what jobs did frank abagnale district attorney general

by Uriel Anderson 4 min read

He gained notoriety in the late 1970s with biographical claims that included working as an assistant state attorney general in Louisiana, a hospital physician in Georgia, a professor in Utah, and a Pan American World Airways pilot who logged over two million air miles.

How did Abigail Abagnale become Louisiana's Attorney General?

He did, indeed. Abagnale forged a Harvard Law School transcript, passed the bar exam of Louisiana and got a job at the Louisiana Attorney General’s office at the age of nineteen! He studied hard and after failing the exam twice, he passed the Louisiana exam on the third try after eight weeks of studying.

Did John Abagnale pass the bar exam?

What did Frank Abagnale do? Frank Abagnale was a famous check-forger, imposter, and con-artist. He committed his crimes primarily between the ages of 15 and 21. He was arrested multiple times in multiple countries, spending 6 months in a French prison, 6 months in a Swedish prison, and finally 4 years in a US prison in Atlanta, Georgia.

Who is Frank Abagnale Jr?

Feb 08, 2019 · Frank Abagnale as assistant district attorney (D.A.) in court. Once again, Frank found it impossible to resist the challenge. On his third attempt he passed the bar exam. He was given a position in one of the Attorney General’s civil departments. The job was really that of a glorified errand boy, but Frank was happy in the anonymity of the role.

What jobs did Frank Abagnale impersonate?

Why, yes! He did, indeed. Abagnale forged a Harvard Law School transcript, passed the bar exam of Louisiana and got a job at the Louisiana Attorney General's office at the age of nineteen! While he was posing as a Pan Am Officer, he told a stewardess he was dating that he was a Harvard Law student, and she introduced him to a lawyer friend.

What jobs did Frank have in Catch Me If You Can?

The film is based on the autobiography of Frank Abagnale, who allegedly, before his 19th birthday, successfully performed cons worth millions of dollars by posing as a Pan American World Airways pilot, a Georgia doctor, and a Louisiana parish prosecutor.

Where did Frank Abagnale work as a doctor?

GeorgiaWhen authorities wised up to his frequent flying, Abagnale posed as a Georgia doctor for a year before masquerading as an attorney in New Orleans, although this last role wasn't entirely fake — Abagnale did manage to pass the bar exam.

Did Frank Abagnale work for the FBI?

Everyone knows the story of Frank Abagnale Jr: A con man who had the FBI running around after him for years while he passed himself off as an airline pilot, doctor and lawyer.Aug 29, 2021

What was Frank Abagnale first job?

When he left home, aged 16, Abagnale headed for New York, and continued writing bad checks. He got a job as a pilot for Pan American World Airways, using the name "Frank Williams", by lying about his age, having added ten years to the birthdate on his driver's license.

Is Joseph Shea still alive?

Deceased (1919–2005)Joseph Shea / Living or Deceased

Was Frank Abagnale a doctor?

Abagnale became one of the most famous imposters of all time, having assumed no fewer than eight different identities as an airline pilot, a doctor, a U.S. Bureau of Prisons agent, and, yes, even a lawyer. He escaped from police custody twice, and all before he was the ripe age of 21 years old.

What is Frank Abagnale's IQ?

Abagnale has publicly claimed an intelligence quotient (IQ) of 140: "I have an I.Q. of 140 and retain 90 percent of what I read. So by studying and memorizing the bar exam I was able to get the needed score."

How did Frank Abagnale Jr forge checks?

Frank William Abagnale Jr. Frank made false cashier and certified checks from different banks using magnetic ink (a special ink used on checks). He then forged the signatures of the bank officials and submitted those checks as a means of payment to various people who were fooled by the checks' appearance.Jan 22, 2022

Did Frank Abagnale actually escape from a plane?

Did Frank really escape a VC10 jetliner by removing the toilet and climbing down beneath it, eventually escaping through a hatch onto the tarmac? ... The event is in Frank's 1981 memoir, but airline experts say it is impossible. "The entire system is sealed," says Skip Jones of the Aerospace Industries Association.

Is Brenda Strong a real person?

The character of Brenda Strong is based on an Eastern Airlines flight attendant I dated while living in Louisiana, which fit into the story Spielberg wanted to tell about my life between the ages of 16 and 21.Mar 29, 2011

Is white collar based on a true story?

White Collar was partially inspired by the true story of conman Frank Abagnale Jr, who also served as inspiration for Steven Spielberg's Catch Me If You Can. The USA Network series was a hit with audiences, many of whom enjoyed the evolution of Caffrey's friendship with FBI agent Peter Burke (Tim DeKay).May 6, 2020

What did Frank Abagnale's dad do?

Frank Abagnale, Sr.Frank Abagnale / Father

Where did Frank go to school?

Frank attended Ioana Catholic School in Westchester, New York. His world was turned upside down in 1960, when his parents separated. This came as a shock to all the children, who thought that their mother was a contented housewife who had everything she ever wanted.

Who is Frank Abagnale?

In this week’s Biographics, we take a look at the incredible story of Frank William Abagnale. American ex-forger and security expert Frank W. Abagnale Jr. at the CEDIA Expo 2007.

Did Frank Sr. live with his dad?

Unlike his siblings, Frank chose to live with his father. This opened up a whole new world for the teenager, who had been used to a regimented and disciplined life with his mother. Tagging along with his dad, he began spending time in the bars around New York as Frank Sr. wheeled and dealed amongst the city’s businessmen and politicians. The experience quickly made the boy street-wise.

Where does Frank Abagnale live?

He has been advising the FBI on fraud related matters for more than 40 years. Frank Abagnale, aged 70 in 2018, lives in Charleston, South Carolina, with his wife Kelly. They have three sons, one of whom works for the FBI.

Who was Frank's mother?

Named after his father, who owned a stationery business, Frank was the third of four children. His mother, Paulette, was of French-Algerian extraction. The couple met while Frank, Sr. was on active service in Algiers during World War 2. They were soon married despite a thirteen -year age gap.

Why did Abagnale impersonate pilots?

Later, Abagnale decided to impersonate pilots because he wanted to fly throughout the world for free. He acquired a uniform by calling Pan American World Airways (Pan Am), telling the company that he was a pilot working for them who had lost his uniform while getting it cleaned at his hotel, and obtaining a new one with a fake employee ID. He then forged a Federal Aviation Administration pilot’s license. Pan Am estimated that between the ages of 16 and 18, Abagnale flew more than 1,000,000 miles (1,600,000 km) on more than 250 flights and flew to 26 countries by deadheading. As a company pilot, he was also able to stay at hotels for free during this time. Everything from food to lodging was billed to the airline company.

Where is Frank Abagnale from?

Childhood. Frank William Abagnale, Jr. was born on April 27, 1948. He is one of four children and spent the first sixteen years of his life in Bronxville, New York. His French mother, Paulette, and father, Frank Abagnale, Sr., separated when he was twelve and divorced when he was fourteen. His father was an affluent local who was very keen on ...

Who played Abagnale in Catch Me If You Can?

Abagnale’s life story inspired the Academy Award-nominated feature film Catch Me If You Can (2002), starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Abagnale, as well as both a Broadway musical and autobiography of the same name.

Where was Abagnale arrested?

Abagnale was eventually arrested in Montpellier, France, in 1969 when an Air France attendant he previously dated recognized him and informed police. When the French police arrested him, 12 countries in which he had committed fraud sought his extradition.

Who was Frank Williams?

For eleven months, Abagnale impersonated a chief resident pediatrician in a Georgia hospital under the alias Frank Williams. He chose this course after he was nearly arrested disembarking a flight in New Orleans. Afraid of possible capture, he retired temporarily to Georgia.

Where was the prison where the convicted fraudster was released?

In 1974, after he had served less than five years of his 12-year sentence at Federal Corrections Institute facility in Petersburg, Virginia, the United States federal government released him on the condition that he help the federal authorities, without pay, to investigate crimes committed by fraud and scam artists, and sign in once a week. Unwilling to return to his family in New York, he left the choice of parole up to the court and it was decided that he would be paroled in Texas.

What was Frank Jr's first victim?

His first victim was his father. His father gave him a 1952 Ford truck, and once Frank Jr began to take a notice of girls, he could not stop spending money on them. In order to fund his exploits with the opposite sex, he asked his father for a credit card to charge gas on, since he was always short on cash. He began to make deals with gas station employees all around the New York area to falsely charge items to his card, then give him a portion of the money; in return the employee got to keep the item and "resell" it for the full price. Over the course of 2 months, Frank Jr "bought" the following items for his vehicle:

How did Abagnale get his confidence?

Abagnale's first confidence trick was writing personal checks on his own overdrawn account, an activity which he discovered was possible when he wrote checks for more money than was in the account. This, however, would only work for a limited time before the bank demanded payment, so he moved on to opening other accounts in different banks, eventually creating new identities to sustain this charade. Over time, he experimented and developed different ways of defrauding banks, such as printing out his own almost-perfect copies of checks, depositing them and persuading banks to advance him cash on the basis of money in his accounts. The money, of course, never materialized as the checks deposited in it were rejected.

Where did Frank Adams teach sociology?

He claims to have forged a Columbia University degree and taught sociology at Brigham Young University for a semester working as a teaching assistant by the name of "Frank Adams".

Who is the FBI's fraud prevention expert?

Abagnale also continues to advise the FBI, with whom he has associated for over 30 years, by teaching at the FBI Academy and lecturing for FBI field offices throughout the country. According to his website, more than 14,000 institutions have adopted Abagnale 's fraud prevention programs.

How many miles did Frank Abagnale fly?

Pan American World Airways estimates that between the ages of 16 and 18, Frank Abagnale flew over 1,000,000 miles on over 250 flights and flew to 26 countries, at Pan Am's expense, through the use of deadheading. He was also able to stay at hotels for free during this time. Everything from food to lodging was billed to the airline.

When did Abagnale appear on the TV show?

In 1977 , Abagnale appeared on the TV quiz show To Tell the Truth, along with two contestants also presenting themselves as him. Clips from this episode appeared in Catch Me if You Can interspersed with new footage featuring actor Leonardo DiCaprio in his place.

Who wrote the art of the steal?

In 2002, Abagnale wrote The Art of the Steal, listing common confidence tricks and ways to prevent consumers from being defrauded. He also talked about identity theft and the advent of Internet scamming.

Childhood

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Frank William Abagnale, Jr. was born on April 27, 1948. He is one of four children and spent the first sixteen years of his life in Bronxville, New York. His French mother, Paulette, and father, Frank Abagnale, Sr., separated when he was twelve and divorced when he was fourteen. His father was an affluent local who was ver…
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First Con

  • His first victim was his father, who gave Abagnale a gasoline credit card and a truck to assist him in commuting to his part-time job. In order to get date money, Abagnale devised a scheme in which he used the gasoline card to “buy” tires, batteries, and other car-related items at gas stations and then asked the attendants to give him cash in return for the products. Ultimately, hi…
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Bank Fraud

  • Abagnale’s early confidence tricks included writing personal checks on his own overdrawn account. This, however, would only work for a limited time before the bank demanded payment, so he moved on to opening other accounts at different banks, eventually creating new identities to sustain this charade. Over time through experimentation, he developed different ways of defrau…
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Impersonations

  • – Airline pilot
    Later, Abagnale decided to impersonate pilots because he wanted to fly throughout the world for free. He acquired a uniform by calling Pan American World Airways (Pan Am), telling the company that he was a pilot working for them who had lost his uniform while getting it cleaned at his hote…
  • – Teaching assistant
    He claimed that he worked as a sociology teaching assistant at Brigham Young University for a semester, under the name Frank Adams. Brigham Young University, however, disputes this claim.
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Capture and Imprisonment

  • Abagnale was eventually arrested in Montpellier, France, in 1969 when an Air France attendant he previously dated recognized him and informed police. When the French police arrested him, 12 countries in which he had committed fraud sought his extradition. After a two-day trial, he first served time in Perpignan’s prison—a one-year sentence that the presiding judge at his trial reduc…
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Alleged Escapes

  • While being deported to the U.S., Abagnale escaped from a British VC-10 airliner as it was turning onto a taxiway at New York’s JFK International Airport. Under cover of night, he scaled a nearby fence and hailed a cab to Grand Central Terminal. After stopping in The Bronx to change clothes and pick up a set of keys to a Montreal bank safe deposit box containing $20,000, Abagnale cau…
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Legitimate Jobs

  • In 1974, after he had served less than five years of his 12-year sentence at Federal Corrections Institute facility in Petersburg, Virginia, the United States federal government released him on the condition that he help the federal authorities, without pay, to investigate crimes committed by fraud and scam artists, and sign in once a week. Unwilling to return to his family in New York, he …
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Veracity of Claims

  • The authenticity of Abagnale’s criminal exploits was questioned even before the publication of Catch Me If You Can. In 1978, after Abagnale had been a featured speaker at an anti-crime seminar, a San Francisco Chronicle reporter looked into his assertions. Phone calls to banks, schools, hospitals and other institutions Abagnale mentioned turned up no evidence of his cons …
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Media Appearances

  • Abagnale appeared on the TV quiz show To Tell the Truth in 1977, along with two contestants presenting themselves as him. In the 1970s, he also appeared at least three times as a guest on The Tonight Show, and was interviewed on one occasion by guest host George Carlin. In the early 1990s Abagnale was featured as a recurring guest on the UK television series The Secret Cabar…
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Personal Life

  • Abagnale lives in Charleston, South Carolina, with his wife Kelly, whom he met while working undercover for the FBI. They have three sons, Scott, Chris, and Sean. Their eldest son Scott currently works for the FBI. Abagnale and Joseph Shea, the FBI agent on whom the character of Carl Hanratty (played by Tom Hanks) was based for the film Catch Me If You Can, remained clos…
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