[ door creaks ] [ wind howls ] [ thunder rumbles ] [ bird caws ] im jamie colby on the outskirts of chicago on my way to meet a guy whose strange inheritance takes us back to a time when american cars rule the road, america herself leads the free world, and a workingclass kid from the midwest just dreams of making it home. My name is Matt Litavsky. My father meant the world to me, and he left me a very special car that meant the world to him. He chose me to preserve it, but there came a time when i had to let it go. Hi, matt. Im jamie. Hi, jamie. Its nice to meet you. I know i came here to see your inheritance, this magnificent car, but when were done, you got to take me for a ride in this. All right. Well see about that. Im on my best behavior. Okay. To appreciate the car, says matt, you first need to know about his dad and why his 1967 corvette meant so much to him. Keith litavsky is born in lisle, illinois, in 1944. World war ii is drawing to a close. The cold war is about to begin.
Im jamie colby. And today, im in tulsa, oklahoma. Im here to meet the son of a remarkably successful businessman and epic hoarder. File this under 80 years of grit and true metal and 40 acres of scrap metal. My name is john hemphill. In february 2016, my father passed away. He left me a Thriving Company thats a testament to his business acumen. He also left me a 3 millionpound headache that says a lot about my dad, too. I meet john in the lobby of Hemphill Corporation. And this was your dad. Yeah, this is dad. He started the business back in the 50s. And im running it now. Come on. Ill show you. As john drives me around the company, i come to understand the jekyll and hyde nature of his strange inheritance. These look like cell towers. Yeah, these are guide towers for wireless communication. And thats our Main Business now. But his dad built that business while indulging his industrialstrength urge for collecting. Big stuff iron, scrap metal, machinery. Things you cant squirrel away in
[ bird caws ] im jamie colby, heading toward the garden state parkway. Im meeting a couple of jersey boys who had an old painting in the basement. Could it really be a rembrandt . Think youre heard a stranger inheritance story . Forget about it im ned landau. Neither i, nor my brothers, roger, and steven, had any idea that our mother had left us something so valuable. Neither did the auction guy up the highway. But people around the world were watching. Hi. How are you guys . Im jamie. Hi, jamie. E to new jersey. Thanks for coming out on such a rainy day. Ned, steven, and roger landau grew up here in north jersey, just outside of new york city. Two parents, three boys, on a street where theres lots of other kids. Our father had a small chemical company. They made coatings and industrial finishes. Three boys cant be easy for your mom. What was she like . She was an expert yoga professional, and this was well before yoga was a thing. My mother was almost like a flower child. Lyla landau
i m jamie colby. and today i am cruising ocean side in beautiful la jolla, california, just north of san diego. i m on my way to meet an heir whose strange inheritance stunned the coin-collecting world, then led to a showdown with uncle sam. my name is randy lawrence. i inherited a baggie of coins from my father, who worked at the denver mint. imagine a shiny penny. but instead of being copper-colored, it s silver. that was one of the coins my dad left me. and it turned my life upside down. hi, randy. i m jamie. hello. nice to meet you. so great to meet you, too. and i heard that your inheritance came in a small plastic bag? it did. randy shows me in, sits me down, and hands me a baggie full of coins. well, they can t be very valuable, i guess, if they re still sitting here in a ziploc. well, those particular ones aren t necessarily. but there was one in that bag that was quite valuable. where is it? can i see it? well, i don t have it. huh? yeah, ther
Im jamie colby. And today i am cruising ocean side in beautiful la jolla, california, just north of san diego. Im on my way to meet an heir whose strange inheritance stunned the coincollecting world, then led to a showdown with uncle sam. My name is Randy Lawrence. I inherited a baggie of coins from my father, who worked at the denver mint. Imagine a shiny penny. But instead of being coppercolored, its silver. That was one of the coins my dad left me. And it turned my life upside down. Hi, randy. Im jamie. Hello. Nice to meet you. So great to meet you, too. And i heard that your inheritance came in a small plastic bag . It did. Randy shows me in, sits me down, and hands me a baggie full of coins. Well, they cant be very valuable, i guess, if theyre still sitting here in a ziploc. Well, those particular ones arent necessarily. But there was one in that bag that was quite valuable. Where is it . Can i see it . Well, i dont have it. Huh . Yeah, theres a little bit of a story. Its the stor