Under the Knife: A Beautiful Woman, a Phony Doctor, and a Shocking Homicide by Diane Fanning Page A
Authors: Diane Fanning
Tags: Fiction, General, Medical, True Crime, Murder, Case studies, new jersey, Surgery; Plastic - Corrupt Practices - New Jersey - Newark, Plastic & Cosmetic, Murder - New Jersey - Newark, Corrupt Practices, Newark, Surgery; Plastic, Surgery
Ads: Link
ness toward Dean at The Beach escalated. With no one holding the reins on his substance abuse—and with the increased awareness of his own mortality looming over every moment of his day—Dean renewed his drug use, at first with the occasional use of microdots and ecstasy. Then it flew out of control as the occasional became frequent, and his heavy consumption of alcohol and cocaine resumed.
CHAPTER NINE
JASON OPSAHL ENTERED DEAN’S LIFE IN 1995. JASON, A talented Broadway performer, was born to Robert and Muriel Opsahl in Savannah, Georgia, on December 9, 1962. He was their fourth child. Jason had three older brothers: Robert, Bart and Craig.
Dad was in the Air Force, and the family moved around with his changes in orders. They lived in California, Michigan and Minnesota before settling down in Orlando when Jason was still a small child. He made his first entrance on stage in a production of
Oliver!
at an area educational institution, Rollins College. Jason was just 8 years old. That experience set him on an exciting career path.
Through high school, he sang, danced and acted in regional theater as well as at Orlando-area theme parks.
Jason majored in Theatre Arts at Rollins College in the nearby town of Winter Park on the shores of Lake Virginia—it was the oldest recognized college in Florida. He graduated in 1984 and headed to New York City and the bright lights of Broadway in 1986.
For five and a half years, Jason took whatever roles he could get—even playing the part of Sperm No. 2 in
The Fertilization Opera
, an off-Broadway show.
But shortly thereafter, doubting his ability to succeed, Jason made a trip to Orlando for the ten-year reunion ofhis Boone High School class. While there, he heard about auditions for Tommy Tune’s new show. He tried out—and then waited • and waited. Finally, in early December—just days before his birthday—he got the news. He was cast as a wrangler in
The Will Rogers Follies
starring David Carradine.
On the first day of rehearsal, Jason stopped at a nearby deli. As he left, Jerry Mitchell, another dancer and aspiring choreographer, was on his way into the shop to pick up some lunch. Jerry had never seen Jason before, but wondered if the young man coming out of the deli was in the show, because he thought the tall blonde had the attractiveness, magnetism and presence of a Broadway star. When they two men met on the stage after lunch, they smiled in recognition.
Jerry sat beside Jason in the dressing room. Soon, Jerry knew he’d met a man with whom he could be completely honest. He discovered that he felt comfortable talking to Jason about their lives, their dreams, their fears—things Jerry never could share with anyone else. It was this quality in Jason that formed the bedrock of his later relationship with Dean Faiello.
With his Broadway debut on May 1, 1991, Jason and his angelic high tenor voice won the hearts of New York’s theater crowd. In the first act, Jerry Mitchell played the role of the Indian of the Dawn. To say his costume left him half-naked would exaggerate the amount of clothing he wore. “Besides the headdress and bells, not much else covered my body,” Jerry said. His scanty attire before the curtain rose was a constant source of humor for the cast and crew, who gave him a lot of light-hearted ribbing. One day, Jason said, “You ought to wear that to dance at Splash”—a gay bar on West 17 th Street between Broadway and the Avenue of the Americas. “You could raise a lot of money for Broadway Cares,” a joint effortbetween the Producers Group and the Council of Actors’ Equity Association to fund AIDS, HIV and HIV-related health issues.
That off-hand comment helped give birth to a charitable effort that remained dear to Jason’s heart all of his life. In 1991, Jerry, Jason and six other dancers put on the first one-night benefit event performance of
Broadway Bares
at Splash. Their entertaining but raucous routines raised $8,000 for the
CHAPTER NINE
JASON OPSAHL ENTERED DEAN’S LIFE IN 1995. JASON, A talented Broadway performer, was born to Robert and Muriel Opsahl in Savannah, Georgia, on December 9, 1962. He was their fourth child. Jason had three older brothers: Robert, Bart and Craig.
Dad was in the Air Force, and the family moved around with his changes in orders. They lived in California, Michigan and Minnesota before settling down in Orlando when Jason was still a small child. He made his first entrance on stage in a production of
Oliver!
at an area educational institution, Rollins College. Jason was just 8 years old. That experience set him on an exciting career path.
Through high school, he sang, danced and acted in regional theater as well as at Orlando-area theme parks.
Jason majored in Theatre Arts at Rollins College in the nearby town of Winter Park on the shores of Lake Virginia—it was the oldest recognized college in Florida. He graduated in 1984 and headed to New York City and the bright lights of Broadway in 1986.
For five and a half years, Jason took whatever roles he could get—even playing the part of Sperm No. 2 in
The Fertilization Opera
, an off-Broadway show.
But shortly thereafter, doubting his ability to succeed, Jason made a trip to Orlando for the ten-year reunion ofhis Boone High School class. While there, he heard about auditions for Tommy Tune’s new show. He tried out—and then waited • and waited. Finally, in early December—just days before his birthday—he got the news. He was cast as a wrangler in
The Will Rogers Follies
starring David Carradine.
On the first day of rehearsal, Jason stopped at a nearby deli. As he left, Jerry Mitchell, another dancer and aspiring choreographer, was on his way into the shop to pick up some lunch. Jerry had never seen Jason before, but wondered if the young man coming out of the deli was in the show, because he thought the tall blonde had the attractiveness, magnetism and presence of a Broadway star. When they two men met on the stage after lunch, they smiled in recognition.
Jerry sat beside Jason in the dressing room. Soon, Jerry knew he’d met a man with whom he could be completely honest. He discovered that he felt comfortable talking to Jason about their lives, their dreams, their fears—things Jerry never could share with anyone else. It was this quality in Jason that formed the bedrock of his later relationship with Dean Faiello.
With his Broadway debut on May 1, 1991, Jason and his angelic high tenor voice won the hearts of New York’s theater crowd. In the first act, Jerry Mitchell played the role of the Indian of the Dawn. To say his costume left him half-naked would exaggerate the amount of clothing he wore. “Besides the headdress and bells, not much else covered my body,” Jerry said. His scanty attire before the curtain rose was a constant source of humor for the cast and crew, who gave him a lot of light-hearted ribbing. One day, Jason said, “You ought to wear that to dance at Splash”—a gay bar on West 17 th Street between Broadway and the Avenue of the Americas. “You could raise a lot of money for Broadway Cares,” a joint effortbetween the Producers Group and the Council of Actors’ Equity Association to fund AIDS, HIV and HIV-related health issues.
That off-hand comment helped give birth to a charitable effort that remained dear to Jason’s heart all of his life. In 1991, Jerry, Jason and six other dancers put on the first one-night benefit event performance of
Broadway Bares
at Splash. Their entertaining but raucous routines raised $8,000 for the
Similar Books
