One evening in October, 1937, New York Supreme Court Justice, Edgar J. Lauer and his wife, Elma, were hosting a formal dinner party in their lavish Park Avenue apartment. Guests included Publisher William Weintraub, “London and Paris Financier” Serge Rubenstein, three unidentified guests and Albert Chaperau (real name, Nathan Schapiro) who claimed to be a Nicaraguan diplomat but was actually a Polish-born ex-con who had served 18 months in Leavenworth Penitentiary for mail fraud.
Over dinner, the esteemed group was discussing their opposition to Adolf Hitler and the increased persecution of Jews in Nazi Germany. Serving the dinner was the Lauer’s maid, Rosa Weber, a German citizen and, unknown to the Lauers, a fervent supporter of Hitler. After hearing one too many comments criticizing her Fuehrer, Weber reportedly announced to the stunned group, “Ladies and gentlemen, I am a true German. I love Adolf Hitler. If you don’t stop talking against him, I will stop serving the dinner right now”.
Justice Lauer fired her on the spot, causing Weber to declare on her way out that she would get even. The next day, Rosa Weber was sitting in a U.S. Customs Enforcement office describing to agents how Mrs. Lauer acquired her expensive Parisian fashions (anyone who has watched even 30 minutes of Downton Abbey or The Gilded Age knows that the servants know everything). The former maid divulged to the feds the central role of Albert Chaperau as well as the involvement of prominent radio and movie comedians, Jack Benny and George Burns, in the tariff-avoiding schemes.
Chaperau was the key figure in all of this. His forged Nicaraguan diplomatic credentials allowed him to enter the U.S. without his trunks or bags being searched, thereby avoiding paying any of the required duties, or tariffs, on high-end French jewelry, fashions and accessories. He would then gift or sell these luxury items to his wealthy friends and celebrities.
In the case of Benny, the two had initially met in Hollywood, probably through socializing at elite venues or through mutual friends. Chaperau was also an aspiring film and theater producer so providing gifts and favors for Hollywood types and influential New Yorkers would, ideally, further that ambition. In fact, IMDB lists Chaperau as a producer of the 1937 French film, L'affaire du courrier de Lyon.
In the summer of 1937 Benny and his wife and performing partner, Mary Livingstone, were vacationing in Europe. One lovely morning they were enjoying breakfast at the outdoor restaurant of their hotel in Cannes when who should approach and join them but Albert Chaperau. Jack and Mary were excited to show their friend the expensive French jewelry that Jack had purchased for her in Paris: two diamond-studded gold clips and a diamond-studded gold bracelet (total value: U.S. $2,131.00 … $48,500 in 2025 dollars).
The Benny’s must have shared with Chaperau their departure plans because the next morning, Benny and Livingstone were on the station platform waiting to board the train which would carry them to the north of France and their ship back to the U.S. when, again, Chaperau appeared, offering to bring the jewels back to the U.S. for the Benny’s - that way Jack could avoid paying the approx. $700 tariff ($16,000 in 2025 dollars). Benny agreed.
After returning to the States, Chaperau gave the smuggled jewels to Benny's close friend, George Burns, who passed them on to Benny. Clearly intrigued by this money-saving scheme, Burns then purchased additional French baubles from Chaperau for his wife, Gracie Allen.
Shortly after Rosa Weber’s meeting with U.S. customs, Justice and Mrs. Lauer’s Manhattan apartment was thoroughly searched by agents. Ms. Weber’s interview, together with documents found in the search led the Feds to Chaperau, who was soon arrested for smuggling. Chaperau reached out to his celebrity customers for help with his bail money but was refused.
This abandonment by his supposed “friends” resulted in Chaperau also naming names. His cooperation later paid dividends when, in 1940, President Roosevelt commuted his 5-year sentence in this affair to time served as consideration for his cooperation in the prosecution of the Benny and Burns cases. So, Chaperau only ended up serving 15 months of his 5-year sentence.
Jack Benny and George Burns were served with federal subpoenas in Los Angeles, requiring them to appear and testify before a New York grand jury. Jack suffered from a famously severe fear of flying, forcing him to take trains when traveling in the U.S. In 1938, the fastest train service between Los Angeles and New York took 55 hours! Meaning the round trip to go to New York and back to L.A. took Benny nearly five full days of train travel.
George Burns, on the other hand, flew to New York and back on one of the newly introduced Douglas DC-3 planes, a nearly 19-hour flight each way in 1938, including refueling stops.
The result of the grand jury testimony was indictments for Benny and Burns for smuggling, in addition to Elma Lauer and Chaperau, even though the comedians had never actually smuggled anything themselves.
George Burns pled guilty to smuggling charges on Dec. 12, 1938 and was fined $8,000 (approx. $175,000 in 2025 dollars), given a suspended sentence of one year and a day and was put on probation for one year.
Jack Benny pleaded not guilty and had to return to NY federal court on April 4, 1939 (he had gotten up the courage to fly by this time). As the hearing began before a standing-room-only crowd, Benny’s lawyer told Judge Vincent L. Leibell that Mr. Benny wished to change his plea to guilty.
Judge Leibell accepted the plea but then went on to excoriate Benny for his naivete and lack of good judgement remarking that Benny “should have been smart enough not to fall into a plan of that kind”. And, “Apparently, we need a guardian for a good many of these people who become prominent and wealthy”.
The moralizing judge finally couldn’t resist taking Benny down yet another notch saying, “You must feel very much ashamed of yourself, Mr. Benny, standing here as you do today”. To which a standing, red-faced Benny replied, “I do feel ashamed”.
Finally, the judge pronounced sentence: One year and a day in jail - suspended; a $10,000 fine ($225,000 in inflation-adjusted 2025 dollars); and, one year of probation. Leibell gave Benny until 4 p.m. that afternoon to pay the fine or he would be held in a cell until it was paid.
One of Jack’s lawyers delivered a cashiers check to the court by 3 p.m., allowing the comedian to make his scheduled return flight to L.A.
So, what became of our other players in this scheme? Elma Lauer pleaded guilty, was fined $2,500 and served 3 months in prison. The scandal also resulted in Edgar Lauer resigning from his seat on the New York Supreme Court.
Rosa Weber was rewarded by the federal government for her whistleblowing with a reward of $6,714 ($151,000 in 2025 dollars) - 25% of the $26,816 penalty imposed on the smuggled articles. After collecting her reward and testifying, Rosa Weber disappeared from the news and faded from public view.
Albert Chaperau resurfaced in 1945 when he sued Benny and Burns for $7,682, the amount he was fined in their case. His argument was that he was merely serving as the agent for the two comedians and they should be responsible for his fine. The suit was dismissed.