NEW YORK, May 8 (UPI) -- The founder of Benihana restaurants is suing his heirs for "wresting" control of the family's businesses, dipping into a trust and spying on his new wife.
Rocky Aoki claims his children are leaving him struggling to support himself while selling off assets -- including $2.7 million of Benihana Inc. stock -- without asking his permission or giving him a dime, the New York Post reported.
Aoki's adult children believe their father has fallen under the spell of their strong-willed stepmother, 51-year-old Keiko Ono, a one-time Miss Tokyo, who they say is out to snare their inheritance.
Aoki built the international restaurant chain from scratch after first coming to New York in 1959 as a member of the Japanese Olympic wrestling team.
The young immigrant drove a truck in Harlem selling ice cream with Japanese cocktail umbrellas until 1964, when he was able to open a restaurant featuring food cooked on a hibachi grill.
Aoki entertained customers with knife-flashing chefs tossing ingredients in the air, and attracted the likes of John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Rod Stewart and Barbra Streisand.
