Get him! Get him!
Ready!
You're going down.
Set. Hike.
Damn.
Did that hurt?
Get up, you ain't no
carpet king, you're a queen.
Get up!
Time-out.
Get up, man.
I think his nose is broke.
You can get him for me.
Finish this thing off.
You gonna finish the game.
Next touchdown wins, we
got the ball, so you man up.
I'm a little banged up here.
You know why you got
25 years?
Yeah, because I refused
to testify
against anybody whose
last name ended in a vowel.
No, you got 25 years
because you're a quitter.
When things get tough, you
look for shortcuts. You quit.
You quit on your family,
you quit on your friends,
you quit on God.
And that's because
you ain't got no heart.
Yeah, that's right,
I called you a quitter.
What you gonna do about it?
If that don't sit well
with you, prove me wrong.
Barry Minkow, for once in your
life, don't take a shortcut.
Take the pain and help
this team win.
Well, you know, I think we're
all born with certain genes.
I think
Barry was missing one.
It's got to be something
deep-seated in Barry.
Barry did what he did. I mean,
nobody really put him up to it.
Barry could convince
anybody of anything,
and he was very,
very good at it.
From the moment
he shook my hand...
He's a sociopath.
I thought this was
the entrepreneur of the year.
He was almost incapable
of not lying.
And, you know,
I give him credit for this
tremendous scam
that he pulled at that time.
He had so much charisma...
I've never seen anybody
like Barry.
...that you believed
everything. Everything.
He could sell ice to Eskimos.
Barry reinvented himself.
You know, for a young guy, it was
pretty amazing what he pulled off.
He didn't want
his lights turned off.
He didn't want to be his dad.
- Hey, pally boy.
- Hey, Pop.
How'd you do today?
Ah, not bad.
Outfitted the YMCA down the street
with a half a dozen gym fans.
Half a dozen?
Good thing it gets hot
in the Valley, huh?
That's pretty good, right?
Let me give you
some advice, kiddo.
Never work for somebody else
if you can help it.
Now get in the house
and wash up.
Move.
Jeez.
Go away.
My commission check
is gonna be larger this week.
Enough to pay
the gas bill?
It'll be fine.
Mom said no MTV.
Ow!
Knock it off!
Shut up.
What are you talking
about? I'm doing the best I can.
They do this every night.
When is this going to stop?
When someone in this family figures
outhow to earn some real money.
That was it. He wanted
to make money and that was it.
He wanted millions.
That's what drove him.
He wanted the girls.
He wanted people
to love and adore him.
And the girls only wanted
you if you had a red Ferrari.
Hi, Mindy.
Hi...
Barry.
I'm telling you, man,
I'm making things change.
That so, big guy?
Yeah, that's so.
Check it out.
When'd that happen?
That's five days a week
for three months at the gym.
See, look, I might not have
Matt Maple's money.
I can't throw a football
like Bobby Biddelo.
No. But I can look like Lou Ferrigno.
I'm going after
the three Ps, Mikey.
What are the three Ps?
Position plus possession
equals popularity.
I'm gonna build a new Barry.
Well, how's all this
supposed to happen?
I'm gonna start a business,
I'm gonna keep working out,
I'm gonna make a ton of money
and then I'm gonna have
everything that I want.
He wanted to be a star.
It could have been
a fabulous story.
Barry! Get to it!
See, the way it goes is you
work off your membership fee
by working off
your membership fee.
Hi, Mom.
Excuse me, could you just
hold on for one second.
I'll be right back with you.
Sweetheart, listen,
I heard on your last run
you brought the degreaser,
you brought the sanitizer,
but, Barry, you forgot the...
Scotchgard.
Scotchgard.
You can never, never
forget that. I know.
Barry, we want to sell
Scotchgard. Scotchgard. I know.
Listen, you gotta get on this one,
kiddo. You're a terrific worker
but I don't want my boss
to think... Excuse me...
You don't want
your boss to think...
I just don't want
my boss to think
that you're just here
because of me.
That would be terrible.
That would be nepotism.
I'm a good worker.
Just...
Yeah, go back and work.
Go, go, go.
Sorry.
Hello?
Whoa.
That guy juices.
What, you mean steroids?
No, like, I think
he drinks a lot of V8.
Yeah, I mean steroids.
Awesome.
Hey, how do you get so big?
How do you think?
Is there...
Is there any way I could
buy some 'roids off of you?
How you gonna pay, kid?
I got a part-time job
cleaning carpets. I can pay.
I'll tell you what.
I'll swap you.
A carpet cleaning
for some 'roids.
Deal.
We're done, kid.
Nice job, kid.
Definitely worth
some of these.
Thanks.
Hey, um...
Hey, what is all this stuff?
Just call it my inventory.
Ah. Gotcha.
Yeah, as soon as I figure out
how to get my own steam cleaner,
I'm gonna go
into business for myself.
How much do
one of them things cost?
Like a thousand bucks.
Tell you what.
A thousand cash for equipment.
Six bills for capital.
Now you're in business, kid.
Um...
Oh, you'll pay me back.
Interest only. $200 a week.
What are you,
some kind of loan shark?
I'm a businessman, kid.
You want in?
Yeah. Yeah, I want in.
Yes, hello, there.
I just had my carpets cleaned
by this company called ZZZZ Best.
It's owned by this
wonderful kid who is only 16.
You should do a story
on him.
All I see on the news are stories
about kids on drugs and in gangs.
This young man
is a role model.
What's that?
All right.
Yes, ZZZZ Best.
Four Zs.
With four Zs.
Okay. Thank you. Goodbye.
Thank you, Grandma.
You're the best.
What, you can't stay
and visit?
I wish I could.
I've got so much to do.
But I'll come by later.
Can you make me some of that
spaghetti that you make so good?
With the meatballs, too.
I'm just so proud of my son.
He did this all himself.
Can you make sure
the sign is in the shot?
So, what's Barry's secret?
Well, he's always been
highly motivated.
Dad, stop.
No false modesty, son.
I'd like to take this opportunity
and offer anyone who's watching
a 50% discount if they
come down, right now.
I will clean
your carpets personally.
Dad will even help too! Do
you see what I'm talking about?
I mean, he's brilliant!
Barry Minkow.
Hey, Barry.
Yo, Barr!
Barry, my man!
Hey, carpet dude!
Hi.
Hey.
Well, do you like
your meal?
It was really good.
Are you ready to go?
Yeah.
I don't really like
horror movies that much,
but do you wanna see Blade
Runner with me this weekend?
Yeah? Awesome.
Two hundred and forty bucks!
Don't sweat it, man.
Business is good!
But you're doing this
every weekend.
Okay, will you look around you
for a second?
Dude,
I'm finally in. We are finally
in. It's totally worth it.
You can't do this to me.
I haven't done anything wrong.
Barry. Sit down.
We didn't realize
that you were underage.
In the state of California,
the signature card
that opens a checking account,
it's a legally
binding document.
It's a contract.
And you cannot sign
a legally binding
business check
if you're only 16.
Now, like I said, if you want to
get your father in here to co-sign...
My father?
It's my company, okay?
I started this thing,
not my dad.
You know this!
Barry, listen.
I'm not one
to stifle entrepreneurship.
I'm impressed with what you've
accomplished, believe me.
But this is the way
the system works.
Now, I have no choice but to
close your account immediately
and return
all outstanding checks.
You said you were
impressed by me. Right?
Then why can't you make
an exception for me?
I'm sorry, kid.
You've seen what I've done.
I really am. I wish it
didn't have to be this way.
But the rules are the rules.
You can't break the rules.
Look at me, kid.
I can't let you
bounce checks on me.
I know.
And I've been
lettin' you skate.
You owe me 800 bucks.
I know.
I know. Look, Victor, man,
you know I'm in trouble
with these checking accounts.
Okay? I would have to be crazy
to try to screw you.
I wouldn't even be in business
if it wasn't for you, man.
I owe you big.
All I got to my name is
20 bucks. Just take it.
Okay, enough.
Okay, look.
You pay me $500 cash
by Friday,
I let the other $300 slide
for one more week.
You got it?
Thank you.
Thank you, man.
I won't let you down.
I promise.
You better not.
Mr. Barry.
Ron, I need a money order
for Sparkle Janitorial Supply
for 500 bucks.
Coming right up.
Hey, Ron,
you got a delivery!
Hey, Barry, give me one sec.
I'll be right back.
Yeah, yeah.
Oh, God!
Barry,
you feeling all right?
Yeah... No, no,
I'm good, I'm good.
I saw you on the news. You're
an impressive young man, Barry.
How can I help you?
Mr. Fitzgerald, I've been
to every bank n the area
and no one will open a
business checking account for me
because they say
I'm too young.
Funny thing is,
I already had one open
for over half a year before
anyone ever found out my age.
I would have thought that I had
proven my ability to be responsible.
You don't impress me as being
too young. You seem pretty mature.
I get that all the time.
Look, Mr. Fitzgerald,
I've started a good business.
And I know
what I'm capable of.
I mean, I already have
seven employees,
all of whom are paying taxes
on their wages.
I'm simply a victim of my age.
Well put.
I just need someone
to take a small risk
and put a little trust in me.
Fine. I'll take the chance.
But you'll need to keep me updated
twice a week on ZZZZ Best's status.
Even though every newspaper and
TV show is keeping me posted.
Here, I want you
to sign the bottom here.
Of course.
I'll fill in the rest, okay?
Thank you.
Congratulations.
I won't let you down.
What is this?
What do you think, huh?
What is this?
What?
Dude!
What is this?
Come on, baby.
Jump in, let's go for a spin. What?
How...
How did you afford this, man?
We're not making any profits.
Don't have to afford it.
Just gotta cover
the monthly payments.
Look, it's all about
appearances, my man.
The way you look is the way
the world thinks you are.
Speaking of appearances,
there's a misprint
in the Yellow Pages ad.
It says, "Serving the area
for over 10 years."
That's not a misprint.
It's a business tactic.
Everybody does it.
Nobody is going to check.
What do they have to check?
What, you think
anyone is gonna believe
you started the business
when you were six years old?
That's ambitious, man.
Must have been tough balancing
nap time and making payroll.
You wanna think?
Or you wanna drive?
Let's drive, man.
Fastest car on the market.
Hold on.
I can't stay ahead of expenses no
matter how much business I bring in.
Victor's payments
are killing me.
Mikey...
Mikey, Mikey, Mikey, Mikey.
Check this out.
Yeah. What?
Look at this.
Look, the checks...
The checks from the NorthRidge
account haven't cleared yet.
All right?
So if I write a check from that
account into the second account,
I can cover my shortage until I
can deposit more customer checks.
And then I just run it
the other way
when the NorthRidge account
is short.
Then I never have to
keep the full amount
as long as I deposit
the new money in time.
Yeah. That's called
check kiting.
Really?
I thought I made that up.
No, you did not.
Anyways, anyways,
it doesn't matter.
Yeah, it does, it's illegal.
It doesn't matter.
It's only temporary.
It's only until I can
square things up.
'Cause kids, during the
summertime, are gonna work cheap.
I can go after
more customers,
I can do
more advertising and then...
And then I can
pay it all off...
It's gonna cost you
more money.
I can pay it all off!
Everything's gonna be fine.
Mikey!
You're late.
I know. I know.
I was at Victor's. Sorry.
I had to pick up
some company letterhead.
Letterhead?
Yeah, yeah.
You know, for corporate
documents, that kind of thing.
Did you get another loan?
What do you mean,
did I get another loan?
What do you mean,
what do I mean?
You got another loan?
How much was it? Yes. Yes.
Four grand. But it's not a big
deal. Interest is like $500 a week.
$500 a week! Barry... Okay,
hear me out. Hear me out.
No, no, no.
Give me your hand.
What? Half the reason I got the loan
is because I think that you
deserve a bonus.
Really?
Yeah, really.
Come on, man.
You work your butt off.
I just want you to know
I appreciate you.
Go take out that cute little
girl I saw you with last week.
I...
I think you're gonna
like this place.
All right.
Beats the garage, huh?
It's awesome, man.
Hey, Barry.
I'm up here, Pop.
Well...
Very nice.
Impressive.
Son...
You know
I am so proud of you.
But I don't want you
to get in any trouble.
And I just feel like...
You're in over your head.
Dad, don't tell me
how to run my business.
No, no, no. Your whole life
you've played it safe, okay?
I'm taking my shot here.
Hey...
Why don't you come
work for ZZZZ Best?
You can build up
my commercial accounts.
I'll match your salary at Windy
City with a better commission.
I don't think
that's the best idea.
Come on, Dad.
You've always been at jobs
that didn't require
any talent.
Come work for me.
Show me what you can do.
Come here.
Son...
Hey, Dad?
You start work Monday.
See you later, Mr. Minkow.
Yeah, see you, boys.
That's our new
commercial manager.
You have a sec?
Yeah.
Look at that.
So...
I might not be smart enough
to get it,
but Victor doesn't sell
cleaning equipment, right?
No, but the banks
and insurance companies
don't need to know that.
Right, so...
We purchased 10 Crowell
Triple-Vac Dual Pump...
Water-heated steam cleaners.
I don't know that brand.
That's 'cause
they don't exist.
Sounds good though, right?
Yeah.
Sounds good.
Hey, Mike.
From now on...
"Mr. Minkow."
Hey! If that isn't
the little...
Look at you! Not so little
anymore. What happened to you?
Hey, Uncle Joe.
Look at you.
Trying to look like you.
I should be so lucky.
Damn! Come here, I want to show
you something. Watch your step.
What... What happened
to this place?
Well, this one
was a flood.
Hard to imagine you could
do anything with this, huh?
It smells like the inside
of a Halloween costume.
This is called
restoration work.
Fires, floods...
The insurance companies
contract it out
to restore it
and make it new again.
Big money. Big money.
This could be your future.
Come on. I want to
show you something.
Wow. This is amazing.
Mmm-hmm.
Before and after. Not bad
for three weeks' work, huh?
Look. Uncle Joe, I appreciate
you bringing me out here,
but I'm just
a carpet cleaner.
Yeah. So was I
when I started 35 years ago.
You know, all the carpet
companies out there...
All your competitors,
they all advertise
for one big thing
that you don't.
Emergency water damage
restoration.
Water heater
busts in the house,
water floods
the carpets everywhere.
The first people called
are the carpet cleaners
who come in
and extract the water.
Bingo! And you make millions.
If you're ever interested in that
kinda thing, just let me know.
I'll help you
find some work.
Are you insane?
You can't open
another office.
Barry, you think that I don't know
that you're kiting checks again?
This company is hanging on
by a thread.
Relax.
And we both know...
Relax! Okay? Everybody cheats a
little bit. It's not a big deal.
It's a big deal.
It is a big deal.
It's not.
It's not a big deal!
Okay? I had to expand to generate
more cash to catch up on my...
Barry, you can't run one
office on... Do not...
Do not raise your...
Barry!
Do not raise
your voice at me.
It's settled. All right?
I already got the location
picked out.
Look, everybody thinks I'm
some kind of hotshot now, man.
Barry Minkow,
the young entrepreneur.
I gotta keep that going.
Mike, it's who I am now.
With the debts and the divorce,
I really need the extra income.
Great. Happy to help.
Now, I need you to
mock up a few documents
for a bloated insurance
company. So, don't feel bad.
Feeling bad was not
something I was factoring in.
You do have the cash, right?
You're sure this was
one of your competitors?
Yeah.
What did they steal?
Four Crowell Triple Vac
steam cleaners.
Yeah, but Barry,
even at 1,500 a piece,
that doesn't equal $12,000.
Water damage.
"Water damage"?
Yeah.
See, when they broke in,
they set off the sprinklers,
which caused water damage.
These guys are trying to
put me out of business!
But we fixed it.
Because that's what we do.
It's expensive.
Really?
Yeah, it's called
"restoration work."
In fact, ZZZZ Best is going to
be awarded out
more restoration jobs
from other big companies
as early as next week
and that...
That's where the real
growth opportunities are
in the carpet-cleaning
industry.
I think a little toast is in
order for the man of the hour.
Dad, come on.
No, no, no.
Here's to Barry
on your 18th birthday.
You're an adult,
well, legally anyway.
Now, you can get married,
even join the army
with or without our
permission. To my son, Barry...
I am sorry to interrupt,
but you know how it is when
your father tries to be funny.
Right...
But I would like to say something.
I'd like to toast you, Barry.
I am so proud
of your success.
Thank you, Mom.
Cheers.
To ZZZZ Best, son.
Cheers, guys.
Mazel tov.
And so,
as we look forward
to the excitement
of new lives,
we, the fresh-faced class...
Man, I feel like
I don't even know you anymore.
Come on.
Yeah you do, Mikey.
Same old Barry. I'm just a
regular business now, that's all.
But like Icarus,
who flew too high to the sun,
we need to keep watch,
to keep level and not let the
temptations of our new freedom
be the end of us.
Come on.
Who doesn't cheat
on their taxes
or inflate
an insurance claim?
Can we just enjoy graduation?
I applaud you fellow students
on this day of rebirth...
The answer is, everyone.
And nobody gets hurt,
all right?
So, don't come at me with
that self-righteous attitude.
In fact, I think I deserve
a little thanks.
Really. You're running
flush now because of me.
Congratulations to
the class of 1984!
Damn it.
Hey,
it's your favorite uncle.
Hey, Uncle Joe.
How are you?
I'm good, kid. Listen.
I'm out there in the business
community and I'm hearing things.
Like you're expanding too fast and
you can't possibly be profitable.
Uncle Joe,
that's just jealous people
using their stories as an
excuse for their mediocrity.
Yeah, yeah. I'm hearing that, too. See?
Okay. All right.
But be careful.
You have to be a little bit of
a thief in business, I know that.
But you don't want
to become a thief.
Then you're not in business
anymore, you're just a crook.
There's a project
over in Tarzana
and I have
an interested buyer.
He won't close on the sale
until I fix a rip in the carpet.
I'll get someone
right on it.
No, no. He wants you.
He wants to meet the
millionaire kid success story.
Just be careful. I hear this
guy's connected. A real Mafioso.
I mean it.
I read about you in
the Examiner, didn't I?
Yeah, yeah.
Joe says you're a pro.
That's my Uncle Joe.
How do you do that, Barry?
Pull down a profit like that?
Cleaning carpet?
I never heard of that.
Well, Jack, the real money,
it's not in the carpet cleaning.
It's in these things
called restoration jobs.
Oh, yeah?
Like cleaning up
after an old fire?
Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
Um, the jobs,
they come in through...
Through these
insurance adjusters.
My company, ZZZZ Best,
we got, like...
We got three of these jobs
lined up right now.
But I plan on expanding,
because each job contract
is worth about 25 grand.
That must be nice.
Yeah, yeah.
It's really nice.
You know, you have
these huge buildings
with these complex
sprinkler systems
and they go off inadvertently,
causing floods.
You know,
and it's expensive to fix.
If I had the money, there's
no limit to what I could do.
How much?
A hundred grand.
A hundred grand?
Just for clean
No, no.
It's much more than that.
It's extracting the water,
dehumidifying the area,
you know, padding and tack
strips, mold treatment.
You see, all this requires
money, lots of money,
and these worthless
insurance companies,
they're notoriously slow
for these large payouts.
And see, that's what sets
me apart from my competition.
Look, Jack,
how many carpet cleaners
do you know in this business
that are well
How much are you
gonna pull down right now?
With these restorations?
These three?
Eighty grand. Profit.
It's good. So give me proof.
Proof?
Yeah, proof of
the jobs, huh?
A little accountability.
You know?
I mean, I'll come in right
now. Fifty grand cash.
You need money,
I'll raise money, you know.
I'll talk to friends.
It's all numbers, Barry.
"Numbers"?
It's just numbers.
Yeah, yeah, numbers.
It's all numbers.
We come in,
we come in for a lot more
than a hundred, you know.
A lot more.
We split profit,
you know? 50/50.
"50/50"?
All the jobs.
If you're interested.
Yeah. Yeah! Yeah, of course,
I'm interested.
The proof, the documents,
I can bring those by tomorrow.
You want a drink?
Nah, I don't drink.
Good for you.
You're a smart kid.
This is unacceptable.
You don't understand.
No, no, you don't understand.
You got those credit card
accounts because I vouched for you!
Twenty-five thousand
in fraudulent accounts!
Look it wasn't me! I swear!
Barry.
It was crooked
carpet cleaners! Look...
They want me out of
business... Keep it down.
Look, they faked
the credit card slips
so they could double-bill the
customers and make more money.
What do you want me to do?
I just found out about this
last night. I already fired them.
Were you planning
on telling me?
Yes... I guess...
You guess?
Yes, yes, yes.
Of course I was planning on...
Look, I'm a little
over my head here, Bill.
Mr. Fitzgerald, I'm sorry.
I'm sorry.
All right.
I can keep your accounts open
for five business days.
You deposit $10,000
at that time
and the rest five days
after that...
I won't let you down.
You better meet
these deadlines, Barry.
Otherwise, I will
shut you down
and I will bounce
all your checks.
This is a joke to you, huh?
That would put me
out of business.
I know.
So it should motivate you.
Now, get the hell out of here.
Hey, I need your help.
Look, we need to find a way to fake
some nonexistent restoration jobs.
All right? I'm not talking
about staging a phony break-in.
I'm talking about hundreds of thousands
of dollars in jobs that don't exist.
Got any ideas?
I can incorporate
a phony adjusting firm.
A phony adjusting firm.
So, what, it would fake the
jobs on the firm's letterhead?
Yeah.
That's great.
That's great! Okay.
And in the meantime,
I'll work hard
trying to get ZZZZ Best some
legitimate claims to cover your back.
I'll catch you
in your office later.
Okay, okay. Thank you.
I really appreciate this. I wouldn't
ask you if it wasn't life or death.
I got 100 employees
depending on me.
Well, they're your problem.
I'm just doing this
for money, is all.
As long as you do it.
So, he's still standing there,
in his underwear, holding
an identical toothbrush.
So, I tell the guy,
as we always say at ZZZZ Best,
"We don't just cut corners,
we clean them."
Can I trust him?
Absolutely.
So, let me explain to you
how a restoration job works.
All right, gorgeous woman.
Come here.
You be the building.
Stand here
next to me. All right?
Come here! Come on. I'm...
What about the Feds?
Huh?
Did they come see you yet?
Who?
The FBI.
The FBI... No.
No?
No.
Well... They might,
you know.
They'll probably pay you
a visit.
Ask questions about me.
Well, if they do,
just say nothing more
than our arrangement,
you know?
"Our arrangement"?
Yeah, it's legitimate.
You could prove that.
Can't you?
Yeah, yeah.
Of course.
Of course I can prove it.
Hey, how you doing?
How are you?
Hi.
Hi. Hey, baby. I got a
present for you inside. Okay?
Okay.
I'll be in in a second.
Can I help you?
Yeah, you can. I'll
introduce myself to you first.
I'm Special Agent Gamble. FBI.
That's your girlfriend?
Yeah.
Very nice. Good luck.
Thank you.
Anyway, I'm here,
I'm investigating a Jack...
Saxon.
Yes. Jack Saxon.
I understand he's been
shaking you down
on some loan
that he made you...
He hasn't given me a loan,
he's a business consultant.
"Business consultant"?
New house, huh?
I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
Look, we'd like you
to testify in a grand jury
about your business deals
with this Saxon.
With all due respect, why
would I testify against him?
He's been nothing
but a help to my company.
I understand.
It's not...
Barry? Come on inside.
Come on.
Sorry. Duty calls. It was nice
to meet you, Mr. Special Agent...
Gamble.
Gamble.
Thank you, Mr. Mincow.
It's Minkow.
There was a cockiness,
I was cocky. Barry was cocky.
Everything we did just
seemed to fall nto place.
It was almost like we were beinglooked
over by some guardian angel.
In fact, there were more
people that didn't believe Barry
than the ones that did.
But he only needed a couple.
Altogether,
I think the FBI said
I created about 23,000
false documents
to convince Wall Street,
NASDAQ and the SEC
that we were doing about $400
million worth of restoration work
when in reality,
we were doing none.
Barry was working with
the investment banking firm
of Payne Cameron
to take ZZZZ Best public.
However, Barry and Jack Saxon had
a side scheme to pump and dump,
acquiring ZZZZ Best stock
at five cents apiece,
selling at the market price
and violating securities laws.
The biggest scam we pulled
off was the Sacramento job.
Barry staged a walkthrough of
a newly-restored office building
to fool
the Wall Street auditors
into believing that ZZZZ Best
had done
all of the restoration work.
We hadn't done
any of that work.
He even bribed the doorman a
hundred bucks to make it look good.
Hey, Mr. Minkow!
Nice to see you again!
Bob, how are you? How's
the wife? Still alive.
That's too bad.
Say hi to the kids for me.
You got it!
Just like family. Everyone
at ZZZZ Best is like family.
A con man has a
tremendous amount of charisma.
Smell it and say
to the woman,
"Ma'am, that's not dog urine.
That's your three-year-old."
What's this ladder doing here? Mike,
please find out who was here last.
Doesn't even look like there
was any water damage at all.
Well, that's the point.
See, he doesn't take
your money. You give it to him.
Gentlemen, attached, you
will find our project summary.
As you can see, we went
with the cost-effective
nylon carpet to save time,
and, most importantly,
your money.
It's theft
with a smile.
Once the Wall Street auditors
signed off on our financials,
Payne Cameron
took ZZZZ Best public.
By the end of the day, we had a
market cap of well over $300 million.
Truth be told,
we were worth almost nothing.
This is tremendous. Where's Barry? Dad.
Hey, Barry, we saw you
on Oprah.
Hey! I stole the show, right?
Listen, I want Carson.
I want to be on Johnny Carson!
What's this?
It's the Tribune! Read it!
"Happy Birthday, Barry Minkow.
"Your stock is worth
$100 million!
"You control a $300 million
public company"!
Hey, everybody!
Enough with this cheap stuff.
Hey, you, I don't even
know you.
Go buy me the most expensive
champagne you can find.
Five hundred bottles.
Drinks on me, everybody!
So, you're
the birthday kid, huh?
Uh...
I'm not a kid. All of these
people here work for me.
Well, I don't work for you.
Okay, who are you?
My name is Sam.
Sam, that's a guy's name.
You better be careful.
I might just decide this
party is a bore and leave.
Who invited you?
Happy birthday, Barry.
See you later.
Whoa. Babe.
Dude, stop. Stop.
Where's Mindy?
Okay. Have a good night,
buddy.
You've got all these
people fooled, don't ya?
If you've got a problem
with me,
you canalways stop
picking up your check.
You can't have me fooled,
Barry. You can't have me fooled.
You know what the difference
is between you and me, Mike?
I lead. You follow.
You're embarrassing.
Baby.
Hey, birthday boy.
Close your eyes.
Why?
Close your eyes.
Okay.
What is this?
A little toy
for the love of my life.
What? No. Wait, Barry.
It's your birthday.
It's not my birthday.
Because I love you,
that's why.
What are you doing?
Listen... Listen to me. Now.
I want you to take your new
car, grab a friend right now,
and I want you to go for a
little joyride, all right?
And I don't want you come back
until this is on empty.
Right now? Right now!
Right now. Go, go, go.
Thank you. I love you. You're welcome.
Hello there.
What took you so long?
It's my house,
you wait for me.
We'll see about that.
Ma! What are you doing here?
I'm sorry, I just wanted
to see you.
I wanted to congratulate you,
but you were surrounded by
so many presents and people,
I didn't get a chance... I'm
in the bathroom, for God sakes.
But I wanted to congratulate
you on, on the article.
Dad give you that?
Yeah.
You come over to tell me
you're proud of me?
It's very impressive.
"Impressive." I think it's
a bit more than impressive...
Come on, you've been praying for
this your whole life, haven't you?
Yeah, I was praying for this
but I was praying to my vanity.
What's that supposed to mean?
Please listen. I wanted...
I wanted so much more than
what your father could provide.
I didn't realize
what a good man he was.
"A good man." A good man
pays the water bill.
A good man keeps
the lights on in the house.
A good man will take care of
and provide for his family
no matter what the cost. I...
Mom... Mama... I'm a good man.
It's very hard to be
a good man, Barry.
You're really doing this to me
on my birthday, Mom?
What are you doing? You
want to turn on all this now?
I am the most successful thing
to ever come from this family.
All right? This is everything
that you've wanted.
This is everything
that Dad's wanted.
This is everything that I've
wanted for my entire life.
I mean, come on, I control
a $300 million company.
When I was downstairs, blowing
out my birthday candles,
I couldn't even think of anythingto
wish for, because I already have...
You don't have anything.
You don't have anything,
because you don't have morality!
I don't have...
You don't have God.
"God"?
How much is God? I'll buy God.
No, no, no.
Look, this is ancient history.
The banks and my investors
know about this.
A few dishonest carpet cleaners
false-billed some customers.
I fired them
and paid everyone back.
I don't see
what the problem is.
The problem is that stock
prices respond to news reports.
And your stock is
already down half a point.
There's a lot of pressure
to sell the shorts, Barry...
Okay. Well, then hold them
off! Okay? Forget the shorts!
I'm gonna...
I'm issuing a press release
for this afternoon
that'll clear
this whole thing up.
Our stock will be back up
to normal in no time.
I have to go.
I'll call you back.
First Bank of
Santa Barbara is
calling in their $7 million
loan because of the article.
What about NorthRidge
National? The same.
That's nine million bucks,
Mikey.
Barry, there's one more thing.
Saxon sold all of his shares.
He what?
Okay.
Mike, I need you to do
something for me, all right?
I need you to draft
a press release, okay?
Say that Payne Cameron has fully
investigated all of these charges
and cleared ZZZZ Best
of any wrongdoing.
Are you kidding me?
Just do it.
Amy?
Amy!
Amy!
People keep
calling us, Barry.
Thank you
for the observation.
Amy, now listen, I need you...
I need you to...
I need you to schedule a press
conference for this afternoon, okay?
How do I do that?
Time to earn
your paycheck, Amy. Go!
This is Barry.
Hey! Look on
the bright side. All right?
At least they're only talking
about credit card fraud,
not the restoration jobs,
right?
Mr. Minkow,
can you comment on why
your stock went down
four points today?
Absolutely. See, that was a
reaction to the LA Times story
about a past problem we had with
some dishonest carpet cleaners.
The banks and our investors
already knew about this.
But is it true that the SEC has
ordered an investigation of ZZZZ Best?
I'm unaware of
any such investigation.
Your prospectus states that
you completed a $7 million
restoration project in Sacramento
and yet, ZZZZ Best never filed
a permit for such construction.
And in fact, ZZZZ Best doesn't
even hold a contractor's license.
How do you explain that?
I'm going to have to refer that
question to our legal staff.
You know,
that's all for today.
I'm so sorry. I have to go.
Thank you all.
Mr. Minkow, how do you feel
about Payne Cameron resigning?
We have
more questions, Mr. Minkow.
We are here, live, on ZZZZ
Best's property. Barry Minkow...
I can't believe
that Payne Cameron resigned.
What did you think
was going to happen, Barry?
What's that supposed to mean?
It's over, man. It's over.
No, it's not.
No, it's not over. I can fix this. Okay
I can fix this
just like I fixed everything.
If I fixed it before
I can fix it...
Barry, you can't fix this.
Yes, I can!
Do you still not get it?
You can't climb out
of this one, Barry.
What do you know, huh, Mike?
You have no idea what it takes
to build something like this.
Yeah... You know,
actually, I do.
You know...
All it takes is an
incredible ability to lie.
I mean,
that's all you did, Barry.
You're a phony.
You used everyone.
I used people?
You used people.
You used me for money,
and popularity.
You sucked me dry, man.
Are you serious?
Absolutely!
You know, for somebody so
smart, you can be really stupid.
You...
You are a loser!
You betrayed me. You were a loser
when I met you in high school.
I'm done.
You're a loser now,
and you'll always be a
loser! I'm done with you.
I'm done with you.
Barry.
I'm done with you!
You lying, self-centered, backstabbing
son of a bitch. I'm done with you!
Payne Cameron's team
was pretty angry.
They said
the press release was a lie.
They said they never
investigated the charges.
Is that true?
Anyway, the phone's ringing
off the hook.
The Journal, the Times,
everyone wants to speak with you.
Barry, what do you
want me to do?
I'll be back in a hour.
Mr. Minkow,
you are a dangerous man.
You do not have a conscience.
You have been convicted of 57
counts of fraud, Mr. Minkow,
and you are hereby ordered to
serve a term of 25 years in jail.
And you are further ordered
to make restitution of $26
million to the individuals,
some of whom
you see here today,
whose lives you have severely
impacted by your actions...
The banks and the companies you
pulled into your elaborate scheme.
This court is adjourned.
You know,
the 2.5 million people
that are busting
the seams of our prisons,
both state and federally
across the U. S.,
all of us had one thing
in common.
None of us ever planned
on being there.
We all started
with the best of intentions.
I just wanted to be accepted.
But it was that vehicle that got me
that acceptance that swallowed me whole.
You see, as far back as I can
remember, I was dubbed "the whiz kid,"
and I had everything
I ever wanted.
Until it all came
crashing down.
Until I realized that
my whole life was a con.
One big giant con.
Barry was compelled, compelled
to play himself in the film,
because that's the only way he
could reach the final completion
of being the hero
in his own story.
It was not enough to have an
A- list actor. It had to be him.
The acting that Barry did
in the film,
was, I thought,
very, very, very good.
I know when he wanted to
make this movie...
There again, I said, "Barry,
be very, very careful."
I certainly advised him
not to play himself.
I said,
"You're making a mistake."
Sorry. Hold on. There you go.
There we go.
Mind if I smoke?
No, go ahead.
I don't smoke.
I mean, not anymore.
I was just curious what a
preacher felt about that.
But now, unfortunately,
I'm hooked on these.
I got to go to rehab
for these. Want one?
No.
It's the red one.
Go ahead. No.
What are you thinking about?
Nah.
Peanut.
What's that?
James "Peanut" Long.
The reason they call me
the Jailhouse Preacher.
Oh. You're gonna tell me
how you found Jesus?
I didn't find Jesus.
He found me in the form of
a 250-pound black guy.
Not bad for a guy your size.
Size ain't nothing.
The body is your temple.
Muscles ain't strength.
Real strength is in here.
You know, the most
dangerous part of your story
is that throughout
the whole ordeal
you actually
convinced yourself
that you were helping
hundreds of employees,
when in reality,
you were just...
Helping myself.
That's all I was doing.
Hindsight is 20/20,
and look where it got me.
Locked up in a prison cell.
Well, we're both locked up.
Difference is, I'm at
peace with what I've done.
And I'm getting there.
You're pretending
to get there.
You don't think I'm sincere?
I think you're trying
to find the Lord,
so you can hang out
with the Jesus freaks
instead of the skinheads
to make it in here.
Whatever.
Yeah. Whatever.
Why do you come to church
on Sunday
Is it because you're really
trying to change your life?
Or is it just another
Barry Minkow con?
One thing to remember
is the fraud artist
doesn't see himself
as a criminal.
The fraud is merely a means
to a well-justified end.
Once the scheme works,
everybody gets paid off,
nobody gets hurt.
Voila.
Okay, let's move on here.
You know as well as I do, when
the devil comes at you at first,
he looks good, sounds good,
feels good.
Then, when it's too late,
the beast comes out.
You got that right.
Where were you 11 years ago?
Well, I had a lot of
growing up to do.
Like I said,
ain't no accidents in life.
We bought shares
for five cents apiece,
then dumped them on the market
when it hit 12 and 13 bucks.
That was the part
that was illegal.
So, it was Saxon that got you
involved in the penny stocks, right?
And that's when he turned
his Wall Street connections
onto the stock,
they bought blocks of it,
the price shot through
the roof
and I was worth
millions instantly.
Insider trading.
Hey!
Hey!
Hey, you need to
leave him alone.
Yeah? You need to
mind your own business.
Hey, I don't want any trouble.
I said
mind your own business.
I will when you let him go.
Too bad.
Can't you hear?
Finish your shower. I said
take a walk, man. Take a walk.
I don't think so.
Don't think so?
I know I'm not seeing
what I think I'm seeing.
'Cause if you're trying to hurt
him, you're trying to hurt me.
Let's get out of here.
Lord Jesus,
I want to thank you
for making me
a God-fearing man.
And having me
not beat anyone's ass.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
I'm proud of you, whiz kid.
You did all the work.
I don't know why
you'd be proud of me.
Changing.
You helped a weaker brother
who was outnumbered.
Shows that you're changing from
your selfish-ass, self-centered ways.
Remember. The Lord always
looks out for the underdog.
I don't know if it
was Peanut or the broken nose.
I guess God has a way
of taking care of the details.
And it was at this moment that
life took on new clarity for me.
See, to win the game,
I had to stay in the pocket,
and face the pain.
It was then I learned
that to win in life
meant no more backing down.
No more shortcuts.
No more compromises.
No more lies.
And no more cons.
How you feeling?
I question whether some of
the stuff he did was for the movie
or the story of the movie.
I never felt better.
Thank you.
I question whether Peanut
was a real person or not.
It's a pretty good throw.
I don't think Barry
could throw a football nine feet.
Truth plus time equal trust.
A lot of truth, over a long
period of time equals trust.
And no shortcuts to that
equation either, you know?
Yeah, well,
thanks for the time.
Like I said
from the beginning,
I don't want to spend the rest
of my life in witness protection.
I'm not going to testify against
Mr. Saxon, not now, not ever.
Excuse me.
I never felt that
Barry was rehabilitated.
I believe his
transformation was real.
Everyone in prison knew
that if you found Jesus
that would look good on your
record to maybe get early release.
Truth plus time equal trust.
A lot of truth, over a long
period of time equals trust.
And no shortcuts to that
equation either, you know.
All right. We've heard
the testimony.
Now, it's time to decide based
on Mr. Minkow's present character.
You know, he came
out of prison raring to go.
But I didn't see it coming
with the church, quite honestly.
Mr. Minkow, we have
gone through your application
and enjoyed your guest sermon,
but now we'd like to hear the
answer to the following question.
Why should we hire you?
Well, on paper,
you shouldn't.
Especially when you
consider the fact that
the other 199 applicants
aren't convicted felons.
If you hire me,
I can promise you one thing,
that no one will work harder,
if for no other reason
than out of gratitude for
being given the opportunity
to pastor such a great church.
You see, I'm naive enough
to believe that
if you want to find the best
employee, the best place to find one
is someone who's
just come out of prison,
who didn't fail jail.
Who owes society
for what they've...
I've done.
And what better way for a church to
show their belief in the gospel of grace
than have a broken vessel
like me proclaim that truth
from the pulpit
of this very church.
And from a marketing
standpoint, imagine a slogan,
"Community Bible Church,
the only church where the
pastor is far worse than you."
I'll tell ya, I don't
know if you ever saw him in church,
in front of his congregation,
he was masterful.
I mean, he had them
in the palm of his hands.
Thank you. Nice to meet you.
Hi.
Hi.
Nice to meet you.
Thank you for coming.
First time here? Yes.
Wonderful sermon, Pastor Minkow.
Pastor Barry, please.
And this is my wife Lisa.
Hi, it's a pleasure
to meet you.
Hi, I'm Ellen Scott
and this is my husband Don.
Don, it's good to meet you.
We drove down from Santa
Barbara. Santa Barbara?
Well, my sermons don't merit that kind
of sacrifice, but thank you anyway.
We're here
for another reason.
The past 10 years, we put all our
retirement savings in a hedge fund.
About $250,000.
I earned that money, working
31 years as a longshoreman.
Now we're worried about the fund
and thought you could check it out.
Ma'am, I'm sorry,
I'm a pastor.
I don't really know a
whole lot about hedge funds.
I'm really sorry. I...
Look, why are you concerned?
The manager just moved
his office to the Bahamas.
How long
have they been around?
Twenty years. They're worth around
$800 million, about 2,000 investors.
Twenty years, $800 million...
Sounds like you don't have a
whole lot to worry about there.
Please, would you check on it?
I brought the prospectus.
Why me? I'm not an expert
in these kind of things.
Everything was fine until I
tried to withdraw the money.
They've been telling me that
it's in process for three months.
I told my nephew about it
and he suggested I see you.
Your nephew.
Who's your nephew?
Mike?
Mike
You look great.
You look great.
Not even you can
pull off that lie.
Well, I'm not exactly winning
any beauty contests myself.
How you been?
I'll be a lot better if you tell
me you can help out my uncle.
Yeah, well...
This hedge-fund guy, Lewis,
right, he's telling me
he's getting monthly gains
of 1.5% to 3.5%.
Yeah, I don't think anybody's
quite that good.
Hedge fund, I...
You know, I got that letter
you wrote to me from prison,
apologizing for what you did.
Were you lying then
or are you lying now?
Look, Mike, I'm not
the same guy I was before.
I'm married. I got the
church. I got twins.
I teach the FBI in fraud
prevention in Quantico. I...
I don't really want to hear about
the good deeds of my old schoolmates.
You can tell me you're working
with lepers on an island,
my opinion of you
wouldn't change, Barry. Okay?
I'll believe the change
when I see it.
Anybody who's ever been in a financial
dealing with me has lived to regret it.
You know that.
Yeah, I'll take my chances.
Besides, your rates
are unbeatable.
Rates?
I don't have any rates.
Exactly.
It became just too much
of a temptation for him.
Barry wanted to kind
of do the Catch Me If You Can.
It was impressive. I
mean, he really knew his stuff.
And there you have
the six red flags for fraud.
Should you choose to
commit those to memory,
you will be able to stop
the next Barry Minkow
before he is the next
Barry Minkow.
That's all I have today.
Thanks for joining me.
I think Barry viewed himself
as a hero in a sort of twisted way.
Well, well, well.
If it ain't the preacher man.
Good to see you, Smooth. I see
the streets have treated you well.
You look good, my friend.
Yeah, right.
You get a chance to look at the
copy of the prospectus I sent you?
Does your PO officer know that
you're associating with an ex
'Cause I will tell him.
I'm just trying to figure out
how this Lewis guy has managed to
run a Ponzi scheme for 20
years without it imploding.
Either I'm missing something,
or he's a financial genius.
Little of both.
Can I get a beer
and a whiskey, please?
Look, I need your expertise.
You're the best there is.
You already got
what you're looking for.
In the prospectus.
They practically advertise for people
to invest their retirement money.
Yeah, so?
When people take their IRA money and
put it into a fund like this one here,
there are heavy penalties if you
pull out before you're 57 and a half.
They can invest the money all they
want, they just can't pull it out.
The perfect ingredient for
the successful Ponzi scheme.
Barry becoming a fraud
buster didn't surprise me.
You know, I always wondered if going
undercover was an opportunity for him
to reenact his favorite '80s
detective shows, and he had many,
or was it part of a larger plan
to actually do good this time?
I don't know.
I mean, I don't know.
Let me explain this to you.
There's just a slight difference
between lecturing these guys
and dodging bullets for them.
And it's not like you've been
trained exactly. Not to a fine edge.
Look, the guy has been around for
over 20 years and he's a ghost.
No license
to sell securities,
no assets held
in the fund's name, nothing.
Who the hell is this guy?
It's the only way.
I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll
send Matt down to the Bahamas,
and he'll record
the meeting.
If there's any misreps,
we'll move forward from there.
How's that?
Uh, just one last thing is,
I need Quantico to create me
a bogus bank statement
showing the church has $5
million parked in a money market.
Wait a minute, how do you know this
guy's gonna show up in the first place?
Any Ponzi scheme operator
desperate for new cash
would do whatever it took to get
their hands on new cash. He'll show.
Uh-huh.
So, you're asking me to give
the carpet guy
this bank statement
for $5 million.
What, am I crazy?
Ernest Hemingway said,
"The only way you can learn
"to trust someone,
is to trust 'em."
Ernest Hemingway said that?
I think so. Could have
been Churchill. Or him.
"Barry,
you don't understand.
"You're going undercover,
you're not a cop.
"You're a pastor."
He said, "Listen,
I'm uncovering fraud.
"I'm helping people that are getting
scammed and victimized by others."
I said, "Barry, working so
closely with the government,
"if you're wrong one time,
you're in trouble."
You say Don Scott's
a friend of yours?
Yeah, he's a member
of our church,
and the church has been
growing so much lately
that we've established
a building fund,
to purchase some land
to accommodate the growth.
We wanted to invest that money, have
it working for us until we build.
Well, it would grow here, I assure
you. How much do you have to invest?
A little over $5 million.
Those returns that you've been
generating, can they be corroborated?
Yes. We earn 18% to 40%
annual. A 20-year track record.
And 800 million? Eight
hundred million. Yes, correct.
$800 million fund.
You just gotta forgive me. Numbers
like that get me a little bit nervous.
You are aware of my past, I was
convicted of securities fraud?
I read about you, yes.
I like how you disclose it up-front
on your church's website, too.
I'll be happy to work with
you. We all make mistakes.
You were just a kid.
You got greedy.
I have the money market
account, bank statement
to prove that the money is waiting
there, you can call the bank.
It's clear funds,
waiting to wire.
Well, thank you for coming, Pastor.
I look forward to working with you.
Well, I do appreciate
you seeing me,
and just as soon as you
send Don Scott his $250,000,
we'll wire these funds
right to your bank account.
It's just that, Mr. Scott had
requested a $250,000 withdrawal,
and apparently in your move
to the Bahamas...
You tell Mr. Scott, he'll
have his money in 24 hours.
Thank you for coming.
Terrific. Mr. Lewis,
thank you so much
for your time.
Well, hey, Don,
good to see you.
Hey, Barry. Well, Lewis wired
me half my money this morning.
Half?
Yeah.
He said that the custodian of American
Investment didn't put in my paperwork,
so he sent it
out of his own pocket,
and he said he'd wire me
the other half very soon.
You know, Don, I may
have underestimated just how
strapped for cash
Mr. Lewis is.
Why would he risk
five million new fresh dollars
by sending only half of what
he promised just days ago?
There's only
one answer to that.
And that is, he doesn't
have the full amount,
and he is much more cash-strapped
than I first anticipated.
You're beginning
to worry me, Barry.
Look, Don, I don't want you to worry
about a thing. I got this under control.
Okay? Trust me on this.
It'll be okay.
I'll take care of it.
Hello?
Pastor Minkow, Derek Lewis.
My understanding was you were
going to deposit your church money
two days after Mr. Scott
got his withdrawal fund.
It's my understanding that Mr. Scott
only received half of his funds.
Well, there was a problem
with the paperwork.
He'll get the balance
tomorrow or the next day.
Terrific. And once he does, the church
will wire the funds as I had promised.
Hey, that's my money. I
control who gets paid and when.
No ex-con's gonna
run a number on me.
You know something, Mr. Lewis, you're
not as smart as you think you are.
I know exactly
what you're doing.
You have no idea what
you're talking about.
The beauty of grace is that
good people don't go to heaven,
forgiven people
go to heaven.
That's the...
Barry, what is going on?
Excuse me a second. Just
relax for a minute. Excuse me.
Just relax for a minute,
would you, Mike
I'm gonna punch you
in the face
the next time you tell
me to relax, all right?
Derek Lewis is suing my
uncle for $10 million,
for fraud
and misrepresentation.
Yeah, I know. He's doing the
same thing to me and the church.
The cost for the suit
is gonna wipe them out!
Okay, I need you to stop doing
what you are doing. Okay?
They've got half their money back.
That's as good as they're gonna get.
Just walk away.
I can't, Mike.
There's a lot more at stake
than what you're thinking.
It's gonna be okay.
Just trust me.
Trust you. Where have
I heard that before?
Trusting you
ruined my life, Barry.
Barry's intentions were
always good, at least according to him.
But he had a lack
of regard for the law
and eventually,
that became an issue.
But Barry was
very hard to say no to.
You don't have to convince me
your intentions are good, Barry.
I know you've been making
restitution, even from prison.
I owe this community a lot more than
just money, Michael, you know that.
Yes, but what you're
asking me to do, I cannot do.
I might lose my job.
Look, Michael, I got Mr. Lewis
on tape saying he has $800 million
in his accounts at this bank
and if he does, that's wonderful.
But if he doesn't, he's in
the process of destroying
the lives of thousands of
people in this community.
I need your help.
I can't just...
We can't just
let that happen.
All I want you to do is
check the balances.
If they're nowhere
near $800 million,
then just get out of that
chair, walk over to that window,
look outside
and then I'll know for sure.
All I need are those balances.
Please, Michael, I'll leave either way.
All the investment company's accounts
are tied to this tax ID number.
You have to help me here.
You have to believe in me.
Please.
Man, looks like
it's going to rain.
Gamble had me do some digging the
past few days on my lunch break.
What's this?
Articles of incorporation from
a Tijuana company called Olacane.
It's Dowry's cash cow.
They get all their factoring
contracts from there.
It's run by some guy
named Oliveros.
They operate out of
300 square feet
and share a secretary
with three other businesses.
The restoration equivalent
of my Ponzi scheme.
No way that a 300 square-foot
office in Mexico can substantiate
hundreds of millions
in factoring business.
Gamble says,
"Merry Christmas."
Hello?
Mr. Lewis,
this is Barry Minkow calling.
How'd you get this number?
You have your spies.
I have mine.
What do you want?
I'd like to meet you in
Los Angeles tomorrow
and I'd like you to bring
the rest of Don Scott's money.
You gotta be joking.
5:00 p. m., LA Resort Hotel.
Unless of course you'd like me to
take the information I've obtained
and turn it over to the FBI
or the Journal.
And what do you have
on me, Mr. Minkow?
There's only $387,000
in your bank accounts
instead of the $800 million
that you purport to have.
You just wait a minute.
You, Mr. Lewis,
are running a Ponzi scheme.
No, you're the ex-con.
You're running the scam.
I'm doing the work of God.
Hey, I said wait a minute.
Protecting the weak.
I'll see you tomorrow,
LA Resort Hotel, 5:00 p. m.
Good night, Mr. Lewis.
Lisa, I wanted
to tell you something,
but I wanted to make sure
that it came out right.
So I wanted to be careful.
Barry, for once in your life,
don't speak, okay?
Look, I just
want to say that
I see the people who always
second-guess your motives.
I see them. I see the people
who always raise an eyebrow.
And I know that
you struggle, okay?
I know that you
struggle knowing that
most people deep down will
never trust a word that you say.
I mean, 'cause
let's be real, Barry,
most people will walk away, most people
are going to just shake their heads
and steer clear of you and
think that you're a con forever.
But that's not me.
I appreciate that
more then you'll ever know.
I got nothing to offer you but
a $26 million restitution order
and suspicious glares
and grins every time
I walk by with you
in some public arena.
But I will tell you this,
if I had to serve eight
Super Bowls in prison again,
and knew that you'd be
waiting for me when I got out,
I would go
right back to prison.
Look, uh...
I can do this, right?
Yeah. I know
you can do this.
Go get 'em.
I don't trust you, Minkow.
Hey, I'm here to work with
you. I'm not a bad guy.
I'm a liar and a sinner
saved by grace.
Stop it.
There's a lot of people
involved with this fund.
Heavy hitters.
It's not just me.
Listen, if you hurt me,
this goes to the FBI
and the Journal.
I don't want to hurt you.
I just need you to back off.
Well, I guess this won't be
going to the FBI or the Journal.
But tell me, getting this much
cash at this stage of your deal,
it was a bitch, wasn't it?
When you're giving 18% to 40%
a year, the interest kills you.
Do the math.
Every day keeps you
a little deeper in the hole.
I did the math and then I did
eight Super Bowls in prison.
I'm not a criminal.
My investors double their
money every three years.
But I had to make
some risky investments
just to raise some money
for the investors
that didn't use
the trust fund.
Tough game we're in.
These hedge funds,
totally unregulated.
I'll stay afloat.
I'll get it all back.
I just need to survive until
one of my deals pay off big.
And then I'm home free.
All I need you to do
is be quiet.
So, no money
left in the fund?
More or less.
Olacane just
a front company?
Olacane? Why are you asking
about Olacane?
Just
interested in how...
Uh, just, you know, interested
in how other people do
things like I used to do.
Look, I've gotta go.
I hope you fellas enjoy the
rest of your stay here in LA.
Catch a Clipper game
or something.
What the...
Boss...
Check him.
Shit, cover's blown,
cover's blown. Move in.
What's this?
It's a wire.
You know something?
Screw this job.
Don's money.
Come on. Come on.
Come on.
Freeze! FBI!
Drop the case!
Down on the floor.
Stay right where you are.
Let's go.
Down to base camp.
When I heard Barry was
chasing after bad guys in his movie,
I said, "Come on, Barry.
I mean, let's get real.
"There's no way you did this.
"You're not an action hero."
The FBI did credit Barry for
his multiple efforts to uncover fraud.
But there was more
to the story.
Hey, genius, come here.
Yeah.
Let me ask you something.
What would you have done
if you caught those guys?
They are kind of big,
aren't they?
I learned in prison,
in a shower of all places,
that when you do the right thing,
God takes care of the details.
Good job, by the way.
Merry Christmas.
What's ironic
here is that
while Barry was bragging about the
$1.6 billion in fraud he'd uncovered,
he was hammering companies
whose stock he'd shorted
in a series of attacks often based
on misleading or false charges.
Causing not the companies
but thousands of innocent shareholders
to lose well over $3 billion.
I always wondered why no
one ever really talks about
how much he had cost
all of those people.
Way more than any amount of fraud
that he ever uncovered or prevented.
He was really on the right road,
he had everything going for him
and to go this crazy,
to do the things that he did,
even I was surprised.
And, look, not too much
surprises me.
I've been on the street a long time
and I've seen just about everything.
I don't think I've ever seen the
extent of what Barry has done.
I mean, this was a Madoff type of
thing. It turned out to be his downfall.
I watched Barry do an impassioned sermon
that to me was unbelievable oratory.
And he would then follow that up
after motivating his entire parish,
and go out in the lobby and
accept a check from somebody
that he knew he was going to
misappropriate and spend improperly.
I know we're supposed
to forgive. As Christians,
we're supposed to forgive.
Maybe I can say I forgive,
but I cannot forget.
I cannot ever forget
what he has done.
He stole more than $3 million
from the church personally,
and multiple millions of dollars from
the people in the church privately.
And, boy, he took money
in the millions from people,
but he took my reputation
at... Which, you could always
get money back.
The comeback that he made
and the impact that he was
truly making was worthy.
But that story didn't end
the way it could have.
And I think when selfishness and
greed come in there, it sent him back.
It was a very tragic ending.
And tragic not just for Barry,
for the people that were hurt.
His whole life was an act.
His whole life was an act.
That's the bottom line.
Barry was
a master storyteller.
So even with Peanut,
for all I know
it was the same as Jimmy
Stewart's Harvey the bunny.
I don't think the
Peanut story was all true.
I think there was a Peanut,
but I don't think it went down
like Barry said it went down.
This match right here
is me and your life.
All the darkness in the world can't
overcome the power of one light,
one person
who believes in you.
Don't ever forget that.
Ever.