Washington City Paper: Contents for Oct. 1

Cover Story

The way Fred Cherney tells it, there was really no reason to suspect anything. After all, he'd done business with Jerry Kapiloff years earlier, when Kapiloff was running his own cosmetics and chemicals company. Kapiloff was such a good client that Cherney's small Friendship Heights-area printing firm, Duplicate Impressions, could have used more clients like him. “Everything was cool,” says Cherney. “He'd come in, place orders, pay up—all very friendly and pleasant.”

Their dealings were so pleasant, in fact, that in April 1992, Cherney struck a deal with Kapiloff that he hoped would help him revitalize his anemic business. The recession had been particularly unkind to Duplicate Impressions, and when Cherney advertised for a commissioned salesman to bring in business, the ever-charming Kapiloff showed up at the Wisconsin Avenue firm.

“He called himself a printing broker now and said he had lots of clients,” says Cherney. “I thought to myself, "Well, this could be a real shot in the arm.' ”

The deal was attractive to both men: According to Cherney, Kapiloff would line up business at any price he could get, no matter how inflated; then, within 30 days of the orders being filled, Kapiloff would pay Duplicate Impressions its standard rate. The arrangement could mean more business for Cherney and potentially hefty commissions for Kapiloff, whose taste for fine clothes, fancy cars, and posh addresses was, as always, very much in evidence.... Continued

Issue of Oct. 1 - 7, 1993

News and Features

The King of the Deadbeat Club
Cover Story By William Triplett
The Payoff Pitch
May I Please Have My Money?
Cover Story: Sidebar By William Triplett
Bailing Out the Bond Biz
Legal reforms drove many bail bondsmen out of town. Now the D.C. Council considers reforming them back into things.
The City By Patrick Symmes
Missing Link
Is the Sun Setting on the Rev. Moon's Local Video-Production Empire?
The City By Clara Jeffery
Car Wars
The Mail By Mark White
Contraceptive Barriers
The Mail By Barry Welder
Weed Whacker
The Mail By Scott Imler
Turf Rivalry?
The Mail By Michelle Brice
Unaffectionate
The Mail By David S. Healy
Clap Jack
The Mail By Barbara F. Kahlow
Frank, but Closed Meeting
The Mail By Gregory Michael McCarthy
Equal Time for Heteros
The Mail By Tom Semmes
The Parking “Fuzzies”
The Mail By Linda Bellama
Mein Metaphor
The Mail By Barrett L. Brick