Tony Nicoletti was born and raised in the suburbs of south Los Angeles. He enlisted in the Army in 1972 and served as a forward air controller in Viet Nam from 1974 to 1976. Tony and Frank Morton met in June, 1975, when they were both assigned to a covert operation in Laos, and they have remained close friends ever since. Tony was discharged from the Army in 1976 and returned to southern California to become a long-haul truck driver. When his 5-year marriage ended in a bitter divorce, Tony moved to Atlanta where he was recruited by his former Viet Nam commander to covertly transport classified freight between U.S. military installations across the United States.