Tilburger Frank Halters was once a rich man. He was manager of stars such as Nance, Berget Lewis and Jeroen van der Boom. Lived with his family in a villa in the Gooi. But then came that fateful day in 2014. His girlfriend died after alleged drug use and Halters was accused of being negligent. He ended up in jail and lost everything. Now he is working on a book about his extreme life.
The love for showbiz was instilled in the young Frank from an early age. His father was a member of the Tilburg carnival association and ensured that stars such as Imca Marina and Ben Cramer came to perform. Book artists: that’s what Frank wanted too.
“Berg Lewis? No dog knew her when I discovered her.”
He moved to Hilversum and quickly made a career: “I got along well with artists, I didn’t think anything was too crazy. With Tony Neef I came up with a party act with German music: Heidi und die Heino’s. I did the Madonna cover act Mad’House, which became a worldwide success. Berget Lewis? Hardly any dog knew her when I discovered her. But she could sing! I had never heard anything like it.”
But the economic crisis in 2008 hit Frank hard. Companies ran out of money for the expensive events he organized. Only the artists were still making money. But Berget Lewis switched to another manager and Nance was fired from SBS6.
In 2012, Frank’s company went bankrupt. “It was suddenly over from my villa in Laren and playing in the Champions League of the entertainment industry. I was able to report to the municipality, sat in the waiting room at the social services and was sent home with 1050 euros.”
But the real disaster was yet to come. In 2011, Frank had met a new girlfriend: Marjo. “On February 22, 2014 we went to a dance party in Haaren. We didn’t like it there and drove to their hotel with a few acquaintances. Marjo didn’t feel well there, she got a puller. I was familiar with that, it was more common when she had taken GHB. So I put her in the car and drove home.”
On the way, back to Haarlem, Frank thought that Marjo was sleeping in the car: “Everything went well. I drive into the street with me, park the car, open the door and she fell sideways like dead.”
“I almost drove out the barrier and screamed everything together.”
Frank quickly drives to a nearby hospital: “I almost drove out the barrier at the emergency room and screamed and shouted everything there.” CPR helps hospital staff get Marjo’s heart going again. But two days later she dies in intensive care.
Later, Marjo’s relatives ask the court to prosecute Frank after all. And that happens. In 2016, the judge ruled that he had made the wrong choice: he should have gone straight to the hospital when Marjo was not feeling well, instead of going home first. Frank is convicted of unintentional death. He has to go to jail for four months.
“I definitely feel guilty about it,” he says, “But I don’t think I should have been convicted. I think I was already punished enough by everything that happened because of the death of Marjo himself and what happened because of the sentencing.”
“I am an A-brand and you are a stain on my blazon.”
The prison sentence was the end of the song, says Frank: “Eighty percent of the people I knew no longer wanted to be associated with me. I got a message like, ‘Frank, I know how you are. But I hope you understand that I am an A-brand Well-known Dutchman and that I have to protect my brand. And you are a stain on my escutcheon.’”
“People always choose for themselves”, says Frank about it. “But it made me resilient and I fought.” He turned his back on Hilversum. He got into a new relationship with Jacqueline and started an online store with home decorations with her.
And besides that, Frank is writing his book. He already has the title: ‘Outspoken’. He is trying to get financing through crowdfunding.
Contacts are now being made again from the show world. A month ago Frank suddenly received a text from Berget Lewis: “She wants a bite to eat and I will of course do that. This does a lot for me.”
