Pan Am 'pilot' Frank Abagnale Jr.

Frank Abagnale Jr is best known for his early years where he was an extremely successful con-artist. He impersonated being an airline pilot for Pan American World Airways (Pan Am), a teaching assistant, a physician, an attorney and other roles. All while he forged and cashed over $2.5 million worth of bad checks in every state of the union and 26 foreign countries during a period of about five years. Fun fact, Frank's first scheme was actually pulled on his father when he used the gas credit card his father gave him to assist in commuting to his first part-time job to purchase items from the gas station and then re-sell to the attendants for cash. This resulted in a $3,400 bill (or 2020 equivalent of $29k) his father was responsible for. A number of articles published in the 1970s when Frank ran his own security company are further down this page which highlight Frank's life as he recollects his teenager days as a con artist. See: Rotary Hears Former Con Con-expert was easy man to believe Hot Check Artist on Other Side Now Of course Frank's story became very well known with the 2002 film "Catch Me If You Can" staring Leonardo Dicaprio playing the role of Frank Abagnale Jr.