The right ear of John Paul Getty III is delivered to a newspaper outlet along with a ransom note, convincing his father to pay US$2.9 million.

John Paul Getty III was the grandson of the American-born British oil tycoon J. Paul Getty (1892–1976), who was once the richest man in the world. While living in Rome in 1973, he was kidnapped by the 'Ndrangheta, an Italian criminal organization based in Calabria, and held for a $17 million ransom. His grandfather was reluctant to pay, but, after John Paul Getty III's severed ear was received by a newspaper, the grandfather negotiated a payment of $2.2 million, and Getty was released five months after being kidnapped. Getty subsequently developed an addiction to alcohol and other drugs, leading to an overdose and stroke in 1981 which left him severely disabled for the rest of his life.