This Don Quixote without Dulcinea
We have a very nervous young man up here. and we are going to take him wherever he wants to go
The Pasadena show was frustrating, derailed by a rowdy audience member screaming from the venue’s balcony. The band, too, had seen better days. It had been a full two years since their Billboard ranking peaked with a Simon and Garfunkel cover. Another track from their debuted album penned by Van Dyke Parks saw decent traction, as well.
By the following year, Harpers Bizarre had begun to lose steam. A non-album Joni Mitchell cover peaked at 123. Judy Collins had far more success with it, hit eighth on the chart that same year. By the end of the decade, the Santa Cruz-based band was touring on its fourth album, bearing the uninspired name, Harpers Bizarre 4.
“If I liked soft stuff,” The Village Voice wrote of the album, “I would rate this record very high, because HB is about the best of the soft groups, good-humored and well-conceived. For your parents' anniversary.” The weekly scored it a C+.
The band lit their cigarettes and settled in for a short trip from L.A. to San Francisco. At 1:30AM Halloween morning, the Boeing 707 left the runway with a rumbling scream. Fewer than one-third of the seats were occupied on the late night flight. Decked in camouflage, Raffaele Minichiello had purchased a $15 ticket for TWA Flight 85 not long before takeoff. At 19, he was a decorated veteran, having earned a Purple Heart in the South Vietnam hills.
His time in Southeast Asia had also left him bitter. He complained in letter about anti-Italian sentiment among his fellow troops, owning to a thick Neapolitan accent. “The leaders of my platoon just think of me as cannon fodder,” he wrote, recounting the times his superiors sent him ahead of the pack with a mine detector.
He’d exacted some revenge on the Marines. Fueled by eight cans of beer, he broke into a Camp Pendleton office, stealing $200 in radios and wrist watches – the exact amount he claimed the military owed him. Facing a court martial and six months in prison, he jumped on a bus to LAX and a flight to SFO.
A concerned passenger nudge a flight attendant, after spotting an oblong object protruding from his duffel bag. The year had already seen hijackings, including an incident earlier that month, where four men demanded a domestic Brazilian flight be rerouted to Cuba. The flight attendant assured the woman that she was worked up over a simple fishing rod.
Shortly after takeoff, Minichiello gulped down two glasses up Canadian whisky to calm him nerves, before making his way to the lavatory, backpack in hand. He emerged with the M1 rifle fully assembled. Spotting the weapon, a flight attendant calmly told the young marine, "You're not supposed to have that." He handed her one of the 250 rounds he’d brought on board.
"We have a very nervous young man up here,” captain Donald Cook announced over the PA, “and we are going to take him wherever he wants to go." Minichiello informed the crew of their destination. "If you've made any plans in San Francisco, don't plan on keeping them,” the captain added. “Because you're going to New York."
Minichiello agreed to make a stop in Denver, releasing the passengers and all of the flight attendants but for one. Once safely on the ground, the members of Harpers Bizarre immediately phoned their manager. The band was mobbed by reporters. “It was the best publicity we ever had, by a mile," the guitarist dryly explained decades later. The band didn’t manage to capitalize on the international publicity, however, breaking up the following year.
The plane took off without incident. Minichiello spent the three hours downing more Canadian whisky – this time in first class, with his rifle occupying the neighboring seat. Things were far more intense on the ground in JFK, as nearly 100 officers surrounded the plane. A single shot was fired inside the cabin, causing an oxygen tank to explode. Minichiello had fired the rifle on accident, but it was enough to get law enforcement to backoff.
The Marine informed the crew that the journey had only begun. They made a quick dash to Bangor, Maine, then across the Atlantic to Shannon, Ireland. Finally, they landed in Rome early the morning of November 1, more than 18 hours after the journey started. Somewhere over the ocean, Minichiello had turned 20.
The airport’s deputy customs agent met him at the plane, when the hijacker demanded to driven to Naples, the city of his birth. The agent followed orders, but ultimately the Alfa Romeo found itself on a dead end street. Recognizing that the police would be far behind, Minichiello made a run for it. He found shelter in a hillside church, bustling with activity the morning of All Saints Day. In spite of a change of clothing, however, the new minor celebrity was recognized and the law enforcement wasn’t far behind.
“Countryman,” he asked the congregation with genuine surprise, “why are you arresting me?” Having ditched his rifle in a nearby barn, he had no choice to surrender.
Young and handsome, Minichiello’s celebrity and legend grew after the arrest. The ex-Marine who stood up to the atrocities of the U.S. military had become enough of a folk hero to avoid extradition – much to the chagrin of President Nixon. As hijacking had not yet been made an official crime in Italy, he was tried on relatively minor weapon offenses.
“I am sure that Italian judges will understand and forgive an act born from a civilization of aircraft and war violence,” his lawyer pled. “A civilization which overwhelmed this uncultured peasant, this Don Quixote without Dulcinea, without Sancho Panza, who instead of mounting his Rocinante flew across the skies.”
Minichiello served 18 months — three times the length of time he faced with his court martial. He emerged to find his star hadn’t faded. The national hero embarked on a nude modeling career and signed a contract to start in Spaghetti Westerns – though his acting career never took off. Minichiello found far more steady employment as a waiter.
He remained in Italy, though occasionally returned to the U.S. after charges had been dropped. In 2012, he started a YouTube Channel devoted to accordion performances.
Sources:
The Skies Belong to Us by Brendan I. Koerner
TWA85: 'The world's longest and most spectacular hijacking' https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-48069272
Raffaele Minichiello hijacked a plane to Italy and became a folk hero https://slate.com/human-interest/2013/06/skyjacker-of-the-day-raffaele-minichiello-hijacked-a-plane-to-italy-and-became-a-folk-hero.html