Dallas Business Journal articles from October 1999

Dallas Business Journal archives from October 1999

Maxus to leave for Houston.
October 29, 1999... Oil company's merger is another blow to office market in downtown Dallas DOWNTOWN DALLAS -- After slashing its staff by half, Maxus Energy. Corp. will move to Houston, vacating the tower in downtown Dallas that bears its name. ...

Northstar Bank moves to Denton, touts local ties.
October 29, 1999... DENTON -- Northstar Bank of Texas, formerly Lake Cities State Bank, has broken ground on a 23,000-square-foot building that will serve as its new corporate headquarters and provide. Denton with about 12,000 square feet of leasable office...

Green dreams.
October 29, 1999... On a whirlwind trip to his heartland home, pro golfer D.A. Weibring and his Dallas-based Golf Resources Group aim to make the game more fun for average players OKLAHOMA AIRSPACE -- Pro golfer D.A. Weibring shouts to be heard over the...

Discouraged doc quits medicine for Web business.
October 29, 1999... NORTH DALLAS -- Frustrated by the demands of managed care, Dr. Ernest Swersky has traded in his stethoscope for profits on the Internet. Swersky closed his private practice on Thursday, putting an end to his 26-year career as a family...

'Black hole' tapped for development.
October 29, 1999... DENTON land near Teasley Lane has seen little change over the years DENTON -- An area known as the "black hole of Denton" may see some light as Teasley Partners Ltd. develops it into a multi-use project. Teasley Partners is...

Heavyweight host.
October 29, 1999... BEDFORD -- So, just how much does it cost to purchase advertising space on the backside of a heavy weight prize fighter? Bedford-based CI Host recently purchased the right to display its logo on the back of world heavyweight champion...

Name banking.
October 29, 1999... DOWNTOWN DALLAS -- When Texas Capital Bancshares announces its first board of directors on Oct. 29, the list will read like an All-Star team of Texas business. Among those who will lead the $80 million startup: Drayton McLane Jr., the...

Belo blues?
October 29, 1999... DOWNTOWN DALLAS -- Moody's Investors Service has downgraded the debt ratings of Dallas-based Belo Corp. The move reflects the media company's increased leverage, according to Moody's, which assigned a rating of Baa3, down from Baa2. ...

A-ccounting we will go.(WS Business Services Inc., Kinder and Wyman merger)(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... NORTH DALLAS -- In its first acquisition since joining tax-preparation empire H&R Block, WS Business Services Inc. has purchased Kinder & Wyman P.C., an accounting firm in Las Colinas. Terms were kept private. Founded in 1991, Kinder...

Driving excellence.(Jesse Kirk award)(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... IRVING -- Dallas businessman Jesse Kirk was named North American Dealer of the Year by semi-truck manufacturer Seattle-based Peterbilt Motors Inc., which has its major plant in Denton. Kirk, chairman of Dallas-based American TruckSource...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
October 29, 1999... A story in the Oct. 22-28 issue, "Terrabrook to sell 1,400 acres in McKinney," should have stated that Terrabrook is based in Dallas.

Franklin Covey targets Dallas for prototype site.
October 29, 1999... Company to spend $600,000 on new training, retail center LAS COLINAS -- Franklin Covey Co., known for its day planners and corporate training, plans to open a new prototype retail and training center in Las Colinas. The center will...

fundu.com comes online to help you find home services.
October 29, 1999... Company also will link to Web sites of major media outlets, manufacturers NORTH DALLAS -- Former and current executives of CBS Corp., Dallas Semiconductor, Yahoo! Broadcast Services and The Dallas Morning News are among the investors in...

CEO Beryl Raff is Zale's millennium jewel.
October 29, 1999... Exec is 'instrumental' in rebuilding jewelry giant's national brand, presence IRVING -- As the new CEO of Irving-based Zale Corp., Beryl Raff is now one of the retail industry's highest-ranking female executives. She is charged with...

Silicon Valley technology firm in 'seed phase' moves to Dallas.(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... DOWNTOWN DALLAS -- A Columbia University Ph.D. is moving his start-up technology firm from Silicon Valley to Dallas. For now, Andreas Bovopoulos is the sole employee of his company, Cogent Networks, though he was hoping that a recruiting...

CompUSA's Better Business Bureau problems continue.(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... Computer retailer failed to respond to 11 additional claims, BBB says NORTH DALLAS -- CompUSA's problems are growing with the Better Business Bureau Serving Dallas and Northeast Texas. In September, the Dallas computer retailer's...

Yellow Freight adding dock space in Dallas.(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... Carrier to spend $1.8M to renovate 10 acres near its local terminal REGAL ROW -- National mega-carrier Yellow Freight Systems is expanding its large Dallas Distribution Center, essentially adding another 118 dock doors to its operation....

Hawthorn opens new Alliance Airport location.(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... ALLIANCE -- The Hawthorn Suites' new location at Fort Worth Alliance Airport opened Oct. 25, with a focus on extended-stay visitors. Julie Crow, sales coordinator at the new hotel, said the Hawthorn offers amenities intended to attract...

Developers buy 330 acres on Denton/Wise County line.(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... Preliminary plans include commercial and residential development on the site WISE COUNTY -- A Fort Worth partnership bought 330 acres of land in the popular State Highway 114 corridor with plans for a mixed-use project. Except for...

Redbird tenants worry about airport leases.(Dallas airport businesses)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... City urging them to sign controversial short-term deals that could have big impact on business REDBIRD AIRPORT -- In what appears to be a quiet revolt against the city of Dallas, more than 50 tenants at city-owned Redbird Airport have...

HNTB marks 85th year of transportation planning, design.(Company Profile)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... FORT WORTH -- HNTB, One of the major engineering and architectural firms in transportation planning and municipal design, is celebrating its fifth anniversary at its historic location in downtown Fort Worth. The anniversary comes with the...

Allied Health Options files Chapter 7 bankruptcy.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Company owes more than 400 creditors, according to court documents NORTH DALLAS -- Allied Health Options Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of United Medicorp Inc., has filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy, claiming $1.8 million in debts. The...

Novation to start national program for businesses.(to promote minority businesses, health care industry)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... IRVING -- Novation, the supply company of VHA Inc. and the University HealthSystem Consortium, plans to create a national program to mentor and, boost women- and minority-owned businesses' positions in the health care industry. In early...

Firm to seek sponsorships for Olympic trials.(Eclipse Sports and Entertainment Marketing, Dallas 2012)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Eclipse wants to prove Metroplex can handle hosting 2012 Olympics GRAND PRAIRIE -- Eclipse Sports & Entertainment Marketing, a new venture created by pari-mutuel horse track Lone Star Park, is primed to play a key role in bringing the...

Residents, homebuilders flock to Burleson.(Texas)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Country atmosphere, proximity to Fort Worth attracts home buyers BURLESON -- This city just 12 miles south of downtown Fort Worth is becoming home to hundreds of residents looking for a country environment with city services. The...

TelOptica to use $6M infusion to fuel growth.(TelOptica Inc.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Change in business model draws investors RICHARDSON -- After more than a year of running in place, TelOptica Inc. is starting to stride forward. The maker of telecommunications software recently raised $6 million from three...

Ryan Ranch latest Denton home project.(Texas development)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... DENTON -- Interest in developing the suburbs around Denton continues to attract developers to town Wayne Reed, a Denton city planner, said the latest project Ryan Ranch, will continue that trend for residents who want to live in the...

Longtime restaurateur to launch new eatery.(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... Greene hopes to repeat her Deep Ellum success in Turtle Creek Village OAK LAWN -- Longtime local restaurateur Monica Greene has set her sights on a new part of town. Known for her successful Monica Aca y Alla in Deep Ellum, Greene is...

Northwest closes.(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... FARMERS BRANCH -- One of Dallas' oldest television-production studios is closing its doors. Northwest Teleproductions Inc. (OTCBB: NWTL), a Minneapolis production firm, is shutting the Dallas facility due to declining business. "The...

Teague Nall to unite operations at new space.(Statistical Data Included)(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... Move to Fort Worth's CBD would aid in revitalization efforts FORT WORTH -- A longtime Fort Worth engineering and consulting firm hopes to buy the former digs of another longtime Fort Worth engineering firm. Teague Nall and Perkins...

JwE Group wins black chamber award.(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... OAK CLIFF -- The JwE Group Inc. has been awarded the Small Business of the Year Chairman's Award by the Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce. Joe Walker, president and owner of JwE Group, said he was surprised to be chosen for the award,...

Vartec subsidiary cited for 'cramming' customers.(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... LANCASTER -- A subsidiary of Vartec Telecom has agreed to offer refunds to 124,000 small-business customers as part of a settlement of a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit over marketing of Web-site design and hosting services. U.S....

Postal Service eyes new address requirements.
October 29, 1999... RICHARDSON -- For the past 12 years, self-employed executive recruiter Sandi Taylor has received her business mail at a Mail Boxes Etc. location in North Dallas. You wouldn't know Taylor works out of her home by looking at her business...

Collin County.(business news)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Doors open: Baked goodies and brewed coffees will be offered during the festivities as Torrefazione Italia opens in Plano. The store will open at 8:30 a.m, Oct. 30. in the Plano Lakeside Market at 5805 Preston, between Parker and Spring...

Dallas County.
October 29, 1999... New office: Lante Corp., an Internet consulting company based in Chicago, has opened a new Dallas office as the latest regional center for dot-com business-building expertise. The office is located at One Galleria Tower on Noel Road. Lante...

Denton County.
October 29, 1999... Treatment product: Denton-based International Isotopes Inc. has entered into an agreement with NeoRx Corp. Under the agreement, International Isotopes will design the commercial manufacturing process line for NeoRx's Skeletal Targeted...

Tarrant County.(local business news)(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... Leasing agreement: Innovative Packaging, a locally owned Irving business, has signed a lease-purchasing agreement to takeover the former Portola Packaging plant at 2586 E. Long in North Fort Worth. Innovative Packaging moved to the...

Nobel Prize winner joins Cytoclonal's board.(John Pople, Cytoclonal Pharmaceutics Inc.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... John Pople, a 1998 Nobel Prize laureate in chemistry, has joined Dallas-based Cytoclonal Pharmaceutics Inc.'s scientific advisory board. "Cytoclonal is the first pharmaceutical company with which I have chosen to be associated," Pople...

On the road.(Aetna U.S. Healthcare's "health.e.nation" traveling exhibition)(Statistical Data Included)(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... Look for Aetna U.S. Healthcare to roll into the Metroplex, literally, with "health.e.nation" sometime next spring. That's when the company brings its traveling exhibition to Dallas in the form of an 800-square-foot tractor-trailer. The...

Web launch.(VHA Inc. lanuches web-based medical education video programs)(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... VHA Inc. has launched "vhatv," a variety of continuing medical education video programs on the Internet. The site is www.vha.com. Online access to upcoming programs will be available approximately two weeks after the satellite broadcast....

Applause, applause.
October 29, 1999... * Dr. Luis Parada, director of the UT Southwestern Center for Developmental Biology, received the Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. The $1.4 million award is...

Taking over.(Odyssey HealthCare Inc. acquires Dignita Hospice Care Inc.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Odyssey HealthCare Inc. in Dallas has acquired Phoenix-based Dignita Hospice on Nov. 1, and will take over operations in Phoenix, Tucson, Ariz., and San Diego. Richard Burnham, Odyssey president and CEO, declined to discuss the terms of the...

Unistar may be removed from AMEX board.(Statistical Data Included)(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... Unistar Financial Services Corp., a Dallas-based insurance conglomerate, has asked the American Stock Exchange to remove its stock from its board. AMEX officials stopped Unistar stock from trading on July 21 after a four-day plunge that...

Loose change.
October 29, 1999... * Dallas-based FT Mortgage Co. acquired Elliot Ames Mortgage in Los Altos, Calif., for an undisclosed sum. The deal gives FT Mortgage a long-sought presence in the Northern California market, where Elliot Ames operates four locations. Elliot...

Legal issues can bog down transportation contracts.
October 29, 1999... Dallas attorney Sam Hallman, who practices at the Dallas law firm Strasburger & Price L.L.P, has been handling transportation law and litigation for more than 20 years, so there probably isn't much he hasn't seen when it comes to moving goods...

New board.(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... The North Texas Tollway Authority has re-elected its officers to another term. They are: Jere Thompson Jr., chairman Donna Parker, vice chairman and Susan Buse, treasurer.

Lucky 13.(TST/Impreso Inc. ranking in industry survey)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Coppell-based TST/Impreso Inc. (Nasdaq: TSTI) has again been named one of the "Top 100 manufacturers" in the business forms and printed business products industry by award-winning FORM Magazine. Ranked by fiscal-1998 sales, TST was 13th in...

Mark your calendar.
October 29, 1999... The Greater Dallas Asian American Chamber of Commerce will sponsor its 1999 Asian Charity Ball at the Hotel Inter-Continental in Dallas on Nov. 13. The event typically draws 1,000 attendees. Proceeds in the past have helped the East Dallas...

PageNet signs lease at Park Ventura center.(Paging Network Inc.; Plano, Texas)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Paging Network Inc. has signed a lease for 62,800 square feet at Park Ventura Office Center in Plano, a 109,285-square-foot, two-building complex at 5025 and 5055 Park Boulevard. About 300 employees will occupy the expansion space. "We...

Tollway search.(E*Trade Group Inc.)(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... E*Trade Group Inc. has been looking around North Dallas for a 45-acre site, tollway brokers say. The company has checked out Legacy Park as well as freestanding sites along the tollway. Frank Ricca, Melissa Cooke and Matt Coit of The Staubach...

Telecom space.
October 29, 1999... Probity Electronic Inc., a manufacturer of custom cable assemblies for the telecommunications industry, has leased 50,270 square feet in Palisades Business Center IV. Janice Peters of Henry S. Miller Commercial represented the tenant and...

Retail sale.
October 29, 1999... Toronto-based Retail Plazas Inc. purchased Fort Worth's Cityview Centre, a 352,300-square-foot retail center at Interstate 20 and Bryant Irvin Road for an undisclosed price. General Electric Investment Corp. was the seller of the 13-year-old...

Granite adds day care.(Statistical Data Included)(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... Granite Properties has sold a 1.25-acre site in Granite Park to Children's Courtyard day care company for an undisclosed price. The company plans a 12,000-square-foot day care facility. Scheduled to open in first-quarter 2000, the day...

Woodmont comes to Dallas.(Brief Article)
October 29, 1999... Fort Worth-based The Woodmont Cos. is opening a Dallas office for its subsidiary, Woodmont Realty Associates. The new office at 5307 Mockingbird Lane will oversee retail real estate and specialize in tenant representation and third-party...

Rules and regs.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... The Building Owners and Managers Association is sponsoring a half-day seminar on "Rules, Regs and Real Estate." The seminar will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Nov. 16 at Texas Stadium in Irving. Topics include industry trends, taxes...

Office Depot selects site.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Trammell Crow Co. will build a 262,500-square-foot warehouse for Office Depot Inc. The building will be located on 26.5 acres at the southwest corner of State Highway 360 and Interstate 20 in the Great Southwest Industrial District. Scott...

Offbeat ad campaign a hit for Gilliatt Paris.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Dallas advertising and design agency Gilliatt Paris has hit pay dirt in its campaign to fashion itself as "the advertising agency for people who don't like advertising agencies." The 4-year-old company emphasized that theme with a...

Promoting public broadcasting.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Yvette Cook-Harris has joined KERA-TV (Channel 13) and KDTN-TV (Channel 2) as director of marketing and corporate development. She was previously a marketing executive with CBS/Infinity Broadcasting and Gannett Broadcasting. She will oversee...

People and places.
October 29, 1999... * Advertising and public relations agency Allyn & Co. has created a new look for the Suicide and Crisis Center of Dallas. The center is now sporting a new logo, with the "i" in Crisis standing out to the side of the work, to symbolize how...

Fewer IT firms jumping on M&A bandwagon.(information technology, mergers and acquisitions)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Fewer information-technology firms are merging or being acquired in 1999 than last year, according to a Houston investment-banking concern. Some 334 IT companies jumped into the merger-and-acquisitions arena through the first nine months...

Converging for lunch.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... A November lunch panel will explore the convergence of voice and data communications. Participants will include executives of Excite@Home, Nokia Mobile Phones, webcasts.com and Nextlink. The moderator will be Debra Kennedy, customer...

Bits 'n bytes.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... * A Dallas company has unveiled a Web site that lets musicians sell their CDs directly to consumers. Visitors to bands' Web sites can buy the tunes by clicking on a link to CDstreet.com's site. Run by one Glenn Gomez, founder of the Arizona...

Opportunity knocks.(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... When Sears Roebuck came calling for help with its catalog operation, Athletic Supply met the challenge GARLAND -- In December 1994, legendary retailer Sears Roebuck came to Norm Charney and his small sports-supply company with the...

GovSpot.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Tired of sorting through the Internet's labyrinth of government Web sites? Go here instead. GovSpot is both an index of and a portal to government at all levels: federal, state and local. It also can take you to the National Archives, to...

The Classic 164 Currency Converter.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Easy to use, this Web site can make exchange calculations for 164 different currencies. So if you're pricing a property in Ecuador, you can quickly convert that price into U.S. dollars. What's more, the database goes back to Jan. 1, 1990,...

'Chainsaw: The Notorious Career of Al Dunlap in the Era of Profit-at-any-Price'.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Business Week writer Byrne covered Dunlap during the executive's career at Scott Paper and at Sunbeam. Dunlap came to be known as "Chainsaw Al" for laying off thousands of workers to squeeze out profits for investors as well as million-dollar...

'Zero Gravity: Riding Venture Capital from High-Tech Start-up to Breakout IPO'.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... A detailed guide to understanding that most misunderstood of financial backers, the venture capitalist. VCs are not bankers, nor angels nor typical investors. The VC is looking to make his money back by 10 to 20 times. In return, he's willing...

'Peter Drucker: Shaping the Managerial Mind'.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... A New York scholar pays homage to perhaps the greatest business philosopher of the 20th century as Drucker turns 90. Anyone looking for a biography will be disappointed. The book focuses on Drucker's ideas, not on his personal life. But those...

People on the move.(many brief articles about promotions in the Dallas, TX, area)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... ACCOUNTING Travis, Wolff & Co. L.L.P. hired Nadine Procsal as senior accountant and David Burton as staff auditor. ADVERTISING Regian & Wilson/Grey Advertising hired Shannon Zenner as account coordinator. Group Bolton...

New Argyle center could host real estate office, Northstar Bank.
October 29, 1999... ARGYLE -- Old Town Ventures Ltd. is planning this city's biggest commercial center to date. Old Town's 13-acre, 14-lot Argyle Town Square development will front the east side of U.S. 377 between Harpole Road and Rusk Street. The...

LARGEST METROPLEX WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESSES.
October 29, 1999... LARGEST METROPLEX WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESSES Jerry Gunter RANKED BY 1998 REVENUE ...

Oakridge Country Club: Maximizing the assets.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Oakridge Country Club is unpretentious in both appearance and how its golf course plays. While the course is a mostly flat layout without a predominant characteristic, Oakridge manages to make the most of its components. Duck Creek winds...

Rough Creek Lodge: Rustic spot, great food.(Rough Creek Lodge Executive Retreat and Resort)
October 29, 1999... Let's take the The Business Lunch outside the box -- outside the Metroplex, in fact, to a rustic setting near Glen Rose. Rough Creek Lodge Executive Retreat and Resort offers "five fork" dining, luxurious accommodations, ample meeting...

Hear those sleigh bells ringin'.
October 29, 1999... It's true, there are only 55 days left 'til Christmas and stagings of "The Nutcracker" start even sooner. Possibly the first for this season will be a performance by the highly respected Moscow Ballet. It's all for a good cause. Proceeds will...

Here kitty, kitty, kitty ...
October 29, 1999... Can you picture yourself smoothin' cruisin' around the Metroplex in a cooler-than-cool Jaguar? If so, you have to check out the upcoming Rare Breeds Benefit, where they'll give away a Jaguar S-Type, valued at a respectable $45,900. The bash...

Festive fund raising.
October 29, 1999... Chi Omega Christmas Market features more than 130 merchants and you can literally shop 'til you drop. It's a great party and it puts you in a holiday frame of mind. Local charities will benefit from the event, including Calumet Community...

Much ado ... Part I.(Dallas schools superintendent Bill Rojas)(Editorial)
October 29, 1999... Is there any end to the absurd, Balkanizing effects of political correctness in our society? The latest to feel its sting is Dallas schools Superintendent Bill Rojas, a Puerto Rico native who's being accused of... insensitivity toward ethnic...

Much ado ... Part 2.(Pizza Hut Inc.'s television commercial featuring Hillary Clinton look-alike)(Editorial)
October 29, 1999... Kudos to Dallas-based Pizza Hut for showing some spunk and originality with its new "Hillary" TV commercial. The 30-second spot, in case you've missed it, features a Hillary Clinton look-alike endorsing Pizza Hut's "Big New Yorker" at a...

Comrades in business.(Russian entrepreneurs visit Dallas)
October 29, 1999... A group of Russian entrepreneurs in Dallas last week to get an up-close, and personal look at the way we do business reminds us that we in the Metroplex really do have it good. They were here as part of the Community Connections program,...

'News' causes serious market overreactions.(effects of rumors on oil prices)(Statistical Data Included)
October 29, 1999... Ignorance of the facts could have a major effect on the world's oil supply It is about time for both traders and others to recognize the pervasive imbalance between "news" and its extraordinary influence on oil prices. The latter is...

LETTERS.
October 29, 1999... More objectivity To the Editor: Concerning the recent profile on Martin Burrell (Oct. 8-14 issue), I find it very hard. to take you seriously as journalists following such a love-fest with a subject, with the article appearing to be...

DBJ Index.
October 29, 1999... DBJ Index Taking Stock in Metroplex Public Companies Weekly Indexes CLOSE CLOSE NET 10/27/99 10/20/99 CHANGE DBJ Index ...

Busy Signal.(GTE Corp.)(Company Profile)
October 29, 1999... GTE Corp. (NYSE: GTE) Recent Price: $72.75 52-week Range: $78.50-56.43 Book Value: $10.31 Market Cap: $71.4 billion Based in Irving, GTE provides local phone service to 23 million customers in 28 states. The company is...

PEOPLE.(brief articles)
October 29, 1999... To Jerry Carlton, chief operating officer at the Communities Foundation of Texas, it was just an idle comment. To Jerry's wife, Susan, it was, well, a call to arms. As the two entered the NorthPark Neiman Marcus last Saturday night for the...