This book examines a broad range of infamous scams, cons, swindles, and hoaxes throughout American history—and considers why human gullibility continues in an age of easy access to information.
Covering American cons and hoaxes past and present, including the Great Moon Hoax of 1835, the controversy over "subliminal messaging" (do bands, filmmakers, and advertisers really put secret messages in their works?), the panic about "satanic" daycare operators in the 1980s, and recent Internet scams, this book provides a fascinating, fact-based look at infamous frauds across the centuries. Offering an engaging mix of history, sociology, and psychology, author Nate Hendley gives readers an appreciation of how prominent scams, cons, "confidence men," and hoaxes have impacted American society, past and present.
Each entry details the scheme or hoax and the pertinent con artist/schemer involved, examining the sociological, cultural, political, and/or economic effect of the scams. Each topic is accompanied by a short bibliography of further reading selections. As the old saying goes, "There is a sucker born every minute"—and there has always been a keen-eyed swindler to take advantage of the situation. The Big Con: Great Hoaxes, Frauds, Grifts, and Swindles in American History explores this sordid underbelly of American civilization and invites readers to revel in the felonious experience.
Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Section One
Classic Cons
Introduction
Short Cons
The Gold Brick
Pig in a Poke
The Fiddle Game
Dog Store
The Glim Dropper
The Pigeon Drop
Change Raising
The Smack
The Tat
The Money Machine
Hot Seat
Femme Fatale
Modeling/Talent Agency
Clip Joint
Fake Auction
Street Vendor with a Van
Sleazy Street Vendor
Mentally Handicapped Person
Distressed Car Owner
Big Cons
The Fight Store
The Wire
The Payoff
The Rag
The Bigger Rag
Rigging the Numbers Racket
The Spanish Prisoner
Classic Card Scams
Huge Duke
Bill Kaplan's Card Sharks
Three-Card Monte
Section Two
Business Fraud
Introduction
Advance Fee Fraud
Affinity Fraud
ATM Skimming
Counterfeiting
Charles Ponzi
Pyramid Schemes
Pump and Dump
Leo Koretz
Section Three
Despicable Scams
Introduction
Disaster Scams
Natural Disasters
Man-Made Disasters
Faking Cancer
Faking Car Accidents
Funeral Fraud
Faked Funerals
Prepaid Ponzi
Scamming Senior Citizens
The Grandparents Scam
Phony Phone Numbers
Veteran Scams
Additional Scams Involving Senior Citizens
Surrogacy/Adoption Fraud
Deceiving Prospective Parents
Selling Babies
Scamming Donors, Surrogates, and Prospective Parents
Section Four
Great Pretenders
Introduction
Frank Abagnale
James Capone (aka Richard Joseph "Two-Gun" Hart)
Emperor Norton of San Francisco
Iron Eyes Cody
Joseph Pistone (aka "Donnie Brasco")
Section Five
Hoaxes, Urban Legends, and Popular Delusions
Introduction
Alan Abel, Master Hoaxer
The Bermuda Triangle
The Black Hand Extortion Racket
Blackout Babies
The Cardiff Giant
Daycare Devils
Extraterrestrials
Alien Abduction
Roswell
The Great Chess Automaton
Kentucky Fried Lies
Learned Nonsense
The Lurid Confessions of Maria Monk
New York Newspaper Hoaxes
Man-Bats on the Moon
Wild Cats in Manhattan
The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion
The War of the Worlds Broadcast
Section Six
Dubious Remedies
Introduction
Drugs
Patent Medicines
Reefer Madness
Curious Cancer Cures
Goat Gonad Therapy
Health Care Fraud
Energizing Elixirs
Therapeutic Touch
Homeopathy
Energy Medicine Devices
Dr. Albert Abrams
William Nelson
Psychic Surgery
Radium Medicine
Repressed Memories and Multiple Personality Disorder
Section Seven
Online Scams
Introduction
Internet Dating Fraud
Malware
The Nigerian Letter
Phishing/Vishing
Phony Rentals and Auctions
Phone Fraud
Cramming
Jury Duty Scam
Telemarketing Fraud
Fake Tech Support
Section Eight
Para-Abnormal Fraud
Introduction
The Amityville Horror
Sylvia Browne
Dowsing for Water—or Bombs
The Fox Sisters
Remote Viewing
Section Nine
Pop Culture Cons
Introduction
Buffalo Bill and the Myth of the "Wild West"
Fake Sports/Celebrity Memorabilia
James Frey: A Million Little Falsehoods
The Mis-Education of Little Tree
Movie Cons
The Grifters (1990)
American Hustle (2013)
Argo (2012)
Elmer Gantry (1960)
The Hustler (1961)
The Sting (1973)
The 1919 World Series
Damon Runyon, Chronicler of the Underworld
Subliminal Messaging
Politics
The 1876 Presidential Election
The 1948 Texas Democratic Primary
Teapot Dome
William "Big Bill" Thompson
Section Ten
A Gallery of Rogues (and One Hero)
Introduction
P. T. Barnum, Showman Extraordinaire
Jordan Belfort, "The Wolf of Wall Street"
Steve Brodie, The Bridge Jumper
Rita Crundwell, Municipal Menace
The Lonely Hearts Killers
Bernie Madoff
Old-School Swindlers
William Thompson
George C. Parker
Joseph Weil, "The Yellow Kid"
Linda Taylor, The Welfare Queen
Kevin Trudeau, TV Pitchman
Harry Houdini, Ghost Buster
Section Eleven
Interviews
Interview with Alan Abel
Interview with Dr. Stephen Barrett
Interview with Dean Jobb
Interview with James Randi
Selected Bibliography
Index
About the Author :
Nate Hendley is a freelance writer and author. He has written several books, primarily in the true-crime genre.
Review :
Serious students and general readers alike will marvel at fraudsters' ingenuity and cringe at human gullibility (sometimes fed by greed). Consider for all public libraries.
[A] good overview and resource for public and academic libraries aimed at all levels of beginning students. Summing Up: Recommended. High school, community college, and undergraduate students; general readers.
The Big Con is a big book, almost 400 pages, and as such, it is very authoritative, making it a great reference book to have for those who enjoy reading true crime, crime fiction, or who are born skeptics and get a certain 'kick' out reading how easily people can be fooled. . . . Very readable The Big Con is one of those books that you can pick up and start reading anywhere. There is an extensive bibliography at the back for further reading suggestions. Mr Hendley has done sceptics a genuine courtesy by assembling the history of frauds, cons, scams and hoaxes into one beautiful volume. . . . [T]his book is perfect reading for the casual reader, true crime/fiction aficionado, and sceptic.
For a comprehensive guide to how the likes of Clem, Lehwess, and other slick-talkers operate, check out The Big Con: Great Hoaxes, Frauds, Grifts, and Swindles in American History. . . . [E]ntertaining and informative.
