The shadow side of a cardboard king

When attention turned to the question of his role in a $700 million price-fixing cartel, it was his supporters who were heard, in righteous anger, saying he was being hounded to his death by a vengeful regulator. They vowed to have criminal charges withdrawn, to clear his name, have his surrendered honours, including the Companion of the Order of Australia, posthumously re-awarded.

After his death, at his state memorial service, he was eulogised by Rudd and Premier John Brumby.

But 14 months after his death, when last month's Queen's Birthday honours list was issued, it was silent on the subject of Richard Pratt. He will now never be officially honoured. Instead, it was his tormentor, Graeme Samuel of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, who was made a Companion of the Order of Australia.

And now Sydney-based Penthouse Pet and former prostitute Madison Ashton has come forward to claim part of his $5 billion empire. This smashes the spin surrounding Pratt's long-term relationship with his official mistress, Shari-Lea Hitchcock, that the tycoon's life was simply ''unconventional'' and ''European'', and that he was devoted to two families, not just one.

But some former executives and competitors, people who were bullied, damaged and ripped off by Pratt, say it's now time to balance the ledger of his life. 

A Sunday Age investigation has revealed a dark side to Pratt that played out through decades of questionable business deals and borderline criminality - allegations of bribes, thugs, systematic tax evasion, intimidation, the use of prostitutes and the purchase of political influence.