Southington writer Phil Hall was not short of material for his new book “100 Years of Wall Street Crooks.” published this month by Bicep Books.
The book features multi-page descriptions of 33 separate fraudsters and swindlers, which averages out to one major financial scam for every three years of the past century. The criminals range from household names like Howard Hughes, Bernie Madoff and Martha Stewart to lesser-knowns (though they were no less rich) such as Billie Sol Estes, Pat Vesco and Jordan Belfort. Some chapters are devoted to institutions rather than individuals, including Enron, Adelphia Communication, Bre-X Minerals and the Mafia.
Billions and billions of dollars are bilked from trusting saps, and Hall explains how.
Hall, a Southington resident who has lived in Connecticut since 2000, is a financial freelance journalist who is also well-known for his books and articles about movies. He also hosts the “Nutmeg Chatter” talk show on Torrington’s WAPJ-FM. This is Hall’s 11th book and his first on financial skullduggery.
Given its proximity to New York and its reputation as a place where the wealthy like to live, Connecticut comes up fairly often in Hall’s stories. Westport resident Martha Stewart earns a chapter — “She’s the only one in the book who got the last laugh,” Hall reflects, saying the home decor goddess’ popularity seemed to grow following her conviction for obstruction of justice in an insider trading scandal.
Another Connecticut…
