Others capture a sense of the sacred in the middle of Australia's Outback, where Ayer's Rock -- or Uluru, as it's known to the Aborigines -- stands.

CNN: Spiritual destinations

Where other archivists were reverently accumulating the papers of Lincoln or Dickens, he wanted Myrna Loy's dry-cleaning bills, Freddie Ayer's cheque stubs and Basil Rathbone's phone bills, if he could get them.

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To them , Ayer's Rock represents the delicate balance between ancient traditions, modern society and nature.

CNN: Spiritual destinations

In looking ahead, Mr. Ayer's experience at Alaska brings him back to what's basic at any other business: First worry about making money.

WSJ: The Weekend Interview with Bill Ayer: An Airline That Makes Money. Really.

One of Ayer's first appointments, though, was of a very different sort of man: John Watling, a student of physics and psychology who had taken to attending philosophy seminars.

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Hartford Insurance's chief executive, Ramani Ayer, was born in India.

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"I don't believe in the chupacabra, " Ayer said, adding that he's been in the midst of a "media blitz" -- receiving 50 phone calls from media outlets and citizens, as well as death threats late at night -- since word got out about the strange beast.

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Mr. Ayer says he isn't interested in a tie-up with a bigger carrier, and Alaska's high stock price keeps unwanted suitors away.

WSJ: The Weekend Interview with Bill Ayer: An Airline That Makes Money. Really.