Melvin Dummar
Encyclopedia
Melvin Earl Dummar is a Utah
man who earned national attention
when he claimed to have saved reclusive business tycoon Howard Hughes
in a Nevada
desert in 1967, and to have been awarded part of Hughes' vast estate. Dummar's story was adapted into the Academy Award winning film Melvin and Howard
, in which he was portrayed by Paul Le Mat
. As of 2008, Dummar lives in Brigham City, Utah
with his wife Bonnie.
Dummar's claims resulted in a series of court battles which have all ruled against Dummar. A Las Vegas jury determined in 1978 that the will, leaving Dummar $156 million, was a forgery
.
service station owner, Dummar claimed to have discovered a disheveled and lost man lying on the side of a stretch of U.S. Highway 95 about 150 miles (241.4 km) north of Las Vegas, Nevada
, near Lida Junction. Hughes asked Dummar to take him to the Sands Hotel
in Las Vegas. Dummar claimed that only in the final minutes of their encounter did Hughes reveal his identity.
headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Though purportedly written by Hughes in 1968, the will had many strange discrepancies. It named Noah Dietrich
as an executor, despite the fact that Dietrich had left Hughes' employ on bad terms in the late '50s. The will left approximately $156,000,000 to the LDS Church and although Hughes had employed many LDS workers, he had never been a member of that church. The will left money to his two ex-wives, Ella Rice and Jean Peters
, even though both women had alimony settlements that barred claims on Hughes' estate. The will was rife with misspellings, including misspelling the name of Hughes' cousin. It called Hughes' famous flying boat, the Hughes H-4 Hercules
, the "spruce goose"—a derisive nickname that Hughes had always despised. Most oddly, the will left one "Melvin DuMar" of Gabbs, Nevada
one-sixteenth of Hughes's estate.
Investigation revealed that Dummar's wife Bonnie Dummar had worked for a magazine called Millionaire that was distributed to wealthy Americans, and that her job had allowed her access to Hughes' memos and Hughes' signature. However, Bonnie Dummar denied forging the will.
The document, which became known as the "Mormon Will", was ruled a forgery
by a Nevada jury in June 1978. Dummar received no portion of Hughes' estate, but no criminal charges were filed against him or his wife.
agent Gary Magnesen claimed to have found new evidence supporting Dummar's story. Magnesen stated that Hughes's closest employees remembered him entering the Sands early one morning in December 1967 and stating that he had been picked up by Dummar in the desert. Furthermore, Hughes had purchased interests in mines located near the area where Dummar said he found him, and had frequented a brothel
near where Dummar said he'd first encountered Hughes. Magnesen documented his findings in his 2005 book, The Investigation: A Former FBI Agent Uncovers the Truth Behind Howard Hughes, Melvin Dummar, and the Most Contested Will in American History.
for Utah against William Lummis, the primary beneficiary of the Hughes estate, and Frank Gay, the former chief operating officer of a number of Hughes entities, claiming that the two had conspired to defraud Dummar out of his rightful share of the Hughes estate by presenting perjured testimony and concealing evidence in the 1978 trial. Dummar's complaint demanded the $156 million which he would have received from the estate, plus punitive damages and interest.
On January 9, 2007, Judge Bruce Jenkins of Federal District Court dismissed Dummar's lawsuit, stating that Dummar's claims had been “fully and fairly litigated” in Las Vegas in 1978, when a jury decided the purported will was invalid.
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
man who earned national attention
when he claimed to have saved reclusive business tycoon Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
in a Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
desert in 1967, and to have been awarded part of Hughes' vast estate. Dummar's story was adapted into the Academy Award winning film Melvin and Howard
Melvin and Howard
Melvin and Howard is a 1980 American comedy-drama film directed by Jonathan Demme. The screenplay by Bo Goldman was inspired by real-life Utah service station owner Melvin Dummar, who was listed as the beneficiary of USD$156 million in a will allegedly handwritten by Howard Hughes that was...
, in which he was portrayed by Paul Le Mat
Paul Le Mat
Paul Le Mat is an American actor who first came to prominence in the 1973 film American Graffiti, which won him the Golden Globe Award for New Star Of The Year - Actor.-Life:...
. As of 2008, Dummar lives in Brigham City, Utah
Brigham City, Utah
Brigham City is a city in Box Elder County, Utah, United States. The population was 17,899 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Box Elder County. It lies on the western slope of the Wellsville Mountains, a branch of the Wasatch Range at the western terminus of Box Elder Canyon...
with his wife Bonnie.
Dummar's claims resulted in a series of court battles which have all ruled against Dummar. A Las Vegas jury determined in 1978 that the will, leaving Dummar $156 million, was a forgery
Forgery
Forgery is the process of making, adapting, or imitating objects, statistics, or documents with the intent to deceive. Copies, studio replicas, and reproductions are not considered forgeries, though they may later become forgeries through knowing and willful misrepresentations. Forging money or...
.
Dummar's purported meeting with Hughes
While working as a Willard, UtahWillard, Utah
Willard is a city in Box Elder County, Utah, United States. The population was 1,772 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Willard is located at ....
service station owner, Dummar claimed to have discovered a disheveled and lost man lying on the side of a stretch of U.S. Highway 95 about 150 miles (241.4 km) north of Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
, near Lida Junction. Hughes asked Dummar to take him to the Sands Hotel
Sands Hotel
The Sands Hotel was a historic Las Vegas Strip hotel/casino that operated from December 15, 1952 to June 30, 1996. Designed by architect Wayne McAllister, the Sands was the seventh resort that opened on the Strip....
in Las Vegas. Dummar claimed that only in the final minutes of their encounter did Hughes reveal his identity.
The "Mormon Will"
After Hughes's death in April 1976, a handwritten will was discovered in the Salt Lake City, UtahSalt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Though purportedly written by Hughes in 1968, the will had many strange discrepancies. It named Noah Dietrich
Noah Dietrich
Noah Dietrich was an American business executive, who acted as Chief Executive Officer of the Howard Hughes empire from 1925 until 1957, when, according to his own memoir, he left the Hughes operation over a dispute involving putting more of his income on a capital gains basis. The manuscript of...
as an executor, despite the fact that Dietrich had left Hughes' employ on bad terms in the late '50s. The will left approximately $156,000,000 to the LDS Church and although Hughes had employed many LDS workers, he had never been a member of that church. The will left money to his two ex-wives, Ella Rice and Jean Peters
Jean Peters
Jean Peters was an American actress, known as a star of 20th Century Fox in the late 1940s and early 1950s and as the second wife of Howard Hughes...
, even though both women had alimony settlements that barred claims on Hughes' estate. The will was rife with misspellings, including misspelling the name of Hughes' cousin. It called Hughes' famous flying boat, the Hughes H-4 Hercules
Hughes H-4 Hercules
The Hughes H-4 Hercules is a prototype heavy transport aircraft designed and built by the Hughes Aircraft company. The aircraft made its only flight on November 2, 1947 and the project was never advanced beyond the single example produced...
, the "spruce goose"—a derisive nickname that Hughes had always despised. Most oddly, the will left one "Melvin DuMar" of Gabbs, Nevada
Gabbs, Nevada
Gabbs is an unincorporated community in Nye County, Nevada, United States. The population was 318 at the 2000 census, at which time it was a city. Since then, it has been dis-incorporated, effective May 8, 2001.-History:...
one-sixteenth of Hughes's estate.
Text of the "Mormon Will"
The text of the handwritten document known as the "Mormon Will":- Last Will and Testament
- I, Howard R. Hughes, being of sound mind and disposing mind and memory, not acting under duress, fraud or the undue influence of any person whomever, and being a resident of Las Vegas, NevadaLas Vegas, NevadaLas Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
, declare that this is to be my last will and revolt [sic] all other wills previously made by me - - After my death, my estate is to be devided [sic] as follows -
- First: one-forth [sic] of all my assets to go to Hughes Medical Institute of MiamiHoward Hughes Medical InstituteHoward Hughes Medical Institute is a United States non-profit medical research organization based in Chevy Chase, Maryland. It was founded by the American businessman Howard Hughes in 1953. It is one of the largest private funding organizations for biological and medical research in the United...
- - Second: one-eight [sic] of assets to be devided [sic] among the University of TexasUniversity of Texas at AustinThe University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
- Rice Institute of Technology of HoustonRice UniversityWilliam Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University or Rice, is a private research university located on a heavily wooded campus in Houston, Texas, United States...
- the University of NevadaUniversity of Nevada, RenoThe University of Nevada, Reno , is a teaching and research university established in 1874 and located in Reno, Nevada, USA...
- and the University of CalifUniversity of CaliforniaThe University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
. - Third: one-sixteenth to Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - David O. McKayDavid O. McKayDavid Oman McKay was the ninth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , serving from 1951 until his death. Ordained an apostle and member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1906, McKay was a general authority for nearly 64 years, longer than anyone else in LDS Church...
- Pre. - Forth [sic]: one-sixteenth to establish a home for Orphan Cildren [sic] -
- Fifth: one-sixteenth of assets to go to Boy Scouts of AmericaBoy Scouts of AmericaThe Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
. - Sixth: one-sixteenth to be devided [sic] among Jean PetersJean PetersJean Peters was an American actress, known as a star of 20th Century Fox in the late 1940s and early 1950s and as the second wife of Howard Hughes...
of Los Angeles and Ella Rice of Houston - - Seventh: one-sixteenth of assets to William R. Lommis [sic] of Houston, Texas -
- Eighth: one-sixteenth to go to Melvin DuMar [sic] of Gabbs, Nevada -
- Ninth: one-sixteenth to be devided [sic] among [sic] my personal aids [sic] at the time of my death -
- Tenth: one-sixteenth to be used as school scholarship fund for entire country - the spruce goose is to be given to the City of Long Beach, CalifLong Beach, CaliforniaLong Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
. - The remainder of my estate is to be devided [sic] among the key men of the company's [sic] I own at the time of my death.
- I appoint Noah DietrichNoah DietrichNoah Dietrich was an American business executive, who acted as Chief Executive Officer of the Howard Hughes empire from 1925 until 1957, when, according to his own memoir, he left the Hughes operation over a dispute involving putting more of his income on a capital gains basis. The manuscript of...
as the executer [sic] of this will - - Signed the 19 [sic] day of March 1968
- Howard R. Hughes
1978 Probate trial of the "Mormon Will"
Dummar (whose inheritance would have been $156 million) originally claimed that he knew nothing about the will and told his story of picking up Hughes by the side of the road. Afterwards, when authorities discovered Dummar's fingerprint on the envelope, he said that a well-dressed man had left the will in a sealed envelope at Dummar's service station. An enclosed note, Dummar claimed, instructed him to deliver the will to the headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which had also been left 1/16 of the estate.Investigation revealed that Dummar's wife Bonnie Dummar had worked for a magazine called Millionaire that was distributed to wealthy Americans, and that her job had allowed her access to Hughes' memos and Hughes' signature. However, Bonnie Dummar denied forging the will.
The document, which became known as the "Mormon Will", was ruled a forgery
Forgery
Forgery is the process of making, adapting, or imitating objects, statistics, or documents with the intent to deceive. Copies, studio replicas, and reproductions are not considered forgeries, though they may later become forgeries through knowing and willful misrepresentations. Forging money or...
by a Nevada jury in June 1978. Dummar received no portion of Hughes' estate, but no criminal charges were filed against him or his wife.
2005 investigation by FBI agent Gary Magnesen
In early 2005, retired FBIFederal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
agent Gary Magnesen claimed to have found new evidence supporting Dummar's story. Magnesen stated that Hughes's closest employees remembered him entering the Sands early one morning in December 1967 and stating that he had been picked up by Dummar in the desert. Furthermore, Hughes had purchased interests in mines located near the area where Dummar said he found him, and had frequented a brothel
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
near where Dummar said he'd first encountered Hughes. Magnesen documented his findings in his 2005 book, The Investigation: A Former FBI Agent Uncovers the Truth Behind Howard Hughes, Melvin Dummar, and the Most Contested Will in American History.
2006 suit against Lummis and Gay
On June 12, 2006, Dummar filed suit in the United States district courtUnited States district court
The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...
for Utah against William Lummis, the primary beneficiary of the Hughes estate, and Frank Gay, the former chief operating officer of a number of Hughes entities, claiming that the two had conspired to defraud Dummar out of his rightful share of the Hughes estate by presenting perjured testimony and concealing evidence in the 1978 trial. Dummar's complaint demanded the $156 million which he would have received from the estate, plus punitive damages and interest.
On January 9, 2007, Judge Bruce Jenkins of Federal District Court dismissed Dummar's lawsuit, stating that Dummar's claims had been “fully and fairly litigated” in Las Vegas in 1978, when a jury decided the purported will was invalid.
External links
- New Evidence
- Dummar interview
- Melvin and Howard at the Internet Movie Database
- Interview with Chicago Public Media