Con Artists & Imposters: 'Clark Rockefeller,' Frank Abagnale, David Hampton; Personality Disorders

[appalachiablue]

Last edited Thu Apr 8, 2021, 09:54 PM - Edit history (5)

- Christian Gerhartsreiter ('Clark Rockefeller') moved to America at 17 and spent the next 30 years of his life assuming false identities. His deception culminated in a 12-year marriage to a woman who believed he was a Rockefeller.
________

'30-Year Con: From German Kid To Rockefeller Scion,' NPR, *July 5, 2011.

For three decades, the man born as Christian Gerhartsreiter claimed to be someone else. He posed as a British baronet, a cardiologist in Las Vegas, a Hollywood producer, a bond broker in New York and, finally, as a member of the famous Rockefeller family. It all came apart in 2007, when the man known as Clark Rockefeller was arrested and charged with kidnapping his young daughter. He was convicted a year later, and this past week he was moved to Southern California to face a new charge: murder, in the death of a former landlord more than 20 years ago. He pleaded not guilty on Friday.

Mark Seal, a contributing editor at Vanity Fair, just released a new book about the con man, The Man in the Rockefeller Suit: The Astonishing Rise and Spectacular Fall of a Serial Impostor. - I Want To Be A Millionaire - Gerhartsreiter grew up in a small West German town, and Seal says that from early on, he was obsessed with making it to America. At age 17, he saw his opportunity...

More, https://www.npr.org/2011/07/10/137624164/30-year-con-from-german-kid-to-rockefeller-scion
______



- Fake Saudi prince conned investors for $millions- Anthony Gignac.

* 'Four surefire ways to spot a con artist—and what to do when you see them,' *Jan. 3, 2020. Anthony Gignac.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/03/four-sure-fire-ways-to-spot-a-con-artistand-what-to-do-when-you-see-them.html
_______

- How Con Artists Choose Their Victims, A Psychologist Explains, Bus. Insider,
https://www.businessinsider.com/psychologist-explains-how-con-artists-choose-victims-2016-3
_______

-> 5 Types of People Who Can Ruin Your Life: Narcissists, Sociopaths, Similarities, Differences, Psychology Today, 2018

According to a major study reported in 2008, 6.2% of the U.S. adult population has narcissistic personality disorder (NPD).1 An earlier wave of the same study reported that 3.6% have antisocial personality disorder (ASPD—an equivalent term for sociopath).2 Nearly 20% of those with ASPD also have NPD3, a powerful combination.
With this large of a presence in society, it’s important for all of us to know the warning signs, similarities and differences of these two personalities. This goes for dating, hiring, and even electing leaders. In the news almost every day, we hear about the secrets, lies, assaults or brutality of those who seemed charming on the surface. Many people are surprised, but much of this is predictable when you recognize their patterns of behavior.

From my experience over several decades as a therapist, mediator, lawyer, and trainer with High Conflict Institute, I have seen that many people often miss the seriousness of the warning signs of NPD (“Oh, she’s just a little self-absorbed”) and totally miss the signs of ASPD (“Oh, he’s just a narcissist” when he’s really a sociopath or both). While I don’t want to over-generalize or frighten people—these personality disorders exist on a continuum of severity—I believe that all of us need awareness of these personalities in today’s world to avoid being misled and caught by surprise...

More, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/5-types-people-who-can-ruin-your-life/201812/narcissists-sociopaths-similarities-differences
_______



- Frank Abagnale in 2008, 'Catch Me If You Can.'

- Frank Abagnale, 'Catch Me If You Can' https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Abagnale
______

- David Hampton, '6 Degrees of Separation,' https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Hampton
_______

- TIME, Top 10 Imposters
http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1900621_1900618_1900590,00.html





.. FAKING IT, Darius McCollum

Darius McCollum isn't the most efficient imposter on this list, but he's definitely the most persistent. McCollum has been arrested 26 times for impersonating various transit employees, including famously driving a New York City subway train while only 15 years old. Suffering from Asperger syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder, McCollum has been obsessed with trains since he was a child, having memorized the city's subway system by age five.

Born and raised in New York and confined there by parole restrictions for the majority of his adult life, McCollum is unable to escape the object of his obsession. He has become a minor cult figure, inspiring plays, documentaries and songs. Despite perhaps knowing more about trains than any employee, the New York City Transit Authority has refused to hire him because of his past convictions, and with no treatment for the disorder that drives him back to the tracks, McCollum's 26th arrest might not be his last...

- Catch Me if You Can (2002) Trailer. Leonardo DiCaprio portrays con man Frank Abagnale impersonating an airline pilot, with Tom Hanks, the FBI agent who tracks him and Amy Adams. Producer, Steven Speilberg.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catch_Me_If_You_Can