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Catch Me If You Can: The
Amazing True Story of the Most Extraordinary Liar in the History of Fun and
Profit by Stan Redding,
Frank W. Abagnale
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- Paperback: 277 pages ; Dimensions (in inches):
0.81 x 8.01 x 5.31
- Publisher: Broadway Books; ISBN: 0767905385; (August
1, 2000)
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When this true-crime story
first appeared in 1980, it made the New York Times bestseller list within
weeks. Two decades later, it's being re-released in conjunction with a film
version produced by DreamWorks.
In the space of five years,
Frank Abagnale passed $2.5 million in fraudulent checks in every state and
26 foreign countries.
He did it by pioneering
implausible and brazen scams, such as impersonating a Pan Am pilot (puddle
jumping around the world in the cockpit, even taking over the controls).
He also played the role
of a pediatrician and faked his way into the position of temporary resident
supervisor at a hospital in Georgia.
Posing as a lawyer, he conned
his way into a position in a state attorney general's office, and he taught
a semester of college-level sociology with a purloined degree from Columbia
University.
The kicker is, he was actually a teenage high school dropout. Now an
authority on counterfeiting and secure documents, Abagnale tells of his years
of impersonations, swindles, and felonies with humor and the kind of confidence
that enabled him to pull off his poseur performances. "Modesty is not one of
my virtues.
At the time, virtue was not one of my virtues," he writes. In fact, he
did it all for his overactive libido--he needed money and status to woo the
girls.
He also loved a challenge and the ego boost that came with playing important
men. What's not disclosed in this highly engaging tale is that Abagnale was
released from prison after five years on the condition that he help the government
write fraud-prevention programs.
So, if you're planning to pick up some tips from this highly detailed
manifesto on paperhanging, be warned: this master has already foiled you.
--Lesley Reed
Book Description
Frank W. Abagnale, alias Frank Williams, Robert Conrad,
Frank Adams, and Robert Monjo, was one of the most daring con men, forgers,
imposters, and escape artists in history.
In
his brief but notorious criminal career, Abagnale donned a pilot's uniform
and copiloted a Pan Am jet, masqueraded as the supervising resident of a hospital,
practiced law without a license, passed himself off as a college sociology
professor, and cashed over $2.5 million in forged checks, all before he was
twenty-one.
Known
by the police of twenty-six foreign countries and all fifty states as "The
Skywayman," Abagnale lived a sumptuous life on the lam-until the law caught
up with him.
Now
recognized as the nation's leading authority on financial foul play, Abagnale
is a charming rogue whose hilarious, stranger-than-fiction international escapades,
and ingenious escapes-including one from an airplane-make Catch Me If You Can
an irresistible tale of deceit.
The uproarious, bestselling true story of the world's most sought-after con
man currently in development as a DreamWorks feature film.
"I stole every nickel and blew it on fine threads, luxurious lodgings, fantastic
foxes, and other sensual goodies. I partied in every capital in Europe and
basked on all the world's most famous beaches."
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