Catch Me if You Can Frank Abagnale is a FRAUD!
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- čas přidán 26. 03. 2023
- Frank Abagnale is one of the most notorious con artists in history and the inspiration behind Steven Spielberg's film Catch Me if You Can, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks. He claims that before his 19th birthday, he successfully performed cons worth millions of dollars by posing as a Pan American World Airways pilot, a Georgia doctor, and a Louisiana parish prosecutor.
But this is a complete embellishment. As Javier Leiva of the Pretend Podcast found out, Frank Abagnale was actually in PRISON while he supposedly carried out these elaborate cons. Listen to the podcast to hear how Javier uncovered the truth, and even confronted Frank Abagnale directly about his lies at a conference in Las Vegas! Don't miss this incredible interview!
Javier Leiva is the host of Pretend Podcast pretendradio.org/ and can also be found on his new CZcams channel at @PretendPod
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He apparently did do some pretty crazy stuff that can be verified. One time he snuck into first class even though he only payed for coach. Another time he tricked the flight attendant into giving him an extra bag of peanuts and another time he snuck an over sized bag on the plane when he was supposed to check it in. They eventually caught up to him and his trickster ways.
Lmao!
😅
I saw that whole 1st Class thing
Or was that Seinfeld
Do you mean that his story about being a fraud is itself fraudulent?
Yep. It’s quite meta.
😂😂😂 I ❤ it
😂😂😂
😂Lol
He realised that embellishing the story gave him greater exposure thus greater money earning potential. It worked. Essentially he was a small time thief......
Title for the sequel to "Catch Me If You Can":
"Caught Him 'Cause We Could"
Two mice fell into a bucket of cream...
Conned people into believing he was a con artist, absolute legend.
hollywood: based on a true story
me in 2000s: wow
me in 2020s: really?
I read about Abagnale being a fraud years ago, perhaps in the book by Logan that your guest mentioned. I’ve been surprised that he’s still kicking around peddling his wares. Every once in awhile, when it comes up in conversation, I share that Abagnale’s “story” was mostly a con about being a con.
Now that I think about it, I was living in Houston when he was there & there was a story in an underground newspaper. I also remember Logan’s book. I was first interested because of Abagnale’s first TV appearances & bought his book. It was a good read at the time.
I read the video headline myself and thought, well isn’t that the point?
Exactly. It's not like this was just uncovered.
Everyone loves a good story. Just look at Uri Geller - he was exposed as a fraud, then his fame took off and lots of people paid to see him perform.
When I watched the movie I thought it was pretty unbelievable story, but chalked it up to liberties taken by Spielberg. A good rule of thumb has always been to be skeptical of everything you hear . The scary thing is we are now entering an era where we can’t even trust what we see.
This isn't new to him. He gave a lecture in 1989 or so that I attended for my work. We got curious and began to research his claims. When there was no evidence to support his claims, we contacted him via phone and confronted him. He copt to it right away. He stated the same thing, that he did not write the book and that it was a fictionalized version of his life.
He's an old dog who can't learn new tricks, but his old one are still working for him
A narcissist's dream - that movie about what could have happened lol!
For sure.
I just started watching, but I thought him being a fraud was basically his claim to fame.
Yes. It’s crazy
Your calling this lier a lier?
@@samuelblackthorne9122 Sounds like Frankie is a fraud. Lol
Great to see so many people connecting to your Interesting content.
I saw him talk at a meeting for school board trustees. He's a very talented story teller.
I KNEW it!!! Just clicked, haven't even started, but 100% KNEW ever since I saw him talk about his life🕺🥳
I'd love to see a channel that explains how Hollywood distorts the truth. You'd have more material than you could handle.
Um ... that's already the topic of about a third of all videos on youtube.
Hollywood romanticizes criminals. Remember Bonnie & Clyde? The Mafia genre of films etc
True
I remember when this was new. As a pilot, I knew it was BS. Didn't bother reading the book or seeing the movie.
The book is entertaining regardless--well worth a read :)
Roger… and don’t call me Shirley.
Good on ya sir.
Fabulous! I’ll take a listen ❤
I'm not even mad, Catch Me If You Can is a hilarious flick 😂 the whole thing about how he passed the bar exam 😂 this is rad tho thank you for covering 🎉
Wow amazing just SUBBED to his podcast thankyou Eric.
Javier did a good job of flushing out Abagnale.
This reminds me of Richard Leonard Kuklinski, also known as The Iceman. He was pretending to be this prolific serial killer Hitman & there was a book & movie made about him. It was all a lie.
What, what? I've never heard he lied. I have heard that about Henry Lee Lucas. Can you share a source on that? I want to look into it.
Eric, you’re new logo/intro is awesome.
Your. You're is you are.
Thanks!
When I was much younger, I worked at Texas Instruments, my roommate and I were home one evening and a nice looking young man knocked at our door he said he was a Doctor sent by Texas Instruments to see how we were doing. My roommate was going to let him in, I said No. I just didn't like the idea that T.I. would be sending anyone to my address. I discovered the next day, he was just some perv going around and some people had actually let him in and he did "give them check ups" . Hard to believe, the nerve of some people.
Yikes
Hello! Andrew Gold sent me to your channel. New subscriber from Texas! 👍🏻🤠
“Caught You When I Could”
This was a cool video!
Yikes! I watched Frank since the movie and wondered how you could trust a con man not to con you. Could he really have a transformation to a honest man? Or is he still conning? Not likely. Where are our investigative reporters? I’m still looking for a bridge to buy
Came to your channel to hear about Scientology cross over w Manson & I'll be darned if I didn't come across this show about Frank! I found his story fascinating. Knew there would be literary license; actually heard Frank say as much following movie when others questioned how much of the Leonardo movie was true. Years later I read a few articles addressing this entire ordeal. Amazing. Another show, Eric, I find contemporary, deals w sociopathy as it relates to lying & of course, you're interested in crime & legal system as am I. Great show once again!! I applaud this young man's dedication to more victims who've not received proper compensation!!👏👏❤️❤️👏👏
Thanks so much! I’m glad you found it!
Wait a minute i read the book and wasted my time twice watching the movie. Wtf one of the most glorious stories is bs and the feds couldn't solve it shocker....lol
They made a movie to pretend that they figured it out lol
I like how the woman on Javier's podcast who was a former victim confronted him at one of his events. Actually more people need to do that. His net worth is $10 million. It looks like there could be some kind of lien against his estate.
No way he’s only worth $10M…
This is why I love technology, it puts power in peoples hands and gets rid of the information gatekeepers. Thank you for letting us know what you found in all your hard work.
Who fakes committing fraud?
It’s a new one.
Great guest👍👍👍👍
I agree!
I met him back just before 911 where I worked. He looked like Ben Franklin. My boss said don't laugh he said walked to our back office and dropped a huge thick book on my desk and said he wrote this. It was a book I referenced a few times. It was a book on check and money fraud. He was in town to speak to bankers. I've found his book every where I've worked
You worked at 911? For Bush or Israel?
Subscribed!
It's interesting how when you tell people he's a fraud and that there is verifiable evidence that proves it some people get SO angry. They WANT to believe his story so badly.
It would be very interesting to have the behavior panel analyze this interview to see if Javier is telling the truth
I’d like to watch this too 😂
He should have just been a writer. They are all con men!
Yes but writers at least say it's fiction usually.
I saw Abagnale, in San Francisco on a program called People Are Talking and someone on the show said, "He's a fraud". I think he was on after Frank Abagnale, but I don't remember who he was.
I never believed Abagnale's story. It's ridiculous.
Spielberg went off the rails.
Not a great movie. Not a great story.
L. Di Caprio should play F.Abagnale now in a movie called ‘You can catch if you try’ telling the real story of this crook and exposing him to all of us who enjoyed the original Spielberg movie 😂😂😮
I’ve seen this a couple places. I wonder why the prison records aren’t shown?
For a brief moment. Javier sounds like Christopher Walken at times 😂
Never let the truth get in the way of a good story,LOL
I actually hired Frank Abagnale to speak to a group several years ago. He was a tremendously warm and personable man, told a very compelling story, received thunderous applause, plus there was not a dry eye in the audience after his speech. Assuming his story is mostly fraudulent [as noted in this interview], kudos to him for selling his stories for as long as he has. I doubt most that have heard him speak would feel that they were "harmed" in any way by his stories, but I guess everyone is entitled to their opinion.....
That's fair if it stopped there. Sadly, he has left several people out of money etc along the way. I really encourage you to listen to the podcast series. This is just a primer.
Either way, thanks so much for watching!
@@erichunley Understand Eric, it's sad that Frank did not use some of the speaking fees that he has collected over the years to pay those people back that he had previously defrauded. since it would be the "right" thing to do, maybe sometime his conscience will catch up with him and he'll correct his previous wrongs in life. Great job on the interviews Eric, have been watching you, Viva Frei and several other LawTubers and the insights are always spot-on! 😁 👍
@@jim8990 He also probably sexually molested several women.
@Jim. Did you just put "Frank Abagnale" and "conscience" in the same sentence?
The women Frank may have molested were college students who wanted to be stewardesses. He was at a university pretending to be a pilot and a doctor interviewing female students for stewardess positions. He gave the students fake physicals. He also may have molested the future wife of his booking agent. Frank is a great storyteller and a very compelling speaker. He is also a compulsive liar. Almost everything he says about his past is false. You really should listen to the Pretend podcast about Frank to see what type of man Frank really is.
I knew the BR story had to be bs.. but I did think the Publisher and Spelberg would have checked him out.
This guy is very pleased with himself
Where can I buy a pilots uniform. 😅
Asking for a friend? 😂
Hanks and Leo were great in the film at the time I really wondered about passing the bar exam in LA.
Saw him speak at a corporate event- very convincing guy.
Saw this video then I listened to Javier’s podcast.
“Catch Me if I Con” is the perfect name for an accurate biopic about Abignale’s life.
I don't give ANY name at Starbucks. I just tell them I don't give my name. They just say ok and make my drink.
Hi @Eric Hunley, this is really informative, I do know someone who ended up in jail for being a "Catch Me If You Can," guy, he went to my church, came from a really sound (rich) family, and his crime really shocked all of us. That said, I am bothered about the language being used when discussing children, although Javier is saying this is not his issue, it sounds like it is. This is very concerning if true ... thoughts?
His behavior is unusual and Javier covers it in the podcast. I am extremely careful though and never want to imply anything more than what has been shown or proven because that is a despicable charge.
@@erichunley Agreed and thank you, that's one of those crimes we all need to tread lightly on. Thank you for your great coverage.
My mother really admired Abignale. It occurs to me that he could be a “Puer Aeternus” and also, if you have access to children, you have access to their vulnerable, naive mothers who would regard him as an authority figure.
....... he never made it out of bootcamp . Do a FOIA request... a persons military service is PUBLIC RECORD.
A lie gets half way around the world before the truth gets it boots on.
I wonder if Abagnale read Harry Harrison's STAINLESS STEEL RAT novels. The protagonist of those novels is a con-man in the future who is ultimately caught and then becomes an agent for an FBI-like future law enforcement agency . . . as I dimly recall, having read those books back in the early '80s, around the same time I read CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (which is a fun read, one has to admit).
I read the Stainless Steel Rat books in high school too. To me he was the space age version of James Bond. What really stuck in my memory was his gadget that could miniaturize big equipment like tanks or artillery and enlarge them again once the Stainless Steel Rat is inside the enemy's turf. I think it's the coolest and the most useful gadget a secret operative could have. Who needs a supply airdrop deep in enemy held territory if you got a warehouse of ordnance.inside your pocket?
Its not surprising the movie is wrong. What is surprising was all his lies in his Google talk.
Would love to see the real life timeline alongside the FA story timelina.
The children are his hype men. Everyone loves the super hero teacher or helper. Makes him get instant trust
He lives in Isle Of Palms near me in South Carolina. I waited on him when I a server.
the FBI needed someone to teach them how to be successful cons.
Abignale NEVER worked for or with the FBI in any capacity.
When you have to choose between history and legend, print the legend.
Was Spielberg complicit in the fraud? His film opens with “Based on a true story.”
That is allowable. He didn't say it was a true story but even that can be done. See Fargo.
Behavior Panel! Please analyse!
They really don't need too. There's too much evidence.
Jealousy has its' dangers
Shocked 😮🤣🤣🤣🙈
Yup!
Amazing, so he's a remarkable con-man about being a remarkable con-man.
A fake fraudster ?!? I read his book when I was in jail .. loved the detail of using model airplane decals of the Pan Am logo carefully applied to a bum check.
The book reads well BUT after watching him speak…I could tell he was lying…I was disappointed…I wanted it to be true..lol.
Assume everything is a scam unless otherwise proven, the American way is to get your name out there regardless of how or what the outcome is. Hype is the word and hype has value.
Just goes to show ... Spielberg ( as great as He is at making movies ) ... does next to little, or no research regarding the actual truth contained within His movies. (why is that!)
Surely He is not driven by some sort of agenda? 😅🤣😂
He's totally driven by an agenda!
Yep .. i can see the likeness in their Hair styles.
Hey Hunley...New Subscriber! I would like to know if it's true that the FBI actually hired him to teach security!
After you hear the real story.. it makes so much sense
Amazing.
Lol in the film at the start his family get evicted n it makes out our hero is doing it all to get his family's money back .. but that theme kinda disappeared didn't it haha.
Well yeah, that’s literally the whole point of the movie.
A scammer who tells the same story almost verbatim time and again. Almost sounds like Ruth Paine. 😊
D.B Cooper should have waited view years and came out, he also would have got the red carpet treatment ! Strange world. Interesting, will look at his utube stuff. Nice one Eric, always interesting.
Infamy is what the play turned film, "Chicago" is all about.
DB Cooper would be going to Federal prison for a very long time, he might be a novelty but rest assured he made a damn fool of the FBI and they won't be forgiving him any time soon.
I watched his interview on the Tonight Show with Carson. His story from that interview doesn't seem to match later ones he tells. He did say often that when he ran away, he never saw his dad again. Strange story. Does he still work for the FBI? Did he really work there for decades?
Getting jobs around kids...you answered your own question. He probably was taking jobs like that knowing there would be plenty of young women involved, mothers and employees.
Could be.
NAVY?? HE WAS kicked out of bootcamp
This little cuban tells a great story
Oh my G-d! You DID say the UofA…University of Arizona??? 😮
He did.
My Starbucky's name is now going to be--Hunley :)
Years ago when I learn that the movie "Papillon" was not true it effected me deeply as it was suppose to be based on a true story. Now I don't believe most things without major research of my own. A plus for deciphering B.S. in any search for truth but be ready for major disappointment. You have been lied to on epic proportion.
Working for FBI is he?… what a fitting ending
No. Abignale NEVER worked for or with the FBI.
interesting. reminds me of finding out rubin carter was actually guilty, apparently..
Such a great story, anyway. At least many realize Hollywood is fiction, many don't. Great movie and fiction.
That's 3 for three a actor, producer/director, audience/us that ole frank Hoodwinked!😮
Next you're gonna tell me the Wolf of Wallstreet wasn't an accurate movie
The film definitely added some things that didn’t actually happen
I like Robert Barnes. He's a great man.
I agree with you.
Well yeah... thats the point right?
Good stuff! Very interesting. One thing I wanna know for sure is that: Was he ever working for the FBI or not? If that's a lie, well that would be the biggest lie ever from him 🤔..and most disappointing
I spoke with the FBI and guess what their response was. No, seriously. I'll wait. They could neither confirm nor deny that he works there. Can you believe it? Why won't they just put a stop to this fiasco? BTW, his son really does work for the FBI
He never worked for the FBI. He occasionally spoke for free at the FBI.
@À StrandC an person get that info from the FBI? What if someone asked about him from that 3 letter organization? Would they answer?🤔
Just watch him appear on Johnny Carson , 80s tonight show?? He doesn't mention anything about working for the
The FBI. But Johnny eat up his
Story.
@@David-lo1fo I need to see that!
I'd rather hear about the bare foot bandit
What about passing the bar? or not passing
That’s just true either although it wouldn’t have been impossible. Virginia and California both allow people to take the bar without law school.
Abignale never passed the bar anywhere.