- Paperback: 277 pages
- Publisher: Broadway Books (A Division of Bantam Doubleday Del; 1st Broadway Books Trade Pbk. Ed edition (July 2000)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0767905385
- ISBN-13: 978-0767905381
- Product Dimensions: 13.1 x 1.6 x 20.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 276,571 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Catch Me If You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake
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Product Description
Book Description
Now a major motion picture starring Leonardo Dicaprio and Tom Hanks.
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.
Product 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."
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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A MAN'S ALTER EGO is nothing more than his favourite image of himself. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
A MAN'S ALTER EGO is nothing more than his favourite image of himself. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
31 of 31 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
… and there was nothing wrong with the film! Although the film was only ‘inspired by’ the book, perhaps 30-40% of the book is in the film. With one or two notable exceptions (the relationship between FBI and Abagnale, and Franks con of fellow schoolmates, which is not in the book, and the ending of the film) I found the book to be far more fascinating than the film.
From his first con of his father, through his career as paperhanger, cheque swindler and con man, Frank Abagnale at 17 was at the time the youngest of his breed ever. Here he describes how he was able to take advantage of banks, airlines (one of his most successful scams as a co-pilot allowed him to travel throughout the USA and then the rest of the world), hospitals, universities… almost any institution one might care to name. Frank scammed them all, with charm, flair and ingenuity. He was caught occasionally, and if he couldn’t talk his way out of it, he could usually escape (not from the French, and he didn’t even try with the Swedes). Far from being a hardened criminal, Frank essentially did this to fund adventures with women, much like any teen might want to do. Frank’s sheer out and out daring, his intelligence, his ability to lie at the drop of a hat and unrepentantly, and the unorthodox nature of his crimes make for compelling reading. The book does end a little up in the air, but this is resolved by an Afterword.
A charming and entertaining read.
21 of 21 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I'll admit it. I never would have read this book if it was not for the movie that came out last year. I still haven't seen the movie but decided that perhaps the book would be interesting since it was written by the subject of the movie. I didn't learn until the end of the book (in a Q&A section with the author) that this was written in 1980. Abagnale has a very easy going style and it almost feels like he is right there next to you telling you this wild story of his youth.
Catch Me If You Can is an interesting, exciting, fast paced novel that is a pure joy to read. I don't know if I can put it better than that. This was a book that I simply did not want to put down and I flew through the book. The plot of the memoir is the criminal career of Frank Abagnale (he has since paid his debt to society and now works to prevent exactly the sort of crime that he once committed). Frank Abagnale was a con man. He began his career at a young age (15) conning gas station attendants to give him cash when he pays with his father's credit card. The leads to Frank leaving home, moving to New York City and trying to begin an honest life. Unfortunately, Frank's one main vice is women, and to be with women he needs to have more money than a 16 year old high school dropout can earn. So he begins to con.
Frank's primary method of conning was passing bad checks. However, he found that it is easier to make the con if he is a member of a well respected profession. Frank researches every role that he plays so that he will be as convincing as humanly possible without actually having to do that job. In some cases, he was able to con so well that he was paid for it and he didn't have to forge checks. The professions that Frank had impersonated were: Pilot, Doctor (he was paid to be on staff but not actually have to practice for nearly a year), Lawyer (he managed to pass the bar on his third try and worked as a laywer despite having no background in law), and a Professor (he taught two summer courses). The reason everything worked so well was that Frank is an extremely smart man and nobody expected this sort of con.
As was expected (and as Frank expected), he was eventually caught (and escaped, and was caught again), and part of the book dealt with Frank's ride through the prison systems (France and Sweden play prominent roles).
I can't say enough good things about this book. It was so interesting to read and I would recommend it to anybody.
-Joe Sherry
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
In an era when it is not unknown for a head of state to be judicially appointed rather than popularly elected, a highly entertaining tale of fraud, deceit, imposture, and usurpation seems highly appropriate. Unlike recent cameos of a winsome actress caught shoplifting or of a Hollywood "bagel-baby" producer caught forging the signature of a granite-jawed actor on a personal check, the reader of Catch Me if You Can is treated to snapshots of the protagonist - a high-school dropout - passing a southern state's bar examination and appointed an assistant attorney general, awarded a license to practice medicine in the state of Georgia, hired as a university professor of sociology in Utah, handed the controls of a 707, hiring coeds to model Pan Am uniforms throughout Europe. One close-up of the "doctor" at work will suffice: "This guy had a complaint about his foot. 'I'm a pediatrician. You want a podiatrist.' That one had mysterious pains in his stomach. 'I suggest you talk to your own doctor.' A brunette had an 'odd, tight feeling' around her upper chest. I examined the brunette. Her brassiere was too small." But the escape artist's "luck" also has a dark side: arrested and thrown into a dungeon in Perpignan, France; fed only bread, gruel, and water; never permitted to bathe, shave, or attend to other personal hygiene; harassed by sadistic guards; and left to rot for six months, he is finally extradited to humane Sweden suffering from severe malnutrition, vitamin deficiency, and double pneumonia. After recovering for six months, he is saved from extradition to Italy and then Spain, in whose barbaric prisons he faces certain death, by a compassionate judge who orders him deported to the U.S., whence, once he has served an additional four years' sentence, as an American citizen he cannot be extradited, and where he is ultimately rehabilitated and redeemed into a productive, married member of society who specializes in the detection and prevention of fraud.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Excellent
Easy reading, fascinating, fun & compelling. I normally need months to finish a book - this one was done in days.
Published 26 days ago by B Bond
A real pleasure to read about the life of such a charismatic man!
This is a brilliant book. I echo some of the other reviewers words, so wont write a long review myself - also it was a while ago I read the book. Read more
Published 1 month ago by London_nurse
Excellent addition to the film
OK so I guess many (potential) readers, like me, saw the film and then read the book. If so, you'll be very happy as it builds on an almost unbelieveable story with even more... Read more
Published 2 months ago by S. Young
A great read
This is an enjoyable page-turner, almost too far-fetched to be real, but even better because it is! It's quite astounding what Frank Abagnale achieved, especially at such a young... Read more
Published 3 months ago by DP
Fantastic!
This book reads like a novel, partly because of the tremendous number of insane things going on. The stories would seem far-fetched for even the most elaborate author (Jasper... Read more
Published 4 months ago by joevascotia
A Very Interesting And Entertaining Read
I read this book while on holiday in Holland, i couldnt sleep one night so sat up reading it, before i knew it i was a quarter of the way through. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Mistermark21
Great book to read
Apart from the unbelievable story this book was very well written with no bad language. That is one of the reasons I liked it so much. Read more
Published 6 months ago by BEJ
YES! THIS CERTAINLY LEAVES THE FILM BEHIND... FAR BEHIND!
I watched the film and then months later picked up the book whilst I was travelling. I'm glad I did because I had never come accross such a funny and exciting thriller like this... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Nathan Strange
Great story....
Really funny, witty story. so much better than the film as it includes extra scams and cons. highly enjoyable read...
Published 8 months ago by Gcrikey
Hacker Without a Computer
Frank Abagnale was a sixteen-year-old with his first checking account. It's no surprise that he quickly overspends and his account is overdrawn. Read more
Published 11 months ago by John M. Ford
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