Catching Truth News Today

The stories these memoirs told were gripping, shocking – and ultimately untrue. Were you taken in by any of these literary hoaxes?

The Greatest Hoax on Earth: Catching Truth, While We Can by Alan C. Logan closely looks at Abagnales claims and using records, asserts many are fake or inflated.

Share The journalist argued that what really happened was that Abgnale dressed as a TWA (Trans World Airlines) pilot for a few weeks, and befriended a flight attendant called Paula Parks. He followed her all over the Eastern Seaboard, identified her work schedule through deceptive means, and essentially stalked the woman, he said.  The Spielberg film, which starred A-listers including Tom Hanks and Christopher Walken was a worldwide hit, with Abagnale saying it had stayed very close to the sto...

Jurassic Park or Saving Private Ryan, Catch Me if You Can has always quietly been one of Steven Spielbergs greatest films. In fact, Catch Me if You Can is actually ranked as Spielbergs fourth-best directorial effort on Rotten Tomatoes, above any of his other movies Ive mentioned here. Leonardo DiCaprio stars as real life con man Frank Abagnale Jr., who throughout the 60s and 70s cashed more than $2 million in fake checks and successfully posed as a doctor, a lawyer, a college professor, and...

A new book says the story of a teenager who posed as a pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer that inspired the beloved Steven Spielberg film might have all been one brilliant lie.

A new book says the story of a teenager who posed as a pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer that inspired the beloved Steven Spielberg film Catch Me If You Can might have all been one brilliant lie.

By Frank W. Abagnale Jr. (second from the right) is famous for his audacious cons, documented in the blockbuster movie “Catch Me If You Can.” But science writer Alan Logan says the real grift is Abagnale’s entire life story. (Rene Macura/AP Photo) This story is from The Pulse, a weekly health and science podcast. Frank W. Abagnale Jr. may have pulled off one of the greatest hoaxes on earth. Abagnale’s famous tale of forging checks and assuming different professional identities has capt...