1967 had been a good year for KLM, in Michigan. Revenue was at an all time high; we had a new office, and added an additional salesman. It also had some bitter memories: the murder of Dick Robinson and his family and the suicide of Joe Scolara. How fragile and uncertain life can be.
During the next few years KLM continued to do well. Our office grew to a total of nine people; we had an amazing number of charter flights for the Dutch Immigrant Society, Chrysler Corp, and numerous other organizations. I made three more trips to Europe and a couple of trips to Curacao and Aruba in connection with Chandris Cruise Lines who were working with KLM on Caribbean cruises out of Curacao. Actually, that was the birth of the cruise industry as we know it today. Aside from the transatlantic ships from New York to Europe, there were no cruises like we know them now.
Chandris came to KLM with the idea to station a ship in Curacao. KLM who flew scheduled flights to Curacao could offer a package tour that would combine round trip air via KLM and a six night cruise on Chandris. I don't recall the name of the ship, but it carried several hundred passengers. Later on, they added a second ship that had been the private yacht of the Aga Kahn. It could carry about 40 people. I thought it would be great if Chandris, as part of its marketing plan, would give me about ten cabins and I would offer the District Sales Managers of our domestic airlines in Detroit a complimentary cruise for them and their wives. KLM would grant them passes to Curacao, and Chandris would offer the cruise. Chandris jumped at the idea and gave me ten complimentary double cabins, not on their larger ship but on the small, former private yacht.
I wish I had seen the Aga Kahn's yacht before I offered a cruise to my domestic airline friends. When we got to Curacao and boarded the ship we found the cabins very small, with upper and lower births. So small, that one person had to step outside the cabin while the other got dressed. The toilets and showers were very tiny. The dining room and small casino along with an equally small library took up the rest of the ship. Chandris had done a good job of refurbishing, but it was more suited for Greek Island cruising for students rather than the American market.
We cruised several islands and regardless of the ship's size, everyone was having a great time. We were enroute to Caracas which was the last stop before returning to Curacao, when the ship encountered engine problems and we lost the air conditioning. Then, on top of that the toilets started to back up and the odor was not pleasant. We limped into Caracas about 8 hours late and the Captain informed us that the ship would have to stay in Caracas for repairs. Chandris provided hotel rooms and our KLM office in Curacao made arrangements with Venezuelan Airlines to provide Complimentary tickets back to Curacao.
Helen, who had worked in the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, took us on a short walking tour of the city. None of us enjoyed seeing armed military men on almost every corner. Helen said that this was very common in Caracas as they were there to stop any uprising against the government; I guess that's Parr for foreign dictatorships?
The old yacht was taken out of service and not used again. Incidentally, Chandris still exists today; it is a much larger cruise line that now sails under the name of "Celebrity Cruises" you may have seen their ships with the large X on the funnel. They have eight luxury ships; the largest are the Eclipse, the Equinox and the Solstice which carries over 3,000 passengers, a far cry from the Aga Kahn's old yacht.
On a more personal basis, Helen accompanied one of my European groups through Europe, Karen went on a student tour in Europe and Kathy started Michigan State College. Helen decided that she wanted to move to a more "country like" setting, away from Detroit. Because we had a log cabin on Island Lake, just outside Rose City, she thought that we should build a year round home up there. It was too far for me to commute, so I bought a small house in Detroit and commuted up to the lake on Friday night, and back to Detroit on Sunday night. Not much of a family life, but it was good for the children.
Building the home on Island Lake was not the easy job it should have been. We had a local contractor who lived at the lake. He was a disaster. Living in St. Clair Shores and building a home 200 miles away left our contractor on his own, and he took advantage of it. Delay after delay blamed on rain or some other excuse. Finally, I drove up to the lake and confronted the contractor. When we met in his small office I accused him of lying about weather delays and said that I wanted to know what was going on. In an unbelievable move, he opened his desk drawer and put a revolver on his desk. I asked him what he expected to do with a gun, and he said he did not intend to let me assault him.
The man was crazy; yes, I was angry, but in no way did I threaten him. I told him that the house had to be finished in 30 days or I would sue him. He had been paid in full and I expected him to complete the house. He did complete it and then declared bankruptcy. He had large unpaid bills for supplies at the local lumber company and they took him to court. I was called to testify that I had paid him for the lumber. He was found guilty of misappropriating funds and was sentenced to a prison term. In spite of all the problems, it was a very nice house.
It was not long after that, when I was summoned to New York by KLM and offered the position of Charter Sales Manager for North America. It would require a move to the New York office, and of course I would have to go through additional training in Amsterdam where the world wide aircraft scheduling was all done. I told them I was flattered by their offer but I would need a few days to consider the offer. Changes, Changes… It would be a big promotion.
