Communicating on Television - The Press Conference

LOOKING FOR LEE ALYN ABRAMSON

Advanced Communication Series

Communicating on Television

Project 4: The Press Conference

Opening statement is to be four minutes in length. Questions are eight minutes. The timer will please time both separately.

Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Paul Abramson. On behalf of my brother and I, I would like to thank you for taking the time to assist us on a most pressing matter. We are looking for our father. His name is Lee Alyn Abramson. He is 77 years old. Alyn is spelled A L Y N. He was born to Joseph and Edna Abramson and raised in Los Angeles, California.

The last time I saw him in person was at his father’s funeral approximately three years ago. The last time I spoke to him was in the early months of 2009. His e-mail address had been discontinued as was his land-line telephone number. I reached him through a cellular phone number my brother, Bill, had. As we spoke on the phone, my father informed me that he sold his El Segundo condominium and was living with somebody in Las Vegas. He cut the conversation short by telling me he was busy watching television and would call me back. This was odd behavior for my father. I did not have an opportunity to get a mailing address from him.

Months passed, and I had received no communication from him. The cellular phone number I used to call him that last time was disconnected. He knows my contact information. He knows my brother’s contact information. To our knowledge, no attempts have been made to contact either of us.

I did Google searches for Lee Alyn Abramson and found no up-to-date matches. He owns unimproved land in Nevada, but there is no record of him residing in that state. A property records search and a deed confirmed that his El Segundo condominium was indeed sold in December of 2008.

On April 5, 2009, I e-mailed my Cousin, Marc Futterman, who is the executor of our grandfather’s estate, and expressed my concerns. He informed me that my father had “rejected his assistance in favor of some con artists who were showing him a good time with his money.” He had no knowledge of his plans to relocate. Marc also wanted to contact him in order to send him tax information and put a close to their “prior business relationship.”

My father was always careful with his money. He is an emotional man and very vulnerable.

My parents divorced when I was 17. My brother is three years younger than me. My older sister is deceased. Child support stopped being an issue when my brother came of age. My father soon re-married and had a new instant family.

I again wrote to Marc and told him what I knew. My father’s wife, Pilar, was ill. Her memory was gone and she moved to Stockton, California to be cared for by her children. My father, tired and drained from trekking back and forth, moved to Stockton to be with her. He was unhappy there and soon decided to make the move to Las Vegas. He was staying with somebody. I knew not who.

I did not know about the con artists and asked Marc for more information.

Marc’s second response is as follows:

“He had been on a ride with one of Pilar’s nieces (as I recall it was) who moved into his condo with her boyfriend, an ex convict. They were living in his condo rent free and he was buying them stuff left and right. He booted them out at one point then let them back.

“In the meantime, some other woman wanted to marry him. I do not remember her name. She had a daughter that he was also taking care of. I warned him about taking care of five families: Pilar and her daughter, the woman who wanted to marry him, her daughter, and Pilar’s niece’s boyfriend. Your dad loved all the attention he was getting, and the sex which unfortunately he graphically described to me with respect to the woman who wanted to marry him. I think the daughter was also involved. It was all rather disgusting and self-evident that he was being conned but he couldn’t see it instead thriving on being ‘loved’.

“He insisted that he take his money and spend it how he liked, with whom he liked. He threatened me a couple of times, which had little impact on me as I’d already decided to separate from him. I’m sorry I don’t have more to tell you or that could help. I agree he is very vulnerable and I too hope that he is ok.”

Marc suggested that I hire a private investigator. This is something I am looking into. My mother suggested my brother and I write to my father care of an El Segundo-based post office box address my brother had obtained. She felt that if we send letters via registered mail, it would be forwarded and somebody would have to sign for it. I doubt this will bear fruit as enough time has passed and the United States Postal Service does not reveal forwarding addresses except to process servers and federal agents.

I will now open the floor to questions and suggestions. Bear in mind that this conference will be posted and broadcast on the Internet.