The Charlotte Observer du lieu suivant : Charlotte, North Carolina • 1

The Dinner Party Expert Hostess Shows You How To Pull It Off FoodilD f41 WI Charlotte Football Forfeits Gill: Lessons Of A Hornets Rookie SportsIC li Sports1C arione bserver Metro Final (6) Wednesday November 28 1990 A 35 Cents MVP" C(711 Wealthy Couple's Divorce Turns Bitter Speedway Owner Ex-Wife Battle Over At Least $50 Million In Holdings By RICKI MORELL And GARY WRIGHT KY i i Staff Writers '1 1 4'17 i i'1 toy 4' i' 0" 7 I' I 'IT Iv 4 7 '1 'i 4'- '5 It 4 tt 4: 1 '4 '4' N4--' 40-111- 0 kk'' Tor11-411H61 106s) 4141-00 ro It 1 4' MP 4' ilt41tssak -tr -Ay to 1 vsli I' 11 '4-: 'ft ittlioo 2 -4t 0 I o4t4-00 40 0 44: 7 ''''t I 10 i I lo5 '411: 40 44" 11404k '4 IIrlir Hopearto111 Amo i)ny 1 1010 i $04' 4444P 4'4f 0: ttl 4 4': ''S' '''''''S'' Now two years later unfolding daily in Mecklenburg District Court is their final bitter fight over money With more than $50 million at stake it's perhaps North Carolina's biggest trial over the division of marital property And with more than 500 exhibits and 3000 pages of expert reports It also could be Mecklenburg's biggest civil case At the center of the dispute are these questions: How much is one of Charlotte's wealthiest men really worth? And how much of it will Bonnie Smith get? "It's very stressful" Bonnie Smith 43 said Tuesday during a recess as she smoked a cigarette and gazed out the floor-to-ceiling courthouse windows During the days hearing wearing a blueand-white suit she toyed with the cap of a pen Her eyes never met those of her ex-husband though he sat about 10 feet away Later asked if relations were still amicable she said: "I don't know how to answer that I think it's down really to the business of getting a divorce" Bruton Smith 63 is an auto-racing kingpin who just bought Atlanta Motor Speedway He's a former majority owner of NC Federal Savings Loan and gurrently owns controlling interest in Lone Star Ford in Dallas and the sprawling Town and Country Ford complex on East Independence Boulevard Wearing a blue suit and red tie he brushed See WEALTHY Page 10A Charlotte Motor Speedway owner Bruton Smith met Bonnie Harris when he was an Illinois car dealer and she a customer for a new 1-Bird His charm sold her more than a car In their 16 years of marriage Bruton the stocky entrepreneur with a wide grin and Bonnie the beautiful dark-haired woman 20 years his junior built a fairy-tale life around race cars and socialite balls The fairy tale turned scandal in July 1988 when the hostess of the World 600 Children Charity's Ball filed for divorce complete with allegations of butcher-knife threats and her husband countersued with claims of adultery File Bruton and Bonnie Smith in May 1982 Thatcher's Man ffs Winner Witnesses Urge Caution On Kuwait Opponents Let' John Major Take Top British Post By DAVID HESS and MARK THOMPSON Observer Washington Bureau WASHINGTON Even as the United Nations appeared to inch closer Tuesday to a green light for war in the Mideast Congress heard pleas for caution and patience as it opened hearings on the critical decisions facing President Bush in the weeks ahead And House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt said Tuesday night he would oppose a congressional resolution authorizing the early use of force to throw Iraq out of Kuwait The Missouri Democrat told The Associated Press that he would outline his views further in a speech today spoke after some Senate Democrats questioned the need for offensive action right away Tuesday the Soviet UN ambassador Yu li Vorontsov said his country and the United States had agreed on a Jan 15 deadline for Iraq to peacefully leave Kuwait The Security Council begins debate Thursday on a US-backed resolution permitting the use of force to oust Iraq from Kuwait Early today Foreign Minister Qian Qichen said China would not vote for the resolution but he refused to say whether China would veto it or abstain As one of the five permanent Security Council members China has veto power over any resolution With momentum building for a possibly costly armed clash the Senate Armed Services Committee and House Banking Committee opened hearings on the military and economic implications of war Sen Sam Nunn D-Ga chairman of the Senate committee said the "question is not whether military action is justified It is The question is whether See GIVE Page 8A 4 lir- i- 4 Ics'7 1 1 d'-''' 't :4 31-" 'I -i Fr" s- "A'' ''4: i4 il C'' 7s3 1' '1 ''''l :1 i iNi 7' j' f' '41'1: 1 P' ''''V'-'' yi -'j- 'r 7 i 4 1'i'A ":::11 --A 'r 7 404-40414 tV i '4 7' 21 -1 :0 -i- 4 Ir-: 0t1 ti 7k Ily ii :11 11: 1-- '494' ''k l'II'''k'! i''''- i 44f '4csi: 'i i ri 1 '1 k4''''' 0- li vt If iiri 01' 4' )1 4 )1 2 4 By MATTHEW VITA Cox News Service LONDON John Major the man Margaret Thatcher tapped as her successor will be installed as Britain's prime minister today after his election as leader of the ruling Conservative Party Major fell two votes short of a majority in the party leadership election Tuesday but was named the winner when his two competitors withdrew Major was a political unknown a short time ago and his meteoric rise within the party in many ways epitomized the new opportunities of the Thatcher era At 47 he will be the youngest British prime minister this century This morning Thatcher will be driven to Buckingham Palace to submit her resignation to Queen Elizabeth II after 1112 years in power Forty-five minutes later Major will arrive and will be asked by the monarch to form the next government Thatcher actively campaigned for her chancellor of the exchequer or treasury chief as the man best qualified to continue her conservative agenda and Major's victory will be seen as something of a vindication five days after she was forced to resign Major has described himself as conservative on economic issues but liberal on social issues That blend seemed to attract many conservative members of Parliament who felt Thatcher was increasingly perceived by voters as too uncaring in her attitude toward less well-off members of society Major has expressed his full support for Britain's policy in the Persian Gulf where it is the United States' prime ally against Iraq Major said his first task was to unite the Conservative Party after a bitter leadership struggle and to go on to "win the next general election" which must be called by mid-I 992 In Tuesday's voting among the 372 Conservative members of Parliament Major received 185 votes two fewer than the simple majority required for election Former Defense Secretary Michael Heseltine whose initial challenge led to Thatcher's ouster had 131 votes Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd had 56 Neil Kinnock leader of the opposition Labor Party attacked Major as "a Thatcherite that is how he sought election and that is how he got election" "John Major is the no-change no-majority prime minister and he has none of the policies our country needs for the future" said Kinnock who repeated his call for a general election Teacher Raises At Risk In NC Budget Crisis By GREG TREVOR Raleigh Bureau RALEIGH A proposed 6 pay raise for teachers next year is in serious jeopardy because of the state's worsening budget crisis budget officials say "That's a fair assessment I honestly don't think any pay increase is realistic" said CC Cameron Gov Jim Martin's chief budget officer during a break in Tuesday's meeting of the governor's Advisory Budget Commission Martin would not go that far But after the meeting he said the state's budget crunch "shows the difficulty of providing a salary increase in this next fiscal year' Martin and his advisers told the commission a bipartisan group of legislators and business leaders that they now project a shortfall of roughly billion in the state's 1991-92 budget which takes effect See TEACHERS' Page 7A Associated Press Britain's next prime minister John Major waves Tuesday from the steps of 11 Downing St his official London residence as chancellor of the exchequer or treasury chief Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher will resign today and Major will take her position I Who is John Major? Page 11A Hugo Altered Utilities' Course Eastern Alive History's Whodunits: Mysteries Baffle Delight Natural Gas Gained After Storm Turned The Lights Off Eastern Airlines has been granted $135 million to keep flying Page 9C Today's Weather Variably cloudy with a 30 chance of showers Next Page Utilities' Growth Compared Fear and ifiCOntletlienCe caused by Hurricane Hugo may 40 a reason for the recent increase In Conversion of heating cooking gnd water heating from electdc power to natural gas in the Caro final! IIIIIU Utilities' Growth Compared CQ Fear and inCOnVellienCe caused by Hurricane DUKEPOINER lHugo may be a reason for the recent increase l'arirt7 It ConverslOn Of heating cooking gnd Water Rytc heating electric power to natural gas in FA the Carolinas 'a 1111111 1 Coming Thursday An Avery County tree is being chopped down today for the White House Christmas tree Increase In Customers' (Foe 1988-89 In percent T11 Increann In customers INSIDE By ED MARTIN Staff Writer A year after Hurricane Hugo left much of the Carolinas dark and cold its legacy is stoking competitive fires between rival utilities Piedmont Natural Gas Co Inc and Duke Power Co The storm "put fear into North and South Carolina" and has prompted thousands of customers to convert from electricity to natural gas for heating cooking and hot water stock analyst Guy Chance says in a report on Piedmont by Scott Stringfellow Investment Corp Duke Power concedes Piedmont is making inroads "Piedmont Natural Gas is growing 312 times faster than Duke Power" Bill Grigg Duke customer group executive vice president warns in the company publication Duke Power News "Where natural gas is available See PIEDMONT Page 7A Walter Lord wonders what Francis Scott Key saw the morning he wrote "The Star-Spangled Banner" during the War of 1812 Key who observed the British bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor from 8 miles away said he composed the lyrics at dawn when the flag assured him the attack was repelled That was unlikely historian Lord suggests The fort's regular flag might have been visible from 8 miles but the night's rain would have forced use of a smaller "storm flag" Lord argues it's more likely Key saw an ensign flag raised by the victorious Americans at around 9 am not dawn Historian Charles O'Neill wonders if the ill-fated space shuttle Challenger was sent aloft despite less than optimal temperatures because the White House wanted a dramatic background for President Ronald Reagan's 1986 State of the Union address See MYSTERIES Page 4A By RICK HAMPSON Associated Press NEW YORK Did Thomas Jefferson father a child by one of his slaves? Did Old Hickory's wife already have an old man? And say what could you see by the dawn's early light? Historians admit to a few intriguing doubts of their own in the December issue of American Heritage The magazine asked them to name the one mystery each would like solved Responses ranged from "Were Sacco and Vanzetti guilty?" to "What happened to Huey Long's campaign funds?" Sacco and Vanzetti were two Italian immigrants executed in the 1920s after a murder conviction that many consider unwarranted Sen Huey Long's "de-duct" box filled with SI million in campaign contributions disappeared after the Louisiana firebrand's assassination in 1935 Some other responses: In Charlotte 232000 of 237000 Duke Power customers lost power during Hurricane Hugo In North Carolina nearly 700000 Duke customers weft) i without power as long as two weeks 4 5 000 Carolinas Duke 4 customers added gas in 19O In Charlotte 232000 of 237000 Duke Power customers lost power during Hurricane Hugo In North Carolina nearly A 700 000 Duke customers eft) without power as long as tA0 weeks 5000 Carolinas Duke customers added gas in 1990 Duke Powe! rio' i 1 4 1 3 4 1 11 2 Iv 4 Duke 1 1 1 Powe! Business 9C Local News18 Classified 98 Movies 69 Comics 18B Obituaries 89 Editorial 12A People 48 Food 1D Sports 1C Landers 19B TV 4B Delivery Assistance358-6000 Monday Friday 530 am 5 pm Saturday Sunday 7 am Noon Place Classified Ad 377-5555 Monday Thursday am 0 pm Friday 8 am 0:30 pm StoryPhoto Idea 358-5040 Monday Saturday 10 am Midnight Sunday Noon Midnight Piedmont Natural Gas Co piedmont Natural This newspaper is printed in on recyTerr cied paper and es recyclaNe Contents 01990 The Charlotte GEORGE RFIf tSACitt 4101 dal i.