In 1973, 16-year-old John Paul Getty III, grandson of billionaire oil tycoon J. Paul Getty, was kidnapped in Rome. The kidnappers demanded $17 million, but his grandfather initially refused, suspecting the abduction might be a hoax. The situation escalated dramatically when the kidnappers mailed the boy’s severed ear to a newspaper. Only then did Getty agree to pay a portion — $2.2 million — and loaned the rest to the boy’s father with interest. John Paul was eventually released after five month