Art scams are today so numerous that the specter of a lawsuit arising from a mistaken attribution has scared a number of experts away from the business of authentication and forgery; and with good reason. Art scams are increasingly convincing and involve incredible sums of money. The cons perpetrated by unscrupulous art dealers and their accomplices are proportionately elaborate. Anthony M. Amores The Art of the Con tells the stories of some of historys most notorious yet untold cons. They involve stolen art hidden for decades; elaborate ruses that involve the Nazis and allegedly plundered art; the theft of a conceptual prototype from a well-known artist by his assistant to be used later to create copies; the use of online and television auction sites to scam buyers out of millions; and other confidence scams incredible not only for their boldness but more so because they actually worked. Using interviews and newly released court documents; The Art of the Con will also take the reader into the investigations that led to the capture of the con men; who oftentimes return back to the world of crime. For some; its an irresistible urge because their innocent dupes all share something in common: they want to believe.
#2159475 in eBooks 2014-06-16 2014-06-16File Name: B00S8W0JWQ
Review
87 of 88 people found the following review helpful. Its a nightmare; to be sure -- dont waste your money!By D BatchelorA quick search of "Dave Thompson in Books" on shows that he punches out; er; "biographies" faster than the Octomom punches out babies. Alice Cooper is my favorite rock star and has been since I discovered him in 1989 (yes; Im one of the younger fans - I am three months younger than the Killer album).Needless to say; Ive been soaking up anything about Alice for over 20 years. Do I know everything? Absolutely not. Do I know more than the average fan? You bet. Do I know more than Dave Thompson? It looks that way.When I heard about this book; of course I wanted to read it. Within minutes of ripping the box open and flipping through the pages of Alice Cooper: Welcome to My Nightmare; a nightmare of my own set in - this book is fraught with factual errors that people will take as truth. And as a writer; I wont even get into the horrific editing oversights I found.A sampling of the errors I saw in this *cough; cough* "ultimate Alice Cooper biography":1. The book includes photos; the caption of one of which states; "Alice in concert not long after he gave up alcohol; December 2001." This is wrong. Alice gave up drinking for good around 1983. By 2001 hed been sitting quite comfortably on the wagon and was in fact driving.2. In listing the guest artists on Hey Stoopid; Thompson included "...Ozzy Osbourne; Rob Halford; Joe Satriani..." This is wrong. Rob Halford wasnt on Hey Stoopid unless they forgot to credit him in the liner notes; which I seriously doubt. What may be causing confusion here is that shortly after Hey Stoopids release in 1991; Alice co-headlined the "Operation Rock `n Roll" tour with Judas Priest.3. "Hey Stoopid was the last album Alice Cooper Rock Star would ever make. From hereon [sic -- FIRE THE EDITOR!!] in; he would simply be Alice Cooper..." I have no words. I am at a loss as to what this truly means; not to mention the grammatical error - and this isnt the only one in the book.4. "The birth of his third child and second daughter in January 1993..." This is wrong. She was born in December 1992.5. "...three decades after Vince Furnier was threatened with expulsion from the local school system for the crime of not cutting his hair; his son Damien was preparing to enter it..." This is wrong. Alices sons name is Dash; short for Dashiell.Apparently Dave Thompson is trying to make money by haphazardly collecting and assembling pieces of interviews from hither and yon; tossing in some pictures with suspect captions and calling it a book. Alice appears to be the latest in a long line of many. In short; do not waste your money on this attempt at relaying Alice Cooper history. If thats what you want; youll need Alices definitive biography "Alcohol and Razor Blades; Poison and Needles: The Glorious Wretched Excess of Alice Cooper; All-American" written by Jeffrey Morgan; included in Warner Brothers 1999 box set The Life and Crimes of Alice Cooper (1). Good luck finding that - and no; you cannot have mine.1. The Jeffrey Morgan Story. Jeffrey Morgan: official biographer of Alice Cooper The Stooges. Retrieved August 12; 2012; from [...]6 of 7 people found the following review helpful. Mixed BagBy melodygoddessI thought I knew a lot about the original band period but this book tells stories Ive never heard before. I do recommend it. There arent a lot of books about Alice Cooper out there. It goes all the way up to the original bands induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2011. There are some great back stories.Alice cooper fans can play "Find the Factual Errors" game with this book.I wish the author had somebody check the facts.A couple Ill mention: page 160 - Dick Wagner is seen playing in the wings on the Billion Dollar babies tour. It wasnt Dick Wagner. It was Mick Mashbir. Dick did play on the album as a guest player.Page 179 - In the late 60s; Sound records wanted to sign the group if only they would drop the lead singer Vince/Alice. Who is Sound Records? I believe Mercury records was meant.Because of this and many other detail errors many fans have already stated they will not purchase this book. I can certainly understand that. Its too bad because 90% of the book is good and illuminating. Im glad I purchased it.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. its okayBy Spencer B. ClarkOverlong and loquacious; this bio goes to ridiculous depths to describe songs and attitudes. However; it does pair nicely with Golf Monster because we learn more about the other members of the band and a different point of view of the event where Alice broke off with the band (which Golf Monster gloms over and simplifies).
