Im jamie colby, heading into the town of hastingsonhudson, new york, a suburb about 18 miles north of manhattan. Im on my way to meet a woman who wrote to me about her strange inheritance a piece of musical history with the most improbable tale of how she came to own it. My names Marlene Piturro. When my husband died, he left me a musical treasure along with clear marching orders on what he wanted done with it. [ gongs chiming ] hi, marlene. Hi, jamie. Come on in. Its so nice to meet you. As we settle in, marlene tells me about her harmonious first meeting with her husband, howard, a concert percussionist. It was love at first sight. Really . He was 63, and he had these twinkly blue eyes. He went to work every day in his gig suit and his tuxedo with his white shirt and bow tie. Howard van hyning, born in 1936 in central florida, inherits an interest in percussion from his greatgrandfather, a drummer boy in the civil war. Howard had his drumsticks, and he practiced quite a bit, mostly with his drum pad in his bedroom, thank goodness. Howard joins the drumline in high school, and at just 15 lands a spot in the orlando symphony orchestra. He was the youngest percussionist that they had, and he did very well. So well that after high school, howard heads to the renowned Juilliard School of music in new york city. There he adds to his skill set by mastering a variety of drums and buying them up whenever he can. Not just drums, but anything that you hit xylophones, bells anything that was a percussiontype instrument. Most percussionists are, to some extent, collectors. Greg zuber, lead percussionist with new yorks metropolitan opera. Percussionists end up in charge of all kinds of instruments snare drums, cymbals, timpani. It happens that percussion is my favorite part of any orchestra. Well, youre a woman of refinement and taste. I would like to learn something percussiony. Absolutely. Lets go do it. We start with the tambourines. Its simple to play. You just tap it. [ tambourine jingling ]. Like that. No, greg. Sorry to disappoint you, but ive seen these played. Yeah . [ tambourine jingling ] well, thats more like the gospel church, but maybe we should switch to castanets. Okay, ready . And. [ castanets clicking musically ] thats a good start. Now its time for the bass drum. So think about using your whole arm. [ bass drum resonates ] great. I love the sound of this. Are you busy tuesday . I might be needing a player. You get to do this for a living . I get to do this. I get to play with these toys. And so does howard. He graduates from juilliard in 1966 and begins to perform with the new york city opera. Its not a little deal to be part of the new york city opera. Absolutely not. In 1975, howard takes on a prestigious summer gig in central park. On the calendar, turandot, an opera written in 1924 by Giacomo Puccini. Now, even if youre no opera buff, you probably heard the most famous part of turandot, says fred plotkin, author of opera 101. People recognize that its been in an number of films. It was in mission impossible, starring tom cruise. Oh, and the sum of all fears and the mirror has two faces, among others. So we know it very well. Its a percussionist dream. There are tamtams, tubular bells, glockenspiel, and, most crucially, several differentsized gongs. [ gong chimes ] its set in ancient mythical china, and puccini wanted to convey mystery. I wont get into the plot right now, but those gongs are really important to the story. So when puccinis writing the opera, he looks all over italy for just the right gongs. No luck. Then he does what any perfectionist would. Puccini had gongs manufactured specifically for turandot so that he could have those ethereal chinese sounds that he heard in his head, but had not necessarily seen an instrument to produce. A halfcentury later and half a world away, Howard Van Hyning harbors the same perfectionist streak. Preparing for his big moment in central park, he searches for a set of gongs worthy of puccinis masterpiece. Turns out howard doesnt have to look far just across the east river from manhattan to the humble outer borough made famous by the new york mets, archie bunker, and kevin james. How they heck did they end up in a warehouse in queens . Everything ends up in a warehouse in queens. But first our strange inheritance quiz question. The answer after the break. So, which of these three bands had the most drummers . Well, nirvana had six drummers through the years. That beats pearl jams five. But if you count the fictional heavymetal group spinal tap, it had as many as a dozen, some of whom died of spontaneous human combustion. [ singing operatically ] you dont need to know a lot about opera to appreciate the strangeness of the inheritance Marlene Piturro gets from her husband, Howard Van Hyning. But a little bit of knowledge cant hurt. So lets go back to lucca, italy, 1924. Maestro Giacomo Puccini is composing the second act of his masterpiece turandot. Turandot is a princess. Shes beautiful, of course. She does not want to marry anyone because her ancient relative had bad luck with men. So she tells three riddles, and if you can answer the riddles, then you get to marry turandot. If you dont answer the riddles, you lose your head. Off with you. Yeah. Its a brutal story. [ gong chimes ] when each suitor arrives at the palace, he bangs a bronze gong. But puccini cant find gongs that make the sounds he wants, so he commissions a family of cymbal makers in italy to handcraft them. The great composers like puccini often had instruments manufactured to produce sounds that did not exist before. His precise gongs are completed, but puccini dies in 1924 before finishing his masterpiece. How many famous operas are there that are unfinished . Very few, and the most famous of all is turandot by puccini. A ringer named Franco Alfano finishes turandot based on puccinis notes, and it becomes one of the most performed operas from sydney to cincinnati, where, fatefully, in 1955. [ gong chimes ]. A production is being directed by new Yorker Anthony stivanello, whose nickname is instant opera. He had the nickname instant opera cause he could produce an opera literally in an instant. He may be quick, but he aint sloppy, and theres something about his cincinnati turandot thats just not right. Guess. He was unhappy with the sound of the gongs. The gongs. The clanging in anthonys ears never stops, and years later on a trip to italy, he looks for something better. Instant opera hits the instant lottery at the office of puccinis publisher. My father found that the publisher ricordi had the actual gongs they had specially made that puccini wanted in the production. Its a startling find. You want to liken it to playing a stradivarius except theres only one set of true puccini gongs. So my father, being a colorful figure, started playing cards with ricordi, and he talked him into having a bet, and he won the gongs. And takes them home to queens. Now we can return to the summer of 1975, when Howard Van Hyning gets hired for a turandot production in central park. Howard already has a collection of more than 1,000 percussion instruments, but no gongs that are right for turandot. Then he gets a tip that puccinis own custommade gongs are in the stivanello shop in queens and may be available to rent. Howard said, ive got to see them. Ive got to see them. Anthony leads him into the back of his shop, pries open a dusty crate, and reveals 13 heavy bronze gongs, one note of the musical scale on each gong in italian. For howard, got to see turns to got to have in a new york minute. No doubt in your mind theyre the real deal . Theres no doubt of anybody who really knows about opera that they are the original set of puccinis gongs. Howard almost cant bring himself to return the puccini gongs after the central park rental. He just kept asking my father, hey, if you ever sell them, do you promise to sell them to me . His desire doesnt wane even after he claims his own princess in 1982 from the city opera audience. I came back from the intermission, and my friend said, these two guys have asked us out for a drink after the show. Howard and i locked eyes, and he said, ill take the little one. Howard and the little one soon marry and have two children. All the while, howard adds to his stockpile of percussion instruments. He started with one room. It grew to six rooms, and he had a whole room of just timpani shells, huge kettle drums, and the mallet instruments were everywhere. Then one day howard walks in the door of their home in suburban new york with a big announcement. He came home with a burlap bag, and he said, look what i have, and he dumped out a few of the gongs. How much did he pay for them . 8,000. And do you say, holy glockenspiel. The kids need to go to college . I was speechless. Luckily for howard, his operaloving wife learns to appreciate the gongs as much as he does. And theyre very special, and ill show you why. Im going to play first a regular gong, which sounds pretty good, and this is onstage all the time. [ gong chiming ] sounds pretty good. Yeah, pretty good to me. But here is the puccini gongs. [ lowpitch chime resonating ] [ gasps ] its extremely resonant. And thats the sound that he wanted. Would you like to try one . Ill give it a whirl. [ highpitch chime resonating ] perfect. Howard plays the puccini gongs in operas all over the country, showing them off for music experts everywhere. In 1991, he even has one of the gongs signed by legendary opera singer luciano pavarotti. I see his signature. Yep, there it is. Howard continues to play with the new york city opera into his 60s. Then in 2001, he notices a change. He said, my hands are not right. My playing is not right. An mri confirms that howards in the early stages of parkinsons disease, a disorder of the nervous system that often causes tremors. For a musician, that is devastating. It was devastating for him. Howard fights the disease and keeps playing until 2009. The following year, he dies of cardiac arrest. Hes 74 years old. Hes buried with his sticks. Really . I knew that when he got to heaven, hed be able to play. But before howard departs, he leaves marlene not only a piece of musical history. [ sighs ] we talked before he died. He would like two things to happen. He asks her to set history straight. Its a big responsibility. Its a big responsibility. Heres another quiz question. The answer when we return. Theres a company thats talked to even more real people than me jd power. 448,134 to be exact. They answered 410 questions in 8 categories about vehicle quality. And when they were done, chevy earned more j. D. Power quality awards across cars, trucks and suvs than any other brand over the last four years. So on behalf of chevrolet, i want to say thank you, real people. Youre welcome. Were gonna need a bigger room. Theres a me no one knows waiting to be set free so, whats the empty suitcase for . The grand prize trophy i was born to be somebody its more than just fast. It keeps all your devices running smoothly. With builtin security that protects your kids. No matter what theyre up to. It protects your info. And gives you 24 7 peace of mind. That if its connected, its protected. Even that that petcamera thingy. [ whines ] can your internet do that . Xfinity xfi can because its. Simple, easy, awesome. [ barking ] so, what hit Broadway Musical was adapted from puccinis opera la boheme . Its rent, a tale about a group of bohemians living in the east village of new york city. Something about puccinis opera turandot always irked renowned percussionist Howard Van Hyning. Remember, puccini dies in 1924 before finishing his masterpiece, and another composer, Franco Alfano, is hired to complete it. Does alfano get it right . Theres no way of knowing. For howard, it was all about the gongs puccini obsessed over. Theyre prominent throughout his opera, but alfanos ending hardly features them at all. Its a jarring transition from when puccini wrote his last note. Howard, whose most prized possession was puccinis custommade gongs, had one dying wish for his wife, marlene fix turandot by selling the gongs for enough money to commission a new ending for the opera. Tall order. Howard bought the gongs in 1983 for 8,000, and marlene had them appraised in 2010 for, she says, 100 grand still not enough to get a firstrate composer to write a new turandot ending. Whats your price . I think that theyre worth between 1 million and 2 million. Nothing like this has ever been sold. [ gong chimes resonating ] think theyre worth 1 million . [ chuckles ] well, you can hope. Im not sure about that. Greg zuber, the mets current lead percussionist, who we met earlier, chimes in. It sounds to me like puccini had to have these gongs. He absolutely needed them for the right flavor of the opera to suggest china in its ancient setting. [ gong chimes resonating ] just like that. Just like that. Spectacular. Marlene thinks theyre spectacular, too, and wants them heard and appreciated. While waiting for a buyer to step up, she rents them to opera houses where theyre a big draw. Howard would want them to be played, and i did rent them out. Until 2011 when she gets a frantic call about her strange inheritance. What happened . Whats your strange inheritance story . Wed love to tell it. Send me an email or go to our website, strangeinheritance. Com. Limu emu doug and now for their service to the community, we present limu emu doug with this key to the city. [ applause ] its an honor to tell you that Liberty Mutual customizes your Car Insurance so you only pay for what you need. And now we need to get back to work. [ applause and band playing ] only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. I am totally blind. And non24 can throw my days and nights out of sync, keeping me from the things i love to do. Talk to your doctor, and call 8442142424. Now back to strange inheritance. Its 2011, and Marlene Piturro is terrified about her strange inheritance a rare set of percussion gongs that trace back to renowned opera composer Giacomo Puccini. What happened . We were renting them, and they were lost in transit. Oh, my. The National Carrier who was doing this couldnt find them. For three awful days no word. Then she gets a call. It turned out that they were in newark for three days, and when we finally knew where they were, they went on to their ultimate destination. Phew [ chuckles ] the mishap forces marlene to change her tune and stop renting out the gongs. Howard was more than willing to send them. He loved that they could go to different opera houses, but i feel i cant take that risk. So marlene tucks them away, unseen, unheard, and with each passing year, increasingly forgotten by the opera world. Shes still hoping to find a way to do as howard wanted sell them to a musician or Opera Company and commission a new ending to Puccinis Turandot that features the gongs. Its a big responsibility. Its a big responsibility, and im not the best person to have them. They belong in an opera house. Then in 2016, music director Antony Walker of the pittsburgh opera hears tale of how Howard Van Hynings widow has puccinis gongs hidden away in a trunk. We were very excited to hear that the puccini gongs were still around. He implores marlene to lend him the famous gongs for his upcoming production of turandot. Marlene relents, but this time, she has the gongs handdelivered. Were there for the First Official rehearsal. Everyone is amped up over those gongs. It makes it much realer. You can smell and taste and feel this thing. Its not some ancient artifact in mothballs. It resonates, and it gets people very excited. [ gong chimes resonating ] this set is so important because we have the sounds that puccini had in mind, which is really amazing. [ gong chimes resonating ] its like a stradivarius. If you dont play it, whats the point . Puccini heard in these gongs how his music should sound. [ singing operatically ] [ gong chime resonates ] marlene still intends to turn her strange inheritance into a new ending that makes turandot even more of a percussionist dream, just as her husband envisioned. Are you hoping that by sharing your strange inheritance that someone will see them, come along, and say, heres a check . You Better Believe it. [ chuckles ] that would be a wonderful outcome. Whatever happens, this performance would surely be music to her late husbands ears. He had his destiny, and that was to play this music. He loved music, and he loved the gongs. A half dozen other composers have written new endings to turandot, and now one more has tossed his hat in the ring. In march 2017, four days after his 100th birthday, maestro anton coppola, uncle of film director francis ford coppola, conducted a twohour concert in tampa, florida, which included his own alternate ending for turandot, gongs and all. The contest for the perfect ending continues. Im jamie colby. Thanks for watching strange inheritance. And remember you cant take it with you. [ gong chimes resonating ] a babe who photographed babies. She would get them to do the craziest things. Becomes a celebrity herself. People knew her by name. She was a pinup. There were definitely stories of skiing with the kennedys, definitely a lavish lifestyle for sure. What was her secret . Isnt she adorable . What a winner shot. Is it still gold today . Is this collection potentially worth six figures, seven figures . [ door creaks ] [ wind howls ] [ thunder rumbles ] [ bird caws ] im jamie colby, and today im in littleton, colorado. Its a suburb of denver that, like all of suburbia, really expanded after world war ii because of the baby boom. And speaking of babies, every parent, including me, knows the frustration of trying to get your little one to smile at just the right moment for just the right photo. Well, were about to tell the story of a woman who turned that challenge into an art form. My name is lynda bannister. When my mother, constance, passed away in 2005, she left me more more than 100,000 baby photos. She was the most accomplished baby photographer of her day. Hi, lynda. Im jamie. Hi, jamie. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you, too. You wrote me about your mom and something about babies. Yes. Are they here . Yes, they are. Please come in. Okay. Inside lyndas house is her strange inheritance left to her by her mother, baby photographer Constance Bannister. Youve basically put together a museum all about your mom an