CHARLIE'S AN ANGEL?

CHARLES KEATING, DEMON OF THE $500 BILLION S&L; FIASCO, IS NOW INNOCENT. SORT OF

The buzz ricochets like a hot stock tip from table to table on the spectacular dining terrace of the $600 million Phoenician resort hotel in Scottsdale, Arizona. Charles H. Keating Jr., his head held high, his gangly 6 ft. 5 in. frame clad in rolled-up blue jeans and a Windbreaker, strides in, startling a middle-aged couple at lunch. The man, still in golf togs, drops a steak knife and says, "Edith, I can't believe he's out of prison; it's the guy who built this hotel."

Oblivious to the commotion he is causing, Keating table-hops and shakes hands with hotel staff. The...

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