Bings Accept Offer of Free Lodging in Luxury Motel

LEEDS, England —  Former opera impresario Sir Rudolf Bing, whose $900,000 in assets have been frozen in the United States, has moved with his wife to a luxury motel after being offered three months’ free lodging and meals.

The 85-year-old former general manager of the New York Metropolitan Opera and his wife moved to the Cottage Motel in nearby Mirfield on Friday night from a boarding house in a run-down section of Leeds.

Peter Bunch, owner of the Cottage Motel and an opera lover, said he was delighted the Bings accepted his offer.

Lady Bing, 47, said they intended to stay at the motel until they organized their financial affairs.

The couple, who were married in Arlington, Va., on Jan. 9, came to Britain about 2 1/2 weeks ago after a long honeymoon in the Caribbean. Bing is a British citizen.

He is said to be suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, and courts in New York have declared him incapable of handling his affairs.