John F. Kennedy who inherited it from Dwight Eisenhower. Whether President Kennedy would have listened to the public, or not have been fooled by the military as history has shown Johnson was fooled, is debated by historians.( it cost Johnson the election, and he shortly thereafter, died a broken man ). It was the longest war in US history with more than one million combat deaths ( US: 47,366). Ironically, within weeks of the departure of American troops the war between North and South Vietnam resumed. For the Vietnamese that remained and did not flee to the United States, the war didn't end until April 30, 1975, when Saigon fell to Communist forces.
    1973-The UCLA Bruins led by center Bill Walton, beat Norte Dame, 82-63, to set an NCAA record with their 61 st consecutive victory. The Bruins broke the record set by the University of san Francisco in 1956 when Bill Russell played center for the Dons.
    1973- Stevie Wonder scores his second US number one with his twenty-third Top 40 hit, "Superstition".
    1976-“Laverne and Shirley” premiere on TV. This ABC sitcom was a spin-off of the popular TV show “Happy Days” that was also set during the 50's in Milwaukee, WI. Penny Marshal ( sister of series co-creator, Garry Marshall) starred as Laverne DeFazio with Cindy Williams as Shirley Feeney. The two friends worked at a brewery and shared a basement apartment. Also featured in the cast were Phil Foster as Laverne's father, Frank DeFazio: David L. Lander as co-worker Andrew ‘Squiggy” Sguiggman; Michael McKean as co-worker Lenny Kosnowski; Betty Garrett as landlady Edna Babis and Eddie Mekka as Carmine Ragusa, Shirley's sometime boyfriend.
    1979---Top Hits
Le Freak - Chic
Y.M.C.A. - Village People
Da Ya Think I'm Sexy? - Rod Stewart
Why Have You Left the One You Left Me For - Crystal Gayle
    1979- Rod Stewart's album "Blondes Have More Fun" became number one on the Billboard chart. Sales of the album were spurred by the single "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?," and the success represented a comeback for Stewart.
    1984-Center Wayne Gretzky of the Edmonton Oilers scored a goal against the New Jersey Devils to extend his streak of scoring either a goal or an assist to 51 games, an NHL record. The Great One was later was stopped by the Los Angeles Kings, a team he later played for, the next night.
    1987---Top Hits
At This Moment - Billy Vera & The Beaters
Open Your Heart - Madonna
Control - Janet Jackson
Cry Myself to Sleep - The Judds
    1989- Michael Jackson gave what was billed as his last concert performance in Los Angeles. The show marked the end of Jackson's "Bad" world tour, which had begun 16 months earlier in Japan. In the audience at the LA concert were such stars as Elizabeth Taylor, Jane Fonda, Phil Collins, Tiffany and members of Motley Crue. The "Bad" tour included 123 concerts in 15 countries, with a total attendance of 4.4-million and a box office gross of over 125-million dollars, both record figures. Jackson's "Bad" LP sold more than 20-million copies worldwide.
    1989 - The last half of January was bitterly cold over most of Alaska. Nearly thirty stations established all-time record low temperatures. On this date Tanana reported a low of -76 degrees. Daily highs of -66 degrees were reported at Chandalar Lake on the 22nd, and at Ambler on the 26th.
    1990 - Another in a series of cold fronts brought high winds to the northwestern U.S., and more heavy snow to some of the higher elevations. The series of vigorous cold fronts crossing the area between the 23rd and the 27th of the month produced up to 60 inches of snow in the Cascade Mountains of Washington State.
    1991-The New York Giants defeated the Buffalo Bills 20-19, to win Super Bowl XXV. Buffalo kicker Scott Norwood saw his 47-year field goal attempt sail wide with eight seconds to play. It is perhaps one of the most remembered losses in modern day football. Tim Russert of “Meet the Press” is still not over it.
http://images.nfl.com/history/images/0127.jpg
    1991- Whitney Houston performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the Super Bowl game - sort of. What the crowd heard was a pre-recorded version while Houston and an orchestra performed on the field. A blend of Houston's live vocals and the pre-recorded version, released as a single, became a hit because of patriotism sparked by the Persian Gulf War. 1992, country singer Wynonna Judd made her debut as a solo artist on the American Music Awards show on ABC TV. The Judds, the award-winning duo of Wynonna and her mother Naomi, broke up in 1991 because of Naomi's ill health.
    1992-Country singer Wynonna Judd made her debut as a solo artist on the American Music Awards show on ABC TV. The Judds, the award-winning duo of Wynonna and her mother Naomi, broke up in 1991 because of Naomi's ill health.
    1993-Warner Brothers announced it was releasing Ice-T from his recording contract. The company cited "creative differences" for the decision, which followed the previous year's controversy over Ice-T's "Cop Killer." Police and others said the track advocated the killing of police. Several of Ice-T's concerts had to be cancelled when off-duty police refused to provide security for the shows. Ironically he went from a regular detective on “Homicide,” Baltimore, MD., to a key detective on “Law and Order, “ Criminal Intent, New York City.
    1993- Fans at a Clovis, New Mexico club, expecting to see a group called Yukon Jack, got a shock when Garth Brooks and his band walked on stage. The surprise performance was arranged by Brooks's booking agent - a longtime friend of the club's owner.
    1994 - a frigid arctic air was in place over New England and New York as a massive 1052 millibar high pressure provided ideal radiational cooling. Crown Point, NY dipped to 48 degrees below zero and Shoreham, VT shivered with 46 degrees below zero, Burlington, VT broke its old record daily low by 9 degrees with a reading of 29 degrees below zero and Caribou, ME set a record low for the third day in a row with a temperature of 23 degrees below zero
    1997-National Semiconductor agreed to sell its Fairchild Semiconductor business to the unit's management. The separation of the two companies would allow National Semi to focus on expensive custom chips instead of high-volume, low-cost chips, which Fairchild specialized in.
    1997- Ottawa native Alanis Morissette's "Jagged Little Pill" was named favorite album at the American Music Awards in Los Angeles. Presenter Paul Abdul accepted the award for Morissette, who was on vacation in India. Morissette was also picked as favorite female artist. Timmins, Ontario, native Shania Twain captured the trophy for best female country artist.
    1998 - The Spice Girls' "Girl Power: Live in Istanbul" video was released by Virgin Music Video, and was later certified platinum.
    2005 - Month-to-date snowfall at Boston Logan International Airport totaled 43.1 inches, making January the snowiest month on record.

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too:
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream -- and not make dreams your master;
If you can think -- and not make thoughts your aim,
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same:
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings,
And never breathe a word about your loss:
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings -- nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much:
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And -- which is more -- you'll be a Man, my son!

Rudyard Kipling

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