The Man in the Rockefeller Suit, Mark Seal
The Man in the Rockefeller Suit, Mark Seal
1 Rating(s)
List: $17.50 | Sale: $12.25
Club: $8.75

The Man in the Rockefeller Suit
The Astonishing Rise and Spectacular Fall of a Serial Imposter

Author: Mark Seal

Narrator: Erik Singer

Unabridged: 10 hr 31 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Published: 06/02/2011


Synopsis

A real-life Talented Mr. Ripley, the unbelievable thirty-year run of a shape-shifting con man.The story of Clark Rockefeller is a stranger-than-fiction twist on the classic American success story of the self-made man-because Clark Rockefeller was totally made up. The career con man who convincingly passed himself off as Rockefeller was born in a small village in Germany. At seventeen, obsessed with getting to America, he flew into the country on dubious student visa documents and his journey of deception began.Over the next thirty years, boldly assuming a series of false identities, he moved up the social ladder through exclusive enclaves on both coasts-culminating in a stunning twelve-year marriage to a rising star businesswoman with a Harvard MBA who believed she'd wed a Rockefeller.The imposter charmed his way into exclusive clubs and financial institutions-working on Wall Street, showing off an extraordinary art collection-until his marriage ended and he was arrested for kidnapping his daughter, which exposed his past of astounding deceptions as well as a connection to the bizarre disappearance of a California couple in the mid-1980s.The story of The Man in the Rockefeller Suit is a probing and cinematic exploration of an audacious imposer-and a man determined to live the American dream by any means necessary.

About The Author

Mark Seal has been a journalist for more than 30 years. Currently a contributing editor at Vanity Fair, he has written for many major magazines and served as a collaborator on almost 20 nonfiction books. He lives in Aspen, Colorado.Erik Singer has performed in numerous off-Broadway plays and with regional theaters around the country. He has appeared on television in All My Children and As the World Turns. Singer has also done voice work for numerous commercials, documentaries, and animated shows.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Mara on April 29, 2021

Not only did I read (well, technically, listen to) this in one day, but practically in one sitting. It's the story of an absurdly audacious man – a criminal without conscience for whom I have no respect, but whose life/long con (one in the same, in many respects) intrigued me nonetheless. What can I......more

Goodreads review by Clif on June 18, 2015

If you prefer mystery stories that are nonfiction, this book fits the bill. Everybody I know who's read this book says something like, "How in the world did he manage get away with it?" This guy managed to assume various identities over a twenty-eight year period, and in spite of some audacious clai......more

Goodreads review by Florence (Lefty) on July 20, 2012

I get that this is a true story however it read more like a great mystery novel. What a life this guy led, bizarre is the best adjective I can come up with. This is a beyond doubt an entertaining read and a refreshing change from the blood & gore prevalent in most True Crime stories.......more


Quotes

“Has all the pace and drive of a suspense novel.” — Michiko Kakutani, New York Times

“No mystery writer would script this—it’s too unbelievable. — The Christian Science Monitor

“Impeccably reported.” — Los Angeles Times

“Fascinating.” — People (four stars)