ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

When you learn the way I have, you have many teachers to thank for many lessons. In the interest of space, I won’t list all that I learned from my agent and dear friend Kathy Robbins, or from my exceptional editor and coach, Bill Phillips. I’ll say only that what they’ve taught me is certainly apparent to the people who read and commented on my early drafts: the passionate Erika Holzer, the logical Ted Calhoun, the intuitive Eric Eisner, the encouraging Sam Merrill, the light-hearted Harvey Miller, the protective Victoria Principal, the honest: Rod Lurie, the legal-minded Madeline Schachter, the supportive Kate Bales, Lara Harris, David Joliffe, Allison Burnett, and my compulsively accurate chief-researcher, Connie Michner. Thanks to you all.

Thanks to Charles Hayward, whose support I felt from start to finish, and to Sarah Crichton and Peter Benedek.

When it comes to following spears into the jungle, I have been blessed with three great guides: Park Dietz, Walt Risler, and John Monahan. Thanks to each of you for the light of your intellect and experience.

Thanks to Bryan Vosekuill and Dr. Robert Fein at the U.S. Secret Service for bringing me along on your exploration of new ideas. Your Exceptional Case Study Project is itself exceptional, and will reduce the risks in the world’s most dangerous job: President of the United States.

Thanks to Attorney General Janet Reno and Director Eduardo Gonzalez at the U.S. Marshals Service for your encouragement on MOSAIC, and to Steve Weston and his staff at the California State Police Special Investigations Unit, to Robert Ressler, Jim Wright and Roy Hazlewood from the FBI Behavioral Sciences Unit, to several unnamed colleagues at the Central Intelligence Agency, to Dennis Chapas and his staff at the U.S. Supreme Court, to Sheriff Sherman Block, Assistant Sheriff Mike Graham, and Lt. Sue Tyler at the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department for your enthusiasm and support, to John White and Jim MacMurray at LAPD, to Steven Devlin at Boston University, Jim Perotti at Yale University, William Zimmerman and Richard Lopez at the U.S. Capitol Police. Thanks to Robert Martin, who conceived of and founded LAPD’s Threat Management Unit.

To those who attended my firm’s first Threat Assessment and Management Conference back in 1983: Walt Risler, Mike Carrington, Cappy Gagnon, Bill Mattman, Burton Katz, and Pierce Brooks. You put me through a college of sorts, and I am grateful.

Thanks to the extraordinary friends whose lessons run throughout this book: Linda Shoemaker, Arthur Shurlock, Rosemary Clooney; Miguel, Gabriel, Monsita, Raphael and Maria Ferrer; Jeanne Martin, Gina Martin, Stan Freberg, Donna & Donna Freberg, Michael Gregory, Pamela, Portland and Morgan Mason, Peter, Alice, Andrea and Tom Lassally, Cortney Callahan, Gregory Orr, Cher, Joan Rivers, Allan Carr, Brooke Shields, Victoria Principal, Dr. Harry Glassman, Jennifer Grey, Michael Fox and Tracy Pollan, Ren, Ed Begley Jr., Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, Tony and Becky Robbins, Nina Tassler, Jerry Levine, Jeff Goldblum, Lesley Ann Warren, Laura Dern, Ron Taft, Jaime Frankfurt, Jim Miller, David Viscott, Tom Nolan, Mark Bryan, Lisa Gordon, Garry Shandling. Tom & Lynne Scott, Eric and Tanya Idle, Andrew and Nancy Jarecki.

And to other teachers of life lessons: Beatriz Foster, Jeff Jacobs, Norman Lear, Walt Zifkin, Norman Brokaw, Darrell Wright, Bill Sammeth, Bruce King, Sandy Litvak, Harry Grossman, Bob Weintzen, Michael Cantrell, Roger Davies, Jim Chafee, Gary Beer, Linden Gross, John Wilson, Walt DeCuir, James “Chips” Stewart, Francis Pizzuli, Stephen Pollan, Peggy Garrity, Donna Kail, Lisa Gaeta, and Barbara Newman. A special thanks to Richard Berendzen, for courage and encouragement.

And thanks to those who taught me adult lessons about family violence and who work so hard to reduce it: Scott Gordon, Marcia Clark, Chris Darden, Gil Garcetti, Bill Hodgman, Carol Arnett, Casey Gwinn, Tom Sirkel, Betty Fisher, and to all the members of the Victory Over Violence Board. To the Goldman family, Peter Gelblum, and Daniel Petrocelli: thanks for having me on your team.

And to a few friends who are important life-models for me and many others: Oprah Winfrey, Robert Redford, Tina Turner, Michael Eisner. Each of you has taught me so much about honor, integrity and responsibility.

Thanks to Steven Spielberg, Barbra Streisand, Meryl Streep, Steve Martin, Tom Hanks, and the too-few others who have proven that movies can teach more than just clever new ways to kill bad guys who are holding hostages in a skyscraper, aircraft carrier, airport, airplane, train, subway, or bus.

And thanks for your courage to: Theresa Saldana, Cheryle Randall, Ruben and Lisa Blades, Jackie Dyer, and Olivia Newton-John.

Thanks to my co-workers at Gavin de Becker & Associates: Michael LaFever, Jeff Marquart, Josh Dessalines, Josh Gausman, Robert Martin, Ryan Martin. And to those of you whose work is non-public: RNI, EPR, BNI, FAL, GCO, MDE, REA, KKE, CBC, SGA, BDU, BCA, JJC, JVD, JTI, RMO. You and your staffs have been part of something important, and I am amazed at your ability, professionalism, dedication and results. Mostly, I am proud to be on your team.

To my friends in Fiji: I came to study you, and then I came to love you.

This book would not have been written without Charlie Rose, who introduced me to Richard Berendzen and Sherwin Nuland, and who introduces us all to so many extraordinary writers.

Finally, my gratitude and love to Michelle Pfeiffer, who is either my dear friend or the best actress in the world (or both), to Shaun Cassidy (mi hermano), for twenty-four years of friendship and encouragement, and to Carrie Fisher, who thanked me at the end of one of her books by saying: “without whom these acknowledgments would never have been possible.” Carrie: without you, these acknowledgments would never have been possible.

And of course, thanks to Kelly.