In fact, Monte hired a former bodyguard of Emperor Haile Selassie, as well as an executioner from the Nuremberg trials (who had reputedly killed 44 people), to guard him while he conducted his interviews. All of the soldiers had to be put in place secretly, because the Dubai Sheik did not want the other Arab sheiks to know what he was up to. Within four or five months the task was done: 100 men to guard the sheik, 100 to guard his oilfields, another hundred to patrol offshore and 100 to fight the Yemenis.

Perhaps the most fascinating of Monte's many private investigations occurred in 1979, when he was hired by Rockefeller interests to discover the whereabouts or confirm the death of Michael Rockefeller. The long-lost son of Nelson Rockefeller, Michael had disappeared in 1961 while on an expedition to a remote region of New Guinea called Irian Jaya.

The 23-year-old Rockefeller had been fascinated by the culture and way of life of primitive New Guinea tribes. Those whom he had been studying at the time of his mysterious disappearance were tree people who were also cannibals. It was long believed that he either drowned when his catamaran capsized or was slain by cannibals. For years after he vanished, however, there were rumours that the young Rockefeller was still alive. The group that hired Monte to conduct the difficult search wanted the matter settled one way or another.

After several weeks of searching, with official Indonesian sanction to explore one the most life-threatening areas of that part of the world, Monte and his party obtained three skulls, one of which was said to be that of the long-missing heir. His death, Monte learned, had occurred at the time of his disappearance and may have resulted from the young anthropologist overstepping the boundaries of some of the natives he had befriended during his expedition.

In the 1980s, Monte opened his offices in this country, where he was contracted not only for investigations but for personal security, supplying bodyguards for scores of clients including Diane Keaton, Gregory Peck and Frank Sinatra. Power people, especially celebrities, says Monte, need protection because of obsessive fans. Corporate people, especially high-profile executives and tycoons, also need bodyguards for a variety of reasons.

As fascinating as private investigating sounds, Frank Monte says that it is mainly a lot of work that has no resolution. "Criminal work is rarely exciting. In a lot of cases you don't get anyone. You find out something about innocent people, and that's it. You work for the challenge and the profit," says this seasoned professional, who is currently in preproduction in New York for an upcoming film, The Private Eye, based on his experiences.

The good thing about Monte's business is that there are always more assignments, because, as that former Astor husband said, "People want to find out what they can find out." Philip Marlowe, anyone?