1 00:00:01,871 --> 00:00:03,525 [suspenseful music] 2 00:00:03,699 --> 00:00:05,092 - I think I saw 3 00:00:05,266 --> 00:00:08,095 "The Wolf of Wall Street" movie alone. 4 00:00:08,269 --> 00:00:11,707 I had received a call from Jordan Belfort 5 00:00:11,881 --> 00:00:15,928 asking me if I wanted to attend a premiere. 6 00:00:16,103 --> 00:00:18,192 - Martin Scorsese's film, "The Wolf of Wall Street," 7 00:00:18,366 --> 00:00:20,629 tells the real life story of Jordan Belfort. 8 00:00:20,803 --> 00:00:23,414 - The one-time stockbroker spent 22 months in prison 9 00:00:23,588 --> 00:00:25,808 for fraud and money laundering. 10 00:00:25,982 --> 00:00:28,898 Leonardo DiCaprio playing you glamorizes you. 11 00:00:29,072 --> 00:00:31,596 - I'd prefer him than Danny DeVito playing me. 12 00:00:31,770 --> 00:00:33,381 - $100 million in box office. 13 00:00:33,555 --> 00:00:35,296 - Sex, drugs, bad language, 14 00:00:35,470 --> 00:00:37,211 and people just treating each other horribly. 15 00:00:37,385 --> 00:00:39,300 - Five Oscar nominations. 16 00:00:39,474 --> 00:00:43,304 - I appeared very, very briefly in his book, 17 00:00:43,478 --> 00:00:47,177 so I had more than a little bit of trepidation. 18 00:00:47,351 --> 00:00:49,005 - When I went to go see the movie, 19 00:00:49,179 --> 00:00:50,789 I felt like wearing 20 00:00:50,963 --> 00:00:52,965 a paper bag with the eyes cut out. 21 00:00:53,140 --> 00:00:56,404 - Of course, a Martin Scorsese movie is 22 00:00:56,578 --> 00:01:00,234 shot beautifully from a technical point of view. 23 00:01:00,408 --> 00:01:05,717 The scenes on Wall Street make everybody look glamorous. 24 00:01:05,891 --> 00:01:07,937 - I sat in a movie theater and cried. 25 00:01:08,111 --> 00:01:10,287 - I was watching my life on screen. 26 00:01:10,461 --> 00:01:11,854 It was surreal. 27 00:01:12,028 --> 00:01:13,682 [intriguing music] 28 00:01:13,856 --> 00:01:15,945 - Are we ready? 29 00:01:16,119 --> 00:01:18,033 Is everyone rolling? 30 00:01:18,208 --> 00:01:21,429 - I solemnly swear--no. [laughs] 31 00:01:21,603 --> 00:01:22,952 - Hold on for one second. 32 00:01:23,126 --> 00:01:24,954 - I used to get worried when I heard sirens. 33 00:01:25,128 --> 00:01:27,304 - Those aren't the police coming for me, right? 34 00:01:27,478 --> 00:01:28,871 Huh? 35 00:01:29,176 --> 00:01:30,742 - Have you ever told your story publicly before? 36 00:01:30,916 --> 00:01:32,092 - No. 37 00:01:32,265 --> 00:01:33,484 - How's it feel sitting here? 38 00:01:33,745 --> 00:01:35,007 - I'd rather be in the dentist's chair. 39 00:01:35,182 --> 00:01:37,053 That's pretty bad. [chuckles] 40 00:01:37,227 --> 00:01:38,663 - Why are you here today? 41 00:01:38,837 --> 00:01:40,752 - Actually, I was there. I lived the life. 42 00:01:40,926 --> 00:01:43,190 - Kind of asking for forgiveness, in a way. 43 00:01:43,364 --> 00:01:46,366 - There's a lot of reasons why somebody would say no to this. 44 00:01:46,541 --> 00:01:48,717 - It's important to get the story out there 45 00:01:48,890 --> 00:01:53,243 because Jordan called me a fat fuck in his movie. 46 00:01:53,417 --> 00:01:55,115 - Donnie, that fucking fat piece of shit. 47 00:01:55,289 --> 00:01:57,769 - A lot of the movie was bullshit. 48 00:01:57,943 --> 00:02:01,251 This is the truth. 49 00:02:01,425 --> 00:02:03,340 - The story "The Wolf of Wall Street" tells 50 00:02:03,514 --> 00:02:08,127 is a narrative that Jordan Belfort created. 51 00:02:08,301 --> 00:02:09,999 - You know the truth about Jordan Belfort? 52 00:02:10,173 --> 00:02:11,957 He was never called the Wolf of Wall Street. 53 00:02:12,132 --> 00:02:16,353 - No one ever called Jordan "Wolf." 54 00:02:16,527 --> 00:02:19,139 - The movie doesn't even accurately portray 55 00:02:19,313 --> 00:02:21,228 the level of insanity that occurred. 56 00:02:21,402 --> 00:02:24,970 - There wasn't enough hookers, drug use. 57 00:02:25,145 --> 00:02:26,494 Really missing from the movie. 58 00:02:26,668 --> 00:02:29,323 - Young people today think that movie is real. 59 00:02:29,497 --> 00:02:32,064 They admire the person in that movie. 60 00:02:32,239 --> 00:02:33,762 Show me how you sell me a pen. 61 00:02:33,936 --> 00:02:34,937 - Sell me this fucking pen right here. 62 00:02:35,111 --> 00:02:36,591 You sell that. 63 00:02:36,895 --> 00:02:38,288 - The movie was just a way of making him a celebrity, 64 00:02:38,462 --> 00:02:39,811 and he then used that. 65 00:02:39,985 --> 00:02:41,422 - The one thing I've learned tonight is 66 00:02:41,596 --> 00:02:43,728 how to sell a pen from the master salesman. 67 00:02:43,902 --> 00:02:45,513 - People don't know the real Jordan Belfort. 68 00:02:45,687 --> 00:02:47,689 - We got married. I think I was 23. 69 00:02:47,863 --> 00:02:49,299 The highs were really high. 70 00:02:49,473 --> 00:02:51,083 The lows were really low. 71 00:02:51,258 --> 00:02:52,911 - What's missing from the movie is 72 00:02:53,085 --> 00:02:55,087 that there is a price to pay. 73 00:02:55,262 --> 00:02:59,091 - In real life, he destroyed people's lives. 74 00:02:59,266 --> 00:03:01,224 - People lost money. People got hurt. 75 00:03:01,398 --> 00:03:03,095 - There was fallout for everyone. 76 00:03:03,270 --> 00:03:04,445 - Did Jordan get away with it? 77 00:03:04,619 --> 00:03:06,882 - Well, God punished me later in life. 78 00:03:07,056 --> 00:03:09,754 - Now I'm a convicted felon. 79 00:03:09,928 --> 00:03:12,017 - Betrayal. Here it comes. 80 00:03:12,192 --> 00:03:16,196 - For a lot of people, the American dream in this story 81 00:03:16,370 --> 00:03:18,676 turned into the American Nightmare. 82 00:03:18,850 --> 00:03:21,679 [tense music] 83 00:03:21,853 --> 00:03:28,991 ♪ ♪ 84 00:03:41,351 --> 00:03:44,224 [gentle music] 85 00:03:44,398 --> 00:03:46,530 ♪ ♪ 86 00:03:46,704 --> 00:03:49,838 - So I've had this video collection for years. 87 00:03:50,012 --> 00:03:54,408 I was always into taking videos back in the Hampton days. 88 00:03:54,582 --> 00:03:58,368 Then when I met up with Jordan in 1991, 89 00:03:58,542 --> 00:04:00,327 I started taking videos of us 90 00:04:00,501 --> 00:04:02,067 with all the different adventures 91 00:04:02,242 --> 00:04:04,113 that he brought me to. 92 00:04:04,287 --> 00:04:06,158 - My name is Ross Portenoy, 93 00:04:06,333 --> 00:04:08,335 and I had the honor and pleasure of being 94 00:04:08,509 --> 00:04:12,121 friends with Jordan Belfort and Nadine Belfort, 95 00:04:12,295 --> 00:04:15,211 AKA the Wolf of Wall Street and the Duchess. 96 00:04:15,385 --> 00:04:19,302 We had some crazy, wild times. 97 00:04:22,697 --> 00:04:25,482 - And my life was very surreal during those years. 98 00:04:25,656 --> 00:04:29,007 I was living the lifestyle of the rich and famous. 99 00:04:29,181 --> 00:04:31,227 The drugs were going around. 100 00:04:31,401 --> 00:04:32,837 It was chaos. It was wild. 101 00:04:35,666 --> 00:04:39,017 - These tapes have been with me for 30-some odd years. 102 00:04:41,498 --> 00:04:43,326 - "The Wolf of Wall Street," for the most part, 103 00:04:43,500 --> 00:04:45,415 whether it was the book or the actual movie, 104 00:04:45,589 --> 00:04:47,112 was through Jordan's lens, 105 00:04:47,287 --> 00:04:49,593 and a lot of it is for Hollywood. 106 00:04:49,767 --> 00:04:52,857 What I lived was the actual life. 107 00:04:53,031 --> 00:04:55,251 And I'm doing this today to explain 108 00:04:55,425 --> 00:04:57,645 to the people that idolize him 109 00:04:57,819 --> 00:05:00,822 that you don't know the other side of him. 110 00:05:00,996 --> 00:05:03,128 - When you picture Jordan Belfort, 111 00:05:03,303 --> 00:05:05,000 what five words come to mind? 112 00:05:05,174 --> 00:05:06,741 - First of all, he's not my friend. 113 00:05:06,915 --> 00:05:08,090 - Confident. 114 00:05:08,264 --> 00:05:09,439 - Extremely persuasive. 115 00:05:09,613 --> 00:05:10,962 - Manipulative. 116 00:05:11,223 --> 00:05:14,488 - Very, very smart, incredibly selfish. 117 00:05:14,662 --> 00:05:15,576 - And arrogant. 118 00:05:15,750 --> 00:05:16,707 - He was a chameleon. 119 00:05:17,012 --> 00:05:18,405 - He's, you know, the antihero. 120 00:05:18,579 --> 00:05:20,276 - He was constantly high. 121 00:05:20,450 --> 00:05:21,930 - Pays no attention to the law. 122 00:05:22,104 --> 00:05:23,453 - A rat. 123 00:05:23,627 --> 00:05:26,587 - And absolutely no remorse, no conscience. 124 00:05:26,761 --> 00:05:31,505 - Midget, scumbag, lying piece of shit, 125 00:05:31,679 --> 00:05:34,334 although I think I went six words. 126 00:05:34,508 --> 00:05:35,987 - When Stratton first started, 127 00:05:36,161 --> 00:05:38,294 I invented the system for training salesmen. 128 00:05:38,468 --> 00:05:39,556 We was legit. 129 00:05:39,991 --> 00:05:40,905 We were trying to make our clients money, 130 00:05:41,079 --> 00:05:42,254 and that was great. 131 00:05:42,646 --> 00:05:43,778 - You know, he's a great salesman. 132 00:05:44,126 --> 00:05:45,867 He sold garbage, but he was a great salesman. 133 00:05:46,041 --> 00:05:48,652 - Sales isn't about what you sell. 134 00:05:48,826 --> 00:05:51,612 You're always just selling yourself. 135 00:05:53,527 --> 00:05:55,790 - I know him since I'm ten years old. 136 00:05:55,964 --> 00:05:57,705 We were best friends. 137 00:05:57,879 --> 00:06:00,142 I grew up in his house. He grew up in mine. 138 00:06:00,316 --> 00:06:02,100 If you've been betrayed 139 00:06:02,318 --> 00:06:06,235 by whoever's the closest person you've ever had in your life, 140 00:06:06,409 --> 00:06:10,761 you'd get close to why this is difficult for me. 141 00:06:10,935 --> 00:06:12,589 My name is Andrew Greene-- 142 00:06:12,763 --> 00:06:14,069 [grunts] 143 00:06:14,504 --> 00:06:17,159 And I unfortunately fit right into the middle 144 00:06:17,332 --> 00:06:18,769 of the whole discussion. 145 00:06:19,248 --> 00:06:21,381 The only question is, you know, what you want to discuss. 146 00:06:21,555 --> 00:06:24,340 But it's not just Stratton Oakmont for me. 147 00:06:24,514 --> 00:06:26,081 It's very personal. 148 00:06:26,342 --> 00:06:28,344 - Was there a character based on you in the movie? 149 00:06:28,518 --> 00:06:29,563 - Yes. 150 00:06:29,737 --> 00:06:31,391 - Was it Rugrat? 151 00:06:31,739 --> 00:06:34,742 - I called him Rugrat because of his piece-of-shit hairpiece. 152 00:06:34,916 --> 00:06:38,049 - First of all, no one ever called that name to me, 153 00:06:38,223 --> 00:06:40,530 at least to my face. 154 00:06:40,704 --> 00:06:42,663 And if he ever did, I'd have my foot up his ass. 155 00:06:42,837 --> 00:06:43,751 And he knows it. 156 00:06:43,925 --> 00:06:45,796 I grew up in a great place. 157 00:06:45,970 --> 00:06:47,189 Bayside, New York. 158 00:06:47,363 --> 00:06:49,147 I moved there when I was ten. 159 00:06:49,321 --> 00:06:50,932 Jordan was a different person. 160 00:06:51,106 --> 00:06:53,325 He likes to think of himself now as, you know, 161 00:06:53,500 --> 00:06:56,764 Mr. Wall Street and debonair. 162 00:06:56,938 --> 00:06:58,156 That wasn't him growing up. 163 00:06:58,330 --> 00:06:59,810 He was the complete opposite. 164 00:07:00,158 --> 00:07:03,335 But he was always smarter than everyone else. 165 00:07:03,510 --> 00:07:05,381 Got it from his mother. 166 00:07:07,078 --> 00:07:12,519 The place that I grew up was very competitive. 167 00:07:12,693 --> 00:07:14,564 We would be playing basketball one day, 168 00:07:14,738 --> 00:07:17,393 baseball, swimming, whatever. 169 00:07:17,567 --> 00:07:21,310 But Jordan wasn't the greatest athlete. 170 00:07:21,484 --> 00:07:23,312 He was smaller. 171 00:07:23,486 --> 00:07:25,532 And when it came to girls, you know, 172 00:07:25,706 --> 00:07:27,490 it was a difficult time for him. 173 00:07:27,664 --> 00:07:29,710 He lacked self-confidence. 174 00:07:29,884 --> 00:07:34,409 Yeah, I hate to tell you, but when we were growing up, 175 00:07:34,584 --> 00:07:36,107 he would have to put lifts in his shoes 176 00:07:36,281 --> 00:07:38,153 'cause he was upset of how short he was. 177 00:07:38,327 --> 00:07:40,155 He would take hormone shots. 178 00:07:40,329 --> 00:07:42,418 To me, it wasn't really the physical growth. 179 00:07:42,592 --> 00:07:44,986 He needed to grow in here. 180 00:07:45,159 --> 00:07:46,640 We didn't grow up in wealth. 181 00:07:46,814 --> 00:07:49,338 It was a middle-class neighborhood. 182 00:07:49,512 --> 00:07:52,080 All the things that he had later on in life, 183 00:07:52,254 --> 00:07:53,864 none of us had. 184 00:07:54,038 --> 00:07:55,866 [up-tempo music] 185 00:07:56,040 --> 00:07:59,566 - Growing up, we used to hang out at Jones Beach. 186 00:07:59,740 --> 00:08:02,307 The concession stand was a quarter of a mile 187 00:08:02,482 --> 00:08:03,961 from where the water was. 188 00:08:04,135 --> 00:08:06,268 And to walk that in the hot, hot weather 189 00:08:06,442 --> 00:08:08,444 to get a drink was crazy. 190 00:08:08,618 --> 00:08:11,795 So along comes this little guy, Jordan Belfort, 191 00:08:11,969 --> 00:08:14,798 who I knew from my friends and from Bay Terrace, 192 00:08:14,972 --> 00:08:17,453 selling ices out of a cooler. 193 00:08:17,627 --> 00:08:19,977 - When we were in high school, 194 00:08:20,151 --> 00:08:22,371 we're selling ices on the beach. 195 00:08:22,545 --> 00:08:24,025 You know, I'd sell a cooler or two 196 00:08:24,199 --> 00:08:26,114 and sit down and enjoy my day. 197 00:08:26,288 --> 00:08:28,332 He was a fanatic about it. 198 00:08:28,508 --> 00:08:31,598 Italian ices come in these paper cups, 199 00:08:31,772 --> 00:08:33,904 and he'd squeeze the bottom of the cup 200 00:08:34,078 --> 00:08:37,691 so he'd have to put less ices into each cup. 201 00:08:37,865 --> 00:08:39,953 - Jordan realized he now didn't have to put 202 00:08:40,128 --> 00:08:44,174 two full scoops of ices in, and nobody knew he was making 203 00:08:44,349 --> 00:08:47,744 literally thousands of dollars every summer. 204 00:08:47,918 --> 00:08:52,967 - And he really grew selling ices to an art form. 205 00:08:54,272 --> 00:08:56,231 - In the beginning when he was young, 206 00:08:56,405 --> 00:08:59,713 Jordan was definitely a much more humbled Jordan 207 00:08:59,887 --> 00:09:02,454 because he wasn't making 208 00:09:02,629 --> 00:09:04,282 anywhere near what he wound up making. 209 00:09:04,456 --> 00:09:06,458 He was just starting. 210 00:09:06,633 --> 00:09:08,199 My name is Robert LoRusso. 211 00:09:08,373 --> 00:09:11,768 I met Jordan when I was maybe 19 or 20 years old. 212 00:09:11,942 --> 00:09:14,684 I would consider us really very, very close-- 213 00:09:14,858 --> 00:09:17,731 almost, I would say, even best friends. 214 00:09:17,905 --> 00:09:20,255 The Hamptons has really changed a lot. 215 00:09:20,429 --> 00:09:22,257 When we were growing up, we would go out there 216 00:09:22,431 --> 00:09:25,434 on weekends to party. 217 00:09:25,608 --> 00:09:27,523 This is the Studio 54 days, by the way, 218 00:09:27,697 --> 00:09:29,569 so disco was very big. 219 00:09:29,743 --> 00:09:34,443 We would rent a hotel room, go to the beach the next day. 220 00:09:34,617 --> 00:09:36,967 There were bikini contests. 221 00:09:37,141 --> 00:09:37,968 We were young. 222 00:09:38,142 --> 00:09:40,014 We were in our 20s. 223 00:09:40,188 --> 00:09:42,320 On one occasion, I was at a club, 224 00:09:42,494 --> 00:09:45,019 and in front of us was Jordan. 225 00:09:45,193 --> 00:09:47,848 We were both trying to get this one girl's attention. 226 00:09:48,022 --> 00:09:51,199 Um, how can I say this? 227 00:09:51,373 --> 00:09:52,635 And we--let's just say 228 00:09:52,809 --> 00:09:55,420 we became friends with her together. 229 00:09:55,595 --> 00:09:58,902 Well, she liked both of us, and we both liked her. 230 00:09:59,076 --> 00:10:02,166 And I think we left the club, and we spent time together. 231 00:10:02,340 --> 00:10:03,254 That's all. 232 00:10:03,428 --> 00:10:05,300 - All three of you? 233 00:10:05,474 --> 00:10:07,911 - Yes. 234 00:10:08,085 --> 00:10:10,697 - Jordan had a meat business as well. 235 00:10:10,871 --> 00:10:12,220 He would knock on people's doors, 236 00:10:12,699 --> 00:10:15,353 and he would say, listen, I have my boss's truck 237 00:10:15,527 --> 00:10:18,052 full of meat and fresh shrimp. 238 00:10:18,226 --> 00:10:22,709 And if I didn't sell them, he's going to end up firing me. 239 00:10:22,883 --> 00:10:25,102 I could give you a great price on it. 240 00:10:25,276 --> 00:10:27,365 Those products were also a part of a scam 241 00:10:27,539 --> 00:10:30,151 because the 16-ounce steak only weighed 12 ounces. 242 00:10:30,325 --> 00:10:32,196 He would take water in a syringe, 243 00:10:32,370 --> 00:10:34,372 and he would inject shrimps to make them look larger 244 00:10:34,546 --> 00:10:36,200 than they actually were. 245 00:10:36,374 --> 00:10:38,202 - Jordan was an expert at learning what people wanted 246 00:10:38,376 --> 00:10:41,118 to hear to get them to buy, 247 00:10:41,292 --> 00:10:45,906 whether it's ices, whether it's steak or stocks. 248 00:10:47,298 --> 00:10:50,127 - After working as a meat and fish salesman, 249 00:10:50,301 --> 00:10:52,782 he gets a job at a real Wall Street firm, 250 00:10:52,956 --> 00:10:54,305 L.F. Rothschild. 251 00:10:54,479 --> 00:10:56,307 [percussive music] 252 00:10:56,481 --> 00:11:00,007 Wall Street at that time was the golden ticket. 253 00:11:00,181 --> 00:11:03,140 It was like an infinite number of ways 254 00:11:03,314 --> 00:11:04,968 that you could get rich. 255 00:11:05,142 --> 00:11:09,277 Anybody could make money if they were good and smart. 256 00:11:09,451 --> 00:11:10,844 I'm Pat Hurtado. 257 00:11:11,018 --> 00:11:12,976 I'm a reporter for Bloomberg News, 258 00:11:13,150 --> 00:11:15,675 and I cover the courts. 259 00:11:15,849 --> 00:11:18,112 - For the last five years, it's been party time 260 00:11:18,286 --> 00:11:21,593 on Wall Street with record high after record high. 261 00:11:21,768 --> 00:11:23,770 - Jordan seemed to be doing well, 262 00:11:23,944 --> 00:11:26,642 but then he had the unfortunate bad luck 263 00:11:26,816 --> 00:11:30,341 of having worked there when Black Monday happens. 264 00:11:30,515 --> 00:11:33,431 - In trading rooms on Wall Street, there was panic. 265 00:11:33,605 --> 00:11:37,740 - The stock market crash cost investors $500 billion. 266 00:11:37,914 --> 00:11:39,873 - Black Monday was devastating. 267 00:11:40,047 --> 00:11:41,788 People lost their life savings. 268 00:11:41,962 --> 00:11:45,792 And it was a huge setback for Jordan Belfort. 269 00:11:45,966 --> 00:11:47,750 Most of the people on Wall Street suddenly 270 00:11:47,924 --> 00:11:50,187 found themselves without a job. 271 00:11:50,361 --> 00:11:51,580 - When I started looking through 272 00:11:51,972 --> 00:11:53,538 the "help wanted" section, I stumbled upon an ad 273 00:11:53,713 --> 00:11:55,976 for stockbrokers out in Long Island. 274 00:11:56,150 --> 00:11:59,240 I didn't even know what it was, but I was desperate. 275 00:11:59,414 --> 00:12:02,460 - Eventually, Jordan is able to get a job 276 00:12:02,634 --> 00:12:04,811 at this place called the Investors Center, 277 00:12:04,985 --> 00:12:07,291 which is right out of the movie. 278 00:12:08,466 --> 00:12:09,685 - It's 3¢ a share. 279 00:12:09,859 --> 00:12:11,948 That's $3, you cheap fuck! 280 00:12:12,122 --> 00:12:13,645 - It's a boiler room operation, 281 00:12:13,820 --> 00:12:16,387 a high sell, pushy-- 282 00:12:16,561 --> 00:12:18,041 get grandma on the phone. 283 00:12:18,215 --> 00:12:20,391 She answers by accident. 284 00:12:20,565 --> 00:12:23,917 A boiler room is when an army of cold callers 285 00:12:24,091 --> 00:12:26,876 use very aggressive tactics to sell stocks 286 00:12:27,050 --> 00:12:30,750 to unsuspecting members of the public. 287 00:12:30,924 --> 00:12:32,229 - Took the job, and the first day, 288 00:12:32,403 --> 00:12:33,796 shattered the company record. 289 00:12:33,970 --> 00:12:35,667 But this was different 'cause I had this-- 290 00:12:35,842 --> 00:12:38,061 this moment of clarity. 291 00:12:38,235 --> 00:12:39,715 I was making a million bucks a year myself 292 00:12:39,889 --> 00:12:41,108 as a stock broker, 293 00:12:41,369 --> 00:12:43,545 but I could train any human being, 294 00:12:43,719 --> 00:12:46,200 regardless of age, race, creed, 295 00:12:46,374 --> 00:12:47,941 color, socioeconomic background, 296 00:12:48,115 --> 00:12:50,030 educational status-- didn't matter. 297 00:12:50,204 --> 00:12:52,902 They could have this much desire and I could amplify it, 298 00:12:53,076 --> 00:12:56,514 and in six months, they'd be rich too. 299 00:12:56,688 --> 00:12:58,952 - When Jordan was at Investor's Center, 300 00:12:59,126 --> 00:13:01,781 I know he was doing well there. 301 00:13:01,955 --> 00:13:03,608 I remember we had, like, a little celebration 302 00:13:03,783 --> 00:13:05,045 when he made his first million. 303 00:13:05,219 --> 00:13:07,787 [mellow music] 304 00:13:07,961 --> 00:13:09,571 He bought the West Hampton house 305 00:13:09,745 --> 00:13:11,399 when he was very young. 306 00:13:11,660 --> 00:13:13,183 So on the weekends, that's where we would go. 307 00:13:13,357 --> 00:13:14,968 It was pretty much an open party-- 308 00:13:15,142 --> 00:13:16,752 people at the beach, people in the water, 309 00:13:16,926 --> 00:13:17,927 people in the pool, 310 00:13:18,275 --> 00:13:19,929 people in the bathrooms doing drugs, 311 00:13:20,103 --> 00:13:21,757 people in the basement doing drugs, 312 00:13:21,931 --> 00:13:24,586 people upstairs in the bedrooms doing drugs, 313 00:13:24,760 --> 00:13:27,719 people on the roof doing drugs. 314 00:13:27,894 --> 00:13:29,591 That is what the party was like. 315 00:13:29,765 --> 00:13:31,332 It was a lot of fun. 316 00:13:31,506 --> 00:13:33,595 ♪ ♪ 317 00:13:33,769 --> 00:13:36,728 Jordan didn't really talk much about Investors Center, 318 00:13:36,903 --> 00:13:38,905 but I know he was making a lot of money. 319 00:13:39,079 --> 00:13:40,471 He's like, I could just do this myself. 320 00:13:40,645 --> 00:13:42,560 [pensive music] 321 00:13:42,734 --> 00:13:45,912 - In 1989, I got a call from Jordan, 322 00:13:46,086 --> 00:13:48,392 and he told me he wanted to start a firm. 323 00:13:48,566 --> 00:13:51,091 What did he need to know? 324 00:13:51,265 --> 00:13:53,049 I'm known as Ike Sorkin. 325 00:13:53,223 --> 00:13:57,097 I started out of law school at the SEC as a trial attorney. 326 00:13:57,271 --> 00:13:58,446 Hi. 327 00:13:58,838 --> 00:14:00,491 And then I went into private practice. 328 00:14:00,796 --> 00:14:04,104 At the time, Jordan was working for Investors Center, 329 00:14:04,278 --> 00:14:06,933 a small boiler room with a bunch of brokers 330 00:14:07,107 --> 00:14:09,761 who didn't know the difference between a stock certificate 331 00:14:09,936 --> 00:14:12,199 and a parking ticket. 332 00:14:12,373 --> 00:14:14,244 They were trying to sell companies 333 00:14:14,418 --> 00:14:16,116 that really had no worth. 334 00:14:16,290 --> 00:14:19,510 And I said to Jordan, if you wanted to start a firm, 335 00:14:19,684 --> 00:14:22,731 you're gonna get in trouble if you didn't do it right. 336 00:14:22,905 --> 00:14:25,473 He thanked me, and he disappeared. 337 00:14:25,647 --> 00:14:27,910 ♪ ♪ 338 00:14:28,084 --> 00:14:31,958 - In 1989, Jordan and I met up. 339 00:14:32,132 --> 00:14:34,656 And Jordan said he started this brokerage firm 340 00:14:34,830 --> 00:14:36,963 called Stratton Oakmont. 341 00:14:37,137 --> 00:14:38,965 I knew a bunch of brokers working for him. 342 00:14:39,139 --> 00:14:42,359 He recruited most of the guys from Bayside. 343 00:14:42,533 --> 00:14:44,884 - One day, we were in Puerto Rico. 344 00:14:45,058 --> 00:14:48,235 Jordan was married to Denise, his first wife. 345 00:14:48,409 --> 00:14:49,801 They were in love. 346 00:14:49,976 --> 00:14:53,457 They were very active, from what I remember. 347 00:14:53,631 --> 00:14:55,329 We were chilling in the pool. 348 00:14:55,503 --> 00:14:57,331 The girls were on their lounge chairs. 349 00:14:57,505 --> 00:14:59,681 And I said, how's the business going? 350 00:14:59,855 --> 00:15:01,770 He goes, good. 351 00:15:01,944 --> 00:15:03,990 He asked me, do you want to become a partner? 352 00:15:04,164 --> 00:15:06,993 Maybe $100,000 for 10%, something like that. 353 00:15:07,167 --> 00:15:08,559 I said, no, you know, 354 00:15:08,820 --> 00:15:11,127 I don't know anything about that industry. 355 00:15:11,301 --> 00:15:14,000 You know, that decision I made was probably a good decision, 356 00:15:14,174 --> 00:15:16,872 'cause I'd probably be in jail right now. 357 00:15:20,136 --> 00:15:21,790 [upbeat music] 358 00:15:21,964 --> 00:15:24,401 - The lessons Jordan Belfort learned 359 00:15:24,575 --> 00:15:27,056 from the Investors Center, he took with him, 360 00:15:27,230 --> 00:15:30,190 creating this little mini-empire out in Long Island 361 00:15:30,364 --> 00:15:31,843 called Stratton Oakmont. 362 00:15:32,018 --> 00:15:33,584 And within a few years, 363 00:15:33,845 --> 00:15:35,456 it was one of the most successful boiler rooms 364 00:15:35,630 --> 00:15:36,848 in the country. 365 00:15:37,066 --> 00:15:38,981 For many of the people that he hired, 366 00:15:39,155 --> 00:15:42,985 Jordan Belfort became their inspirational leader. 367 00:15:43,159 --> 00:15:45,031 - It was crazy partying going on. 368 00:15:46,684 --> 00:15:49,644 - People snorting coke, people doing ludes, 369 00:15:49,818 --> 00:15:51,994 traveling the world. 370 00:15:52,168 --> 00:15:55,693 These young brokers all wanted to live the same lifestyle. 371 00:15:57,130 --> 00:15:58,653 - He's the Pied Piper. 372 00:15:58,827 --> 00:16:03,310 He had these guys march to his beat of his drum. 373 00:16:03,484 --> 00:16:05,834 - It was a good scene in the movie where you had 374 00:16:06,008 --> 00:16:08,184 these young kids coming into the firm, 375 00:16:08,358 --> 00:16:09,490 all looking for jobs. 376 00:16:09,664 --> 00:16:10,926 - What's all this? 377 00:16:11,100 --> 00:16:12,145 - It's the "Forbes" article. 378 00:16:12,319 --> 00:16:13,624 They all want to work for you now. 379 00:16:13,929 --> 00:16:16,323 - He knew what to say to a bunch of kids 380 00:16:16,497 --> 00:16:18,064 and promised them you're all gonna be 381 00:16:18,238 --> 00:16:19,543 millionaires someday. 382 00:16:19,717 --> 00:16:21,197 And people believed him. 383 00:16:21,371 --> 00:16:26,811 - The perfect candidate was young, dumb, 384 00:16:26,986 --> 00:16:30,511 broke, and hungry. 385 00:16:30,685 --> 00:16:34,254 My name is Howie Gelfand, and I was at Stratton 386 00:16:34,428 --> 00:16:38,910 from '89 till it closed. 387 00:16:39,085 --> 00:16:42,436 I grew up in Flushing, Queens. 388 00:16:42,610 --> 00:16:46,048 My childhood was really nothing special 389 00:16:46,222 --> 00:16:49,965 other than the fact that that's where I started 390 00:16:50,139 --> 00:16:53,273 to become a-- you know, a fat fuck. 391 00:16:53,447 --> 00:16:56,319 The reason we eventually moved out to Long Island 392 00:16:56,493 --> 00:17:00,845 is because I was stabbed in the arm with a lead pencil 393 00:17:01,020 --> 00:17:03,631 by a girl in the boys' room for my lunch money. 394 00:17:03,805 --> 00:17:06,502 Now, a little fat kid, 395 00:17:06,676 --> 00:17:09,897 last thing you want to have to give up is your lunch money. 396 00:17:10,071 --> 00:17:14,207 And as soon as that happened, the Jewish mother said, 397 00:17:14,381 --> 00:17:15,859 that's it. 398 00:17:16,035 --> 00:17:19,386 We're packing up, and we're going to the suburbs. 399 00:17:19,560 --> 00:17:21,344 We moved out to Long Island. 400 00:17:21,518 --> 00:17:24,130 And little by little, I started to see 401 00:17:24,304 --> 00:17:26,132 how the other half lives. 402 00:17:26,306 --> 00:17:29,570 I was, by far and away, the poorest kid 403 00:17:29,744 --> 00:17:33,400 in a very wealthy neighborhood. 404 00:17:33,574 --> 00:17:37,795 And I said to myself, I need to make money. 405 00:17:37,969 --> 00:17:42,322 After high school, a friend called me and said, 406 00:17:42,496 --> 00:17:46,804 Howie, I have found a job that is right up your alley. 407 00:17:46,978 --> 00:17:49,024 This is built for you. 408 00:17:49,198 --> 00:17:51,722 When I joined the company, I was 22. 409 00:17:51,896 --> 00:17:53,985 I was the baby of the bunch, 410 00:17:54,160 --> 00:17:56,640 and there were probably 20 to 25 people 411 00:17:56,814 --> 00:17:59,295 at the company at most. 412 00:17:59,469 --> 00:18:00,862 - I don't know who said it, but, 413 00:18:01,036 --> 00:18:03,125 if you remember the '60s, 414 00:18:03,299 --> 00:18:05,780 that meant you weren't really there. 415 00:18:05,954 --> 00:18:09,610 And you could say the same thing about Stratton. 416 00:18:09,784 --> 00:18:11,351 My name is Richard Bronson, 417 00:18:11,525 --> 00:18:16,399 and after working on Wall Street for several years, 418 00:18:16,573 --> 00:18:19,446 I ended up working at Stratton Oakmont. 419 00:18:19,620 --> 00:18:21,970 [lilting orchestral music] 420 00:18:22,144 --> 00:18:23,711 The company that I first started at 421 00:18:23,885 --> 00:18:26,714 was Shearson Lehman American Express, 422 00:18:26,888 --> 00:18:28,977 which no longer exists. 423 00:18:29,151 --> 00:18:31,588 And I moved to Bear Stearns, 424 00:18:31,762 --> 00:18:34,896 which, of course, is no longer there either. 425 00:18:35,070 --> 00:18:38,595 But then I worked for Lehman Brothers, 426 00:18:38,769 --> 00:18:42,251 and that's another firm that no longer exists. 427 00:18:42,425 --> 00:18:44,558 As a stockbroker, your commissions are 428 00:18:44,732 --> 00:18:46,212 paid on a monthly basis. 429 00:18:46,386 --> 00:18:48,605 So every month, you're starting from zero. 430 00:18:48,779 --> 00:18:51,391 ♪ ♪ 431 00:18:51,565 --> 00:18:55,612 And I'm thinking, if I'm gonna take this sort of heat, 432 00:18:55,786 --> 00:18:58,528 I gotta at least make sure I'm gonna earn a living. 433 00:19:00,487 --> 00:19:02,793 I was out of the business for a few weeks, 434 00:19:02,967 --> 00:19:06,580 and I happened to run into this guy who I used to work with. 435 00:19:06,754 --> 00:19:10,236 And he said, I'm at a firm called Stratton Oakmont, 436 00:19:10,410 --> 00:19:12,586 which I had never heard of. 437 00:19:12,760 --> 00:19:16,329 It's in Lake Success, New York. 438 00:19:16,503 --> 00:19:20,724 And he's talking about sort of a warehouse area. 439 00:19:20,898 --> 00:19:23,205 It's amazing what's happening there. 440 00:19:23,379 --> 00:19:24,859 He goes, let me show you something. 441 00:19:25,120 --> 00:19:27,688 And he opens up his wallet, and he pulls out a paycheck. 442 00:19:27,862 --> 00:19:31,822 And it was something like for $80,000 or $90,000. 443 00:19:31,996 --> 00:19:34,042 And I said, do these checks clear? 444 00:19:34,216 --> 00:19:36,087 [car honks] 445 00:19:39,134 --> 00:19:43,225 - Before Stratton Oakmont, I spent years getting sober. 446 00:19:44,618 --> 00:19:46,533 I was a drug addict. 447 00:19:46,707 --> 00:19:49,971 I had a heart attack when I was about 25 years old. 448 00:19:50,145 --> 00:19:54,802 I was almost homeless, and I got sober. 449 00:19:54,976 --> 00:19:56,717 The miracle of it is, I'm the only one that 450 00:19:56,891 --> 00:19:58,980 was sober at Stratton Oakmont. 451 00:19:59,154 --> 00:20:00,634 I'm the only one who could tell the truth. 452 00:20:00,808 --> 00:20:02,113 [chuckles] 453 00:20:03,680 --> 00:20:05,813 My name is Jordan Shamah. 454 00:20:05,987 --> 00:20:10,513 I worked at Stratton Oakmont for around six or seven years. 455 00:20:10,687 --> 00:20:12,907 I was working in the Garment District, 456 00:20:13,081 --> 00:20:15,866 selling dresses, sportswear, 457 00:20:16,040 --> 00:20:18,652 and a very old friend of mine called me and said, 458 00:20:18,826 --> 00:20:20,567 would you like to become a stockbroker? 459 00:20:20,741 --> 00:20:21,785 I said, yeah, right. 460 00:20:21,959 --> 00:20:23,787 [chuckles] Yeah. 461 00:20:23,961 --> 00:20:27,138 He showed me a paycheck for, like, 80,000 for the month 462 00:20:27,313 --> 00:20:28,749 and said, come work for this company 463 00:20:28,923 --> 00:20:30,316 called Stratton Oakmont. 464 00:20:30,490 --> 00:20:32,970 The parking lot was full of nice cars. 465 00:20:33,144 --> 00:20:36,191 And Danny Porush brought me in. 466 00:20:36,365 --> 00:20:39,455 - Danny Porush was Jordan's partner at Stratton Oakmont. 467 00:20:39,629 --> 00:20:43,677 He was an ex-garmento, as were a lot of Jordan's brokers. 468 00:20:43,851 --> 00:20:46,114 So Danny, in the film, was played by Jonah Hill, 469 00:20:46,288 --> 00:20:48,116 who is multiple characters. 470 00:20:48,290 --> 00:20:51,815 There was a part of Howie Gelfand as well. 471 00:20:51,989 --> 00:20:54,862 And Danny was a wild and crazy guy. 472 00:20:55,036 --> 00:20:57,778 He was married to a girl who, ironically-- 473 00:20:57,952 --> 00:21:00,911 it is very true-- was his first cousin. 474 00:21:01,085 --> 00:21:03,174 - Yeah, my wife is my cousin or whatever, 475 00:21:03,349 --> 00:21:04,872 but it's not like what you think. 476 00:21:05,046 --> 00:21:07,178 - Is she, like, a first cousin or is she-- 477 00:21:07,353 --> 00:21:09,485 - Her father is the brother of my mom. 478 00:21:09,659 --> 00:21:12,314 - Danny had three children with his first cousin. 479 00:21:12,488 --> 00:21:15,143 Fortunately, all three children are OK. 480 00:21:17,058 --> 00:21:20,540 Danny loved, loved, loved to party. 481 00:21:20,714 --> 00:21:23,151 Jonah Hill played Danny really well in the movie. 482 00:21:23,325 --> 00:21:24,979 - Here's what we do with subpoenas at Stratton Oakmont! 483 00:21:25,153 --> 00:21:27,416 - As far as just his wild and crazy stuff. 484 00:21:27,590 --> 00:21:29,723 [cheering] 485 00:21:30,680 --> 00:21:33,509 Jordan was the brains behind the business. 486 00:21:33,683 --> 00:21:37,818 Danny ran the daily routines and controlled the brokers. 487 00:21:37,992 --> 00:21:41,125 - Danny immediately said, you gotta come work here. 488 00:21:41,300 --> 00:21:44,346 Jordan had an office next door to Danny. 489 00:21:44,520 --> 00:21:47,567 I walk in, and Danny introduces me. 490 00:21:47,741 --> 00:21:51,919 And Jordan wasn't impressed with me at all. 491 00:21:52,093 --> 00:21:55,575 He's not very tall, 5'7", maybe. 492 00:21:55,749 --> 00:21:57,794 But he was wearing cowboy boots, 493 00:21:57,968 --> 00:22:00,057 which was sort of funny. 494 00:22:00,231 --> 00:22:03,365 - I thought if I kissed this fucking guy's ass, 495 00:22:03,539 --> 00:22:06,499 you know, I'm gonna move up quicker in the ranks. 496 00:22:06,673 --> 00:22:09,632 And in terms of the interview, 497 00:22:09,806 --> 00:22:13,114 I was 3 pounds of sausage in a 2-pound bag. 498 00:22:13,288 --> 00:22:16,422 But I did very well. 499 00:22:16,596 --> 00:22:20,121 He said, Howie, of course you're hired. 500 00:22:20,295 --> 00:22:23,603 And that was my entrance into hell. 501 00:22:29,826 --> 00:22:31,915 - Hello, sir. This is Jordan Shamah. 502 00:22:32,089 --> 00:22:33,308 I'm calling you from Stratton Oakmont. 503 00:22:33,700 --> 00:22:34,918 How are you doing today? I know you're busy. 504 00:22:35,092 --> 00:22:36,398 I'll get right to the point. 505 00:22:36,572 --> 00:22:38,008 Are you familiar with Stratton Oakmont? 506 00:22:38,182 --> 00:22:39,488 - When I first got to Stratton, 507 00:22:39,662 --> 00:22:45,102 I didn't know if I was gonna succeed, fail. 508 00:22:45,276 --> 00:22:47,844 You start out as a cold caller. 509 00:22:48,018 --> 00:22:49,411 - Sir, with your permission, all I would like to do 510 00:22:49,585 --> 00:22:51,631 is introduce myself and my firm. 511 00:22:51,805 --> 00:22:54,764 - You're going to be making 300 calls a day. 512 00:22:54,938 --> 00:22:57,767 - And the cold caller's role was to generate 513 00:22:57,941 --> 00:23:00,857 leads for the broker. 514 00:23:01,031 --> 00:23:03,643 The one thing the movie, I think, got right was 515 00:23:03,817 --> 00:23:06,210 when he was teaching them the sales pitch. 516 00:23:06,385 --> 00:23:08,604 That part of the movie was accurate. 517 00:23:08,778 --> 00:23:11,346 - Welcome to Stratton Oakmont. 518 00:23:11,520 --> 00:23:13,304 - I think he was telling them the name Stratton Oakmont, 519 00:23:13,479 --> 00:23:15,568 they flew in on Plymouth Rock or something. 520 00:23:15,742 --> 00:23:19,006 - Our very founders sailed over on the Mayflower 521 00:23:19,180 --> 00:23:20,964 and chiseled the name "Stratton Oakmont" 522 00:23:21,138 --> 00:23:23,227 right into Plymouth fucking Rock. 523 00:23:23,402 --> 00:23:24,751 You got it? 524 00:23:25,273 --> 00:23:26,796 - He brought out a script, and he went through the script 525 00:23:26,970 --> 00:23:28,972 with them, and that script was very accurate. 526 00:23:29,146 --> 00:23:32,933 - You finally found a broker on Wall Street that you can trust 527 00:23:33,107 --> 00:23:36,850 and who can consistently make you money. 528 00:23:37,024 --> 00:23:39,069 Sound fair enough? 529 00:23:39,243 --> 00:23:40,941 - I gotta say, I'm pretty impressed. 530 00:23:41,115 --> 00:23:42,943 - All you had to do to be successful 531 00:23:43,117 --> 00:23:46,207 was follow the script and use the rebuttals. 532 00:23:46,381 --> 00:23:49,079 They would give you a Xerox copy 533 00:23:49,253 --> 00:23:53,127 of objections and rebuttals for the things 534 00:23:53,301 --> 00:23:57,261 that the person that you were pitching would inevitably say. 535 00:23:57,436 --> 00:23:59,002 And as depicted in the movie, 536 00:23:59,176 --> 00:24:01,352 it was very, very similar to the way we would 537 00:24:01,527 --> 00:24:03,050 do it at Stratton Oakmont. 538 00:24:03,224 --> 00:24:04,573 - I don't know you. You cold called me. 539 00:24:04,747 --> 00:24:05,922 You're a total stranger. 540 00:24:06,227 --> 00:24:07,489 - I am in complete agreement with you. 541 00:24:07,663 --> 00:24:08,795 You don't know me. I don't know you. 542 00:24:08,969 --> 00:24:10,449 - Let me introduce myself to you. 543 00:24:10,623 --> 00:24:12,059 - One of the typical rebuttals was, 544 00:24:12,233 --> 00:24:13,800 I get a lot of these calls. 545 00:24:14,061 --> 00:24:16,150 Mr. Jones, you should be very happy about that. 546 00:24:16,324 --> 00:24:18,065 You're a successful businessman. 547 00:24:18,239 --> 00:24:20,067 It's when you stop getting these people calling you 548 00:24:20,241 --> 00:24:21,764 is when you really have to worry. 549 00:24:22,025 --> 00:24:23,940 The guy says he's happy with his broker. 550 00:24:24,114 --> 00:24:25,464 That's great. 551 00:24:26,029 --> 00:24:27,683 I'm only asking that when I share an idea with you 552 00:24:27,857 --> 00:24:30,904 and you can make money, you have an open ear. 553 00:24:31,078 --> 00:24:32,645 Is that fair enough? 554 00:24:32,819 --> 00:24:34,603 - You sound like a pretty sincere guy. 555 00:24:34,777 --> 00:24:37,040 - Like in the movie, Jordan would teach us, 556 00:24:37,214 --> 00:24:39,521 you put your hand on your heart. 557 00:24:39,695 --> 00:24:42,045 If we really, really knew each other, 558 00:24:42,219 --> 00:24:43,699 this wouldn't be a yes or no. 559 00:24:43,873 --> 00:24:47,398 This would simply be a question of how much. 560 00:24:47,573 --> 00:24:49,836 - When I would train stockbrokers, 561 00:24:50,010 --> 00:24:55,406 I would say, if you were going into the ring with Mike Tyson, 562 00:24:55,581 --> 00:24:57,408 you would certainly expect that he would 563 00:24:57,583 --> 00:24:59,236 try to hit you in the head. 564 00:24:59,410 --> 00:25:01,630 Would you not have a plan for that? 565 00:25:01,804 --> 00:25:04,285 - I remember I say to a guy who said no to me-- 566 00:25:04,459 --> 00:25:06,330 I said, listen, just say no ten times. 567 00:25:06,505 --> 00:25:08,463 Just do it. You're gonna do it anyway. 568 00:25:08,637 --> 00:25:10,291 Say no ten times, and let's talk business. 569 00:25:10,465 --> 00:25:13,860 - When the guy goes, well, I gotta ask my wife, 570 00:25:14,034 --> 00:25:15,775 you better have an answer for that. 571 00:25:15,949 --> 00:25:17,167 - Are you kidding me? 572 00:25:17,341 --> 00:25:18,517 You talk to your wife when you got 573 00:25:18,691 --> 00:25:20,127 to hire the landscaper too? 574 00:25:20,301 --> 00:25:21,781 - You make every decision with your wife? 575 00:25:21,955 --> 00:25:22,999 Be a man. 576 00:25:23,173 --> 00:25:24,784 [tense music] 577 00:25:24,958 --> 00:25:27,090 - Mr. Jones, could you do me a favor? 578 00:25:27,264 --> 00:25:29,528 Put your right hand in your right pocket. 579 00:25:29,702 --> 00:25:31,486 Move it over a little bit. 580 00:25:31,660 --> 00:25:33,793 Now take a good squeeze. 581 00:25:33,967 --> 00:25:38,058 What do you feel, grapes or grapefruits? 582 00:25:38,232 --> 00:25:40,147 I get it, fine. 583 00:25:40,321 --> 00:25:42,758 You know, buy 100 shares. 584 00:25:42,932 --> 00:25:44,630 You wore him down. 585 00:25:44,804 --> 00:25:48,155 - When you got the yes, you'd hang up the phone, 586 00:25:48,329 --> 00:25:51,811 and there'd be a cheer, because you just went to war, 587 00:25:51,985 --> 00:25:53,508 and you won the war. 588 00:25:56,293 --> 00:25:58,731 - The first time I walked into Stratton Oakmont, 589 00:25:58,905 --> 00:26:00,863 I remember it very vividly. 590 00:26:01,037 --> 00:26:04,127 You pulled up, and you saw all the luxury cars-- 591 00:26:04,301 --> 00:26:07,217 you know, Mercedes, a Ferrari, a Testarossa, 592 00:26:07,391 --> 00:26:09,568 car after car after car. 593 00:26:09,742 --> 00:26:11,265 You walked in. 594 00:26:11,439 --> 00:26:14,007 It was exactly like the movie, men on the phone 595 00:26:14,181 --> 00:26:18,577 yelling, screaming, hustling and bustling, mayhem. 596 00:26:18,751 --> 00:26:20,666 You have to understand, I had only worked 597 00:26:20,840 --> 00:26:23,190 in legit professional environments. 598 00:26:23,364 --> 00:26:25,105 So was this typical? 599 00:26:25,279 --> 00:26:26,715 Was this normal? 600 00:26:26,889 --> 00:26:28,238 This was not. 601 00:26:28,412 --> 00:26:30,240 My name is Donna Schlessinger, 602 00:26:30,414 --> 00:26:32,373 and I worked at Stratton Oakmont 603 00:26:32,547 --> 00:26:34,810 in the corporate finance department. 604 00:26:34,984 --> 00:26:37,465 I met Jordan through a friend of mine. 605 00:26:37,639 --> 00:26:40,860 He said, I want you to come work at Stratton, 606 00:26:41,034 --> 00:26:42,513 which I thought was a little strange. 607 00:26:42,688 --> 00:26:44,864 I don't have any background in finance. 608 00:26:45,038 --> 00:26:47,083 I have zero interest in finance. 609 00:26:47,257 --> 00:26:49,651 I was a young, married person, and I knew 610 00:26:49,825 --> 00:26:51,784 that we wanted to start a family. 611 00:26:51,958 --> 00:26:54,047 And he dangled a very attractive salary 612 00:26:54,221 --> 00:26:56,571 in front of me. 613 00:26:56,745 --> 00:26:58,442 - Since the beginning of Stratton Oakmont, 614 00:26:58,617 --> 00:27:00,967 there was always a meeting in the morning 615 00:27:01,141 --> 00:27:03,186 and a meeting when the market closed. 616 00:27:03,360 --> 00:27:05,362 - They were inspiring, and I think 617 00:27:05,536 --> 00:27:07,669 that really, really set the tone 618 00:27:07,843 --> 00:27:10,193 for the brokers for the day. 619 00:27:10,367 --> 00:27:12,282 - I was at a couple of the morning meetings. 620 00:27:12,456 --> 00:27:15,721 Jordan would go, Joe Blow, what did you gross last month? 621 00:27:15,895 --> 00:27:18,898 And Joe Blow would say, I grossed $250,000. 622 00:27:19,072 --> 00:27:21,248 And Jordan goes, that's outstanding. 623 00:27:21,422 --> 00:27:22,641 Come up here. 624 00:27:22,815 --> 00:27:23,990 And the broker would come up to the front 625 00:27:24,251 --> 00:27:25,556 where Jordan was giving the speech, 626 00:27:25,905 --> 00:27:27,863 and he'd hand him a brand-new Rolex watch. 627 00:27:28,037 --> 00:27:31,258 These young brokers were rewarded. 628 00:27:31,432 --> 00:27:33,739 They all wanted to live the same lifestyle. 629 00:27:33,913 --> 00:27:36,350 And that's how he got them motivated every day. 630 00:27:36,524 --> 00:27:39,396 - In the meetings, I had them visualizing their success. 631 00:27:39,570 --> 00:27:40,746 I would talk about the life. 632 00:27:41,007 --> 00:27:42,399 None of the kids went to college, okay? 633 00:27:42,573 --> 00:27:44,706 They were not the lucky sperm club members. 634 00:27:44,880 --> 00:27:46,621 And the first thing I said to them was this. 635 00:27:46,795 --> 00:27:48,971 You sit behind this desk, you say the words I teach you, 636 00:27:49,145 --> 00:27:50,407 you can become as powerful 637 00:27:50,581 --> 00:27:52,105 as the most powerful CEO in America. 638 00:27:52,279 --> 00:27:53,846 - We had training every day. 639 00:27:54,281 --> 00:27:55,891 I used to give motivational meetings to the cold callers, 640 00:27:56,065 --> 00:27:57,284 and I used to tease them. 641 00:27:57,850 --> 00:28:00,069 I used to take a $100 bill and say, I could rip this. 642 00:28:00,243 --> 00:28:02,202 They'd freak out. 643 00:28:02,376 --> 00:28:03,943 They'd freak out. 644 00:28:04,117 --> 00:28:08,295 - How am I gonna motivate 500 animals 645 00:28:08,469 --> 00:28:11,864 to be phone terrorists today? 646 00:28:12,038 --> 00:28:15,781 - The cold callers were paid very, very little. 647 00:28:15,955 --> 00:28:19,872 And if they were willing to do crazy things to entertain us, 648 00:28:20,046 --> 00:28:22,483 we'd be willing to give them money. 649 00:28:22,657 --> 00:28:25,616 - These two twins offered to hook themselves up 650 00:28:25,791 --> 00:28:30,056 to a car battery for ten seconds for 10 grand. 651 00:28:30,230 --> 00:28:31,971 Well, the partners looked at each other and said, 652 00:28:32,145 --> 00:28:33,102 you know what? 653 00:28:33,276 --> 00:28:34,974 We're in. 654 00:28:35,148 --> 00:28:37,063 You could see them shaking, 655 00:28:37,237 --> 00:28:40,675 and they could only hold on for 8 seconds. 656 00:28:40,849 --> 00:28:42,285 - Did they ever get paid? 657 00:28:42,459 --> 00:28:44,548 - No, they never got a dime. 658 00:28:45,506 --> 00:28:46,942 - For a couple hundred dollars, 659 00:28:47,203 --> 00:28:49,510 you'd have to eat a cup full of wasabi. 660 00:28:49,684 --> 00:28:51,686 And there was always takers. 661 00:28:51,860 --> 00:28:54,471 - The goldfish story is one of the few true stories 662 00:28:54,645 --> 00:28:56,038 out of that movie. 663 00:28:56,517 --> 00:28:58,562 They just showed one person eating the goldfish 664 00:28:58,737 --> 00:29:01,522 when the truth is it was two-- 665 00:29:01,696 --> 00:29:03,393 Danny eating the black goldfish, 666 00:29:03,567 --> 00:29:07,876 and yours truly ate the other goldfish. 667 00:29:08,050 --> 00:29:09,878 - There was a sales assistant, 668 00:29:10,052 --> 00:29:12,751 and just like in "The Wolf of Wall Street movie," 669 00:29:12,925 --> 00:29:14,535 if she would shave her head, 670 00:29:14,709 --> 00:29:17,538 she had a chance to get $5,000. 671 00:29:17,712 --> 00:29:20,019 That actually occurred. 672 00:29:21,934 --> 00:29:23,283 - I don't think anybody realizes that they're 673 00:29:23,457 --> 00:29:26,155 a part of a cult while they're in the cult. 674 00:29:26,329 --> 00:29:28,201 [somber music] 675 00:29:28,375 --> 00:29:32,379 The sexism, the condescension, 676 00:29:32,553 --> 00:29:36,600 the objectification of women-- 677 00:29:36,775 --> 00:29:40,169 I mean, none of that would fly today. 678 00:29:40,343 --> 00:29:43,694 Women really weren't put in important positions of power. 679 00:29:43,869 --> 00:29:46,436 All of the decisions got made by men. 680 00:29:46,610 --> 00:29:49,918 ♪ ♪ 681 00:29:50,092 --> 00:29:53,269 - I would say the first big change that I saw was 682 00:29:53,443 --> 00:29:54,880 when we started making money. 683 00:29:55,054 --> 00:29:57,534 Even though he was married to Denise, 684 00:29:57,708 --> 00:30:03,671 his first wife, that's when he started-- 685 00:30:03,845 --> 00:30:06,979 you know, womanizing, I'll call it. 686 00:30:07,153 --> 00:30:09,372 And that's how he met Nadine. 687 00:30:09,546 --> 00:30:11,810 Right away, he was mesmerized by her. 688 00:30:11,984 --> 00:30:14,247 I think she was a model or something. 689 00:30:14,421 --> 00:30:15,988 - Nadine was a beautiful girl. 690 00:30:16,162 --> 00:30:17,641 She was on commercials. 691 00:30:17,816 --> 00:30:19,208 She was from Brooklyn. 692 00:30:19,469 --> 00:30:21,994 She had a very cute smile, good personality, 693 00:30:22,168 --> 00:30:25,084 and he was smitten by her. 694 00:30:25,258 --> 00:30:27,608 Nadine in the movie was played by Margot Robbie, 695 00:30:27,782 --> 00:30:30,437 who did a phenomenal job with that Brooklyn drawl. 696 00:30:30,611 --> 00:30:31,917 - Cheers. - Nice to meet you. 697 00:30:32,091 --> 00:30:33,222 - Nice to meet you. 698 00:30:33,396 --> 00:30:34,702 You've got an awesome place here. 699 00:30:34,920 --> 00:30:36,138 - How'd I meet the Wolf? - Yeah. 700 00:30:36,399 --> 00:30:38,619 - He had a party at the beach, at his house. 701 00:30:38,793 --> 00:30:40,316 I went with my boyfriend at the time. 702 00:30:40,490 --> 00:30:43,232 And unfortunately, just like they show in the movie, 703 00:30:43,406 --> 00:30:46,018 one of his friends exposed themselves to me. 704 00:30:46,192 --> 00:30:47,758 And then I said to my boyfriend, 705 00:30:47,933 --> 00:30:48,977 we got to get the hell out of here. 706 00:30:49,151 --> 00:30:50,631 And we left. 707 00:30:51,066 --> 00:30:53,199 Jordan then made somebody $15,000 in the stock market 708 00:30:53,373 --> 00:30:57,507 to set me up to go out with him and her as friends, 709 00:30:57,681 --> 00:31:00,336 and I had no idea that it was a whole setup behind the scenes. 710 00:31:00,510 --> 00:31:02,599 - So he was working it from behind the scenes. 711 00:31:02,773 --> 00:31:04,993 - Very early on, yes. 712 00:31:05,167 --> 00:31:07,300 Now, that should have been a red flag, 713 00:31:07,474 --> 00:31:09,258 but I was 22 and clueless. 714 00:31:15,003 --> 00:31:18,877 - At Stratton, the way the day typically started was 715 00:31:19,051 --> 00:31:23,533 we had the quaaludes delivered like a Domino's pizza. 716 00:31:23,707 --> 00:31:26,580 Quaaludes was usually the first drug you took 717 00:31:26,754 --> 00:31:31,585 because it was a downer, and then you took cocaine 718 00:31:31,759 --> 00:31:34,414 because then that lifted you back up. 719 00:31:34,588 --> 00:31:37,373 Jordan would be the ringleader. 720 00:31:37,547 --> 00:31:40,681 Not even nearly close to the amount of sales 721 00:31:40,855 --> 00:31:44,206 would have been made without the drugs. 722 00:31:44,380 --> 00:31:45,860 - Quaaludes were, I think, 723 00:31:46,078 --> 00:31:49,081 originally designed as a sleeping pill. 724 00:31:49,255 --> 00:31:52,258 Quaaludes are no longer made, as far as I'm aware, 725 00:31:52,432 --> 00:31:54,738 which is probably a good thing, despite the fact 726 00:31:54,913 --> 00:31:57,916 that they were really and truly a great drug, 727 00:31:58,090 --> 00:32:00,048 and we all loved them. 728 00:32:02,050 --> 00:32:04,966 - People realized that if you took more 729 00:32:05,140 --> 00:32:08,013 than the prescribed amount, you can get a high. 730 00:32:08,187 --> 00:32:09,188 You can get a buzz. 731 00:32:09,362 --> 00:32:11,755 [upbeat disco music] 732 00:32:11,930 --> 00:32:14,758 They called it the "I love you" drug. 733 00:32:14,933 --> 00:32:17,065 You really-- you loved everybody, 734 00:32:17,239 --> 00:32:18,501 and you told them. 735 00:32:18,675 --> 00:32:21,765 I fucking love you! 736 00:32:22,853 --> 00:32:24,551 - And it's not like doing cocaine 737 00:32:24,725 --> 00:32:26,945 where you're up all night, and you crash, 738 00:32:27,119 --> 00:32:29,121 and you feel miserable. 739 00:32:29,295 --> 00:32:32,211 You end the night with a great night's sleep, 740 00:32:32,385 --> 00:32:35,127 and you're ready to do it again the next day. 741 00:32:35,301 --> 00:32:37,738 - These guys were doing drugs like it was candy. 742 00:32:37,912 --> 00:32:40,480 I remember guys would come in on a Monday 743 00:32:40,654 --> 00:32:43,004 and say, Jordan, look, can you help me get sober, 744 00:32:43,178 --> 00:32:45,267 'cause I can't take it anymore. 745 00:32:45,441 --> 00:32:46,747 He said, yeah, I'll help you. 746 00:32:47,139 --> 00:32:49,445 They used to throw their drugs in my garbage can. 747 00:32:49,619 --> 00:32:51,708 By Tuesday, they were getting high again. 748 00:32:51,882 --> 00:32:54,276 A lot of brokers did drugs to give them confidence 749 00:32:54,450 --> 00:32:56,496 to get on the phone and do the trading. 750 00:32:56,670 --> 00:32:58,193 - I'm a stranger to this guy. 751 00:32:58,411 --> 00:33:02,502 How could I possibly suggest that he invests $1 million 752 00:33:02,676 --> 00:33:04,939 into this sketchy stock? 753 00:33:05,113 --> 00:33:09,204 Whereas if you're under the influence of quaaludes, 754 00:33:09,378 --> 00:33:12,120 you have no inhibitions at all. 755 00:33:12,294 --> 00:33:14,601 You'll say anything. 756 00:33:14,775 --> 00:33:16,124 [mellow music] 757 00:33:16,559 --> 00:33:19,345 - I would literally paint a picture as if I was 758 00:33:19,519 --> 00:33:22,957 this 25-year veteran smoking a cigar 759 00:33:23,131 --> 00:33:25,220 with a $25,000 Rolex 760 00:33:25,394 --> 00:33:28,310 in a big glass office in Manhattan 761 00:33:28,484 --> 00:33:31,139 and that this guy was lucky to have me on the phone. 762 00:33:31,313 --> 00:33:34,577 That's why they gave me that nickname, Velvet. 763 00:33:34,751 --> 00:33:38,929 Often, when I would transfer them to my sales assistant 764 00:33:39,104 --> 00:33:41,845 to confirm the trade, it was relayed to me 765 00:33:42,020 --> 00:33:45,197 that a lot of these clients would say to her, 766 00:33:45,371 --> 00:33:49,070 I don't want to bother him, but what did I buy? 767 00:33:49,244 --> 00:33:52,378 - If you think about what Stratton Oakmont was doing, 768 00:33:52,552 --> 00:33:53,944 their business model was 769 00:33:54,119 --> 00:33:56,860 cold calling thousands of people, 770 00:33:57,035 --> 00:33:59,341 selling them what's called penny stocks. 771 00:33:59,515 --> 00:34:02,040 Calling it a penny stock is a misnomer 772 00:34:02,214 --> 00:34:04,520 'cause the stock is not valued in the pennies. 773 00:34:04,694 --> 00:34:08,176 It can be valued up to $5 a share. 774 00:34:08,350 --> 00:34:10,004 Penny stocks aren't traded 775 00:34:10,178 --> 00:34:12,920 on the New York Stock Exchange or NASDAQ. 776 00:34:13,094 --> 00:34:14,835 They're sold over the counter, 777 00:34:15,009 --> 00:34:17,011 meaning they face less oversight, 778 00:34:17,185 --> 00:34:19,795 which allows aggressive brokers to mark up the prices 779 00:34:19,969 --> 00:34:21,710 and then pocket the difference. 780 00:34:21,885 --> 00:34:25,324 - The firm tells the brokers to sell it 781 00:34:25,498 --> 00:34:27,108 and offers a big commission. 782 00:34:27,282 --> 00:34:29,154 - You know, you could do so much volume 783 00:34:29,328 --> 00:34:31,634 and have such a markup on these penny stocks, 784 00:34:31,808 --> 00:34:34,420 whereas instead of making $200 on a trade, 785 00:34:34,594 --> 00:34:37,900 you could actually make 2,000 or 5,000. 786 00:34:38,076 --> 00:34:39,641 [suspenseful music] 787 00:34:39,815 --> 00:34:43,210 - The broker could have generated commissions 788 00:34:43,385 --> 00:34:45,779 of $5,000, $10,000 789 00:34:45,953 --> 00:34:51,524 for that 15-, 20-minute, maybe half-an-hour effort. 790 00:34:51,697 --> 00:34:54,962 For someone that only completed high school, 791 00:34:55,136 --> 00:34:59,488 that was not a bad half an hour's day work. 792 00:34:59,662 --> 00:35:02,404 - Did you ever think any of the techniques you were using 793 00:35:02,578 --> 00:35:04,319 were unfair or manipulative 794 00:35:04,493 --> 00:35:06,147 or have second thoughts about any of it? 795 00:35:06,321 --> 00:35:07,757 - No. 796 00:35:07,931 --> 00:35:09,890 Never even occurred to me. 797 00:35:10,064 --> 00:35:11,457 I thought this was the way-- 798 00:35:11,631 --> 00:35:13,807 I thought this was Wall Street. 799 00:35:13,981 --> 00:35:16,853 I knew nothing about the stock market. 800 00:35:17,027 --> 00:35:18,638 I never bought a stock in my life. 801 00:35:18,812 --> 00:35:20,074 I didn't do anything. 802 00:35:20,553 --> 00:35:23,077 I thought, this is the way the stock market works. 803 00:35:23,251 --> 00:35:25,819 I wanted to believe it badly 804 00:35:25,993 --> 00:35:28,604 because of the life it was gonna give me. 805 00:35:30,824 --> 00:35:32,826 [phone ringing] 806 00:35:33,000 --> 00:35:34,088 - Stratton Oakmont. 807 00:35:34,262 --> 00:35:35,568 How may I direct your call? 808 00:35:35,829 --> 00:35:37,831 - When I started out with Stratton, 809 00:35:38,005 --> 00:35:40,834 I had a close group of friends that I, little by little, 810 00:35:41,008 --> 00:35:43,924 dissociated from because they could never understand 811 00:35:44,098 --> 00:35:48,320 what I did and the values that I had 812 00:35:48,494 --> 00:35:51,671 and the money I was making and the life I was leading. 813 00:35:51,845 --> 00:35:53,412 [laughter and chatter] 814 00:35:53,977 --> 00:35:57,590 So naturally, I gravitated to the people I was working with. 815 00:35:57,764 --> 00:36:01,724 We ended up spending a lot of our free time together. 816 00:36:01,898 --> 00:36:04,988 - I had a girlfriend at the time, very serious. 817 00:36:05,163 --> 00:36:06,425 We were engaged. 818 00:36:07,077 --> 00:36:09,210 And I said, boy, this is crazy, but I'm gonna make money. 819 00:36:09,384 --> 00:36:13,345 This is gonna be great, you know, very excited. 820 00:36:13,519 --> 00:36:15,085 And... 821 00:36:17,871 --> 00:36:20,308 Unfortunately, my girlfriend and I didn't work out, 822 00:36:20,482 --> 00:36:22,484 but I was having fun. 823 00:36:22,658 --> 00:36:25,531 - Jordan had a separate wild life with the brokers 824 00:36:25,705 --> 00:36:27,272 and entertaining them, 825 00:36:27,446 --> 00:36:30,884 being out without his first wife, Denise. 826 00:36:31,058 --> 00:36:33,495 With Nadine, I don't know how they started dating, 827 00:36:33,669 --> 00:36:36,933 but I know it was going on for a while. 828 00:36:37,107 --> 00:36:38,848 - I was dating all these rich playboys 829 00:36:39,022 --> 00:36:40,502 and having the time of my life. 830 00:36:40,676 --> 00:36:43,897 So he really wasn't on my radar. 831 00:36:44,071 --> 00:36:46,508 But I'm from Brooklyn. He's from Queens. 832 00:36:46,682 --> 00:36:48,945 And we just really hit it off. 833 00:36:49,119 --> 00:36:51,644 And then the next day, as the movie shows-- 834 00:36:51,818 --> 00:36:53,211 - You're crazy. 835 00:36:53,385 --> 00:36:54,995 - 1,200 square feet of flowers 836 00:36:55,169 --> 00:36:57,737 in my little 800-square-foot apartment. 837 00:36:57,911 --> 00:36:59,565 Yeah, he's "go big or go home." 838 00:36:59,739 --> 00:37:00,827 - He was still married, though. 839 00:37:01,001 --> 00:37:02,698 - He's like, I'm separated. 840 00:37:02,872 --> 00:37:05,353 I have an apartment in the city. 841 00:37:05,527 --> 00:37:07,877 And I'm like, OK. 842 00:37:08,051 --> 00:37:10,010 - Like in the movie, Jordan was getting out 843 00:37:10,184 --> 00:37:12,708 of a limousine in front of his apartment, 844 00:37:12,882 --> 00:37:15,929 and Denise happened to be waiting for him. 845 00:37:16,103 --> 00:37:17,844 - Get out of the fucking car! 846 00:37:18,018 --> 00:37:21,064 - Jordan's first wife ripped open the limo door 847 00:37:21,239 --> 00:37:23,458 and said, you get the fuck out of the car. 848 00:37:23,632 --> 00:37:26,461 That is total fact. 849 00:37:26,635 --> 00:37:29,943 - I think he was mesmerized with this Nadine gal, 850 00:37:30,117 --> 00:37:31,684 and he probably made the decision, like, listen, 851 00:37:31,858 --> 00:37:33,076 I'm becoming very successful. 852 00:37:33,251 --> 00:37:35,165 I think a showpiece would be nice 853 00:37:35,340 --> 00:37:37,080 for me to have under my arm. 854 00:37:37,255 --> 00:37:39,735 And he aggressively pursued it. 855 00:37:39,909 --> 00:37:41,911 - Oh, my God, it was amazing. 856 00:37:42,085 --> 00:37:44,436 I totally got swept off my feet. 857 00:37:44,610 --> 00:37:47,569 We fell madly, madly in love. 858 00:37:47,743 --> 00:37:49,789 It was just so fast and furious. 859 00:37:49,963 --> 00:37:52,618 Fancy dinners, $2,000 bottles of wine. 860 00:37:52,792 --> 00:37:54,620 Bulgari watch would just show up. 861 00:37:54,794 --> 00:37:56,970 It was glamorous and exciting. 862 00:37:57,144 --> 00:37:58,624 Nobody talked about love bombing 863 00:37:58,798 --> 00:38:00,887 all those years ago. 864 00:38:01,061 --> 00:38:03,019 I just was like, oh, he loves me so much. 865 00:38:03,193 --> 00:38:06,632 And that could have been a piece of it too. 866 00:38:06,806 --> 00:38:11,158 But now, in retrospect, I say this very simply-- 867 00:38:11,332 --> 00:38:14,944 if it feels too good to be true, it probably is. 868 00:38:20,254 --> 00:38:23,562 [intriguing music] 869 00:38:23,736 --> 00:38:26,608 - At my office, I always had a saying that said 870 00:38:26,782 --> 00:38:28,871 my investigators would rather work cases 871 00:38:29,045 --> 00:38:31,831 and go after bad guys than sleep or eat. 872 00:38:32,005 --> 00:38:33,659 It becomes almost a personal mission 873 00:38:33,920 --> 00:38:36,401 because we see the affront that's going on to the public-- 874 00:38:36,575 --> 00:38:39,273 ruining people, whether it was Stratton Oakmont 875 00:38:39,447 --> 00:38:41,188 or any of the other companies. 876 00:38:41,362 --> 00:38:42,972 - Can I get a little personal with you, if I may? 877 00:38:43,146 --> 00:38:44,234 - Go ahead. 878 00:38:44,583 --> 00:38:46,019 - Well, my name is Joseph Borg. 879 00:38:46,280 --> 00:38:47,629 And back when this all started, I was director 880 00:38:47,803 --> 00:38:49,979 of the Alabama Securities Commission. 881 00:38:50,153 --> 00:38:51,503 A lot of folks don't understand 882 00:38:51,677 --> 00:38:53,983 what state securities regulators do. 883 00:38:54,157 --> 00:38:55,898 We're sort of like the local cops on the beat 884 00:38:56,072 --> 00:38:58,814 if somebody has a financial problem. 885 00:38:58,988 --> 00:39:01,730 We license and register the stock brokers 886 00:39:01,904 --> 00:39:04,037 who sell to the public. 887 00:39:04,211 --> 00:39:07,519 My office in Alabama-- yes, in Alabama-- 888 00:39:07,693 --> 00:39:10,826 we got a call one time from a gentleman who got fleeced 889 00:39:11,000 --> 00:39:13,307 by some broker out of New York, 890 00:39:13,481 --> 00:39:17,006 but he couldn't remember who it was. 891 00:39:17,180 --> 00:39:20,009 So we started an investigation. 892 00:39:20,183 --> 00:39:24,840 That grew into a multi-state investigation. 893 00:39:25,014 --> 00:39:28,148 We start with the victim, get all their records, 894 00:39:28,322 --> 00:39:31,847 asking them to remember what the conversations were like. 895 00:39:32,021 --> 00:39:34,197 We're trying to determine at what point 896 00:39:34,372 --> 00:39:38,071 does Stratton Oakmont or any of these companies cross the line. 897 00:39:38,245 --> 00:39:40,682 What sounds wrong here? 898 00:39:40,856 --> 00:39:44,251 [tense music] 899 00:39:44,425 --> 00:39:47,210 - I've never shared this story before, 900 00:39:47,385 --> 00:39:49,517 just with my wife and my children. 901 00:39:49,691 --> 00:39:52,390 - Why don't you want your identity to be seen? 902 00:39:52,564 --> 00:39:54,130 - I don't want the whole world to know 903 00:39:54,304 --> 00:39:57,917 that I got, you know, taken advantage of. 904 00:39:58,091 --> 00:40:02,008 You know, I lost almost all the money I had at the time. 905 00:40:02,182 --> 00:40:05,054 I owned and operated a restaurant in the '90s. 906 00:40:05,228 --> 00:40:07,100 I think I was out front in the dining room. 907 00:40:07,274 --> 00:40:10,277 I was having my lunch, and someone handed me the phone. 908 00:40:10,451 --> 00:40:12,322 He says, you know, I'd like to introduce myself. 909 00:40:12,497 --> 00:40:13,541 I'm from Stratton Oakmont. 910 00:40:13,715 --> 00:40:15,021 We're a stockbroker. 911 00:40:15,195 --> 00:40:16,718 They were talking about some stocks, 912 00:40:16,892 --> 00:40:19,025 and I think he mentioned Dr. Pepper. 913 00:40:19,199 --> 00:40:21,723 He told me they expanded some flavors, 914 00:40:21,897 --> 00:40:23,682 and they were adding desserts. 915 00:40:23,856 --> 00:40:26,336 All the feedback was very positive. 916 00:40:26,511 --> 00:40:28,948 And he said, we're a very successful firm. 917 00:40:29,122 --> 00:40:31,254 We've generated a lot of millionaires. 918 00:40:31,429 --> 00:40:34,562 I thought, oh, this is how people, you know, get wealthy, 919 00:40:34,736 --> 00:40:36,477 investing in stocks. 920 00:40:36,651 --> 00:40:38,958 I didn't have any experience prior to that. 921 00:40:39,132 --> 00:40:41,395 I bought--I don't know how many shares it was. 922 00:40:41,569 --> 00:40:43,615 I thought it was a good investment. 923 00:40:43,789 --> 00:40:46,139 So that was a big mistake. 924 00:40:46,313 --> 00:40:48,663 - Usually, if somebody is guaranteeing something 925 00:40:48,837 --> 00:40:53,407 and there's very little facts that they actually represent, 926 00:40:53,581 --> 00:40:58,020 they'll say, we have a history of making tons of money. 927 00:40:58,194 --> 00:40:59,935 ♪ ♪ 928 00:41:00,109 --> 00:41:02,547 - And then a few weeks later, he called and said 929 00:41:02,721 --> 00:41:04,244 he had sold the Dr. Pepper. 930 00:41:04,418 --> 00:41:08,161 And I said, whoa. I didn't authorize that. 931 00:41:08,335 --> 00:41:10,163 He bought some other stock. 932 00:41:10,337 --> 00:41:11,817 I think it was, like, a penny stock. 933 00:41:12,339 --> 00:41:14,167 We started to have, like, a little bit of an argument. 934 00:41:14,341 --> 00:41:15,734 And he said, oh, you'll be fine. 935 00:41:15,908 --> 00:41:16,952 Just stick with me, you know. 936 00:41:17,126 --> 00:41:18,476 It's an amazing company. 937 00:41:18,867 --> 00:41:21,827 It's going to be worth ten times what it is today. 938 00:41:22,001 --> 00:41:23,481 You'll be so thankful. 939 00:41:23,698 --> 00:41:26,484 He had nothing but good things to say about it. 940 00:41:26,658 --> 00:41:28,964 So I agreed to buy that. 941 00:41:29,138 --> 00:41:30,531 - It is lying, cheating, and stealing 942 00:41:30,705 --> 00:41:32,141 any way you look at it, 943 00:41:32,315 --> 00:41:34,143 because under the securities laws, 944 00:41:34,317 --> 00:41:37,059 brokers have a duty to understand 945 00:41:37,233 --> 00:41:38,713 not only the client, 946 00:41:38,887 --> 00:41:40,541 but the stock that they're selling. 947 00:41:40,715 --> 00:41:42,848 That's an inherent duty. 948 00:41:43,022 --> 00:41:45,024 It's required. 949 00:41:45,198 --> 00:41:46,591 - I think you can steal a lot more 950 00:41:46,765 --> 00:41:49,202 with a briefcase than a gun. 951 00:41:49,376 --> 00:41:51,813 - The problem with a lot of Jordan Belfort's 952 00:41:51,987 --> 00:41:54,163 boiler room operations is the brokers, 953 00:41:54,337 --> 00:41:55,730 these young fellers, 954 00:41:55,991 --> 00:41:58,385 probably didn't really have an idea of exactly 955 00:41:58,559 --> 00:42:00,909 what was going on, and it gives them an air 956 00:42:01,083 --> 00:42:03,346 of plausible deniability. 957 00:42:03,521 --> 00:42:06,741 But the problem with "I didn't really know" 958 00:42:06,915 --> 00:42:08,700 means that you probably had an inkling 959 00:42:08,874 --> 00:42:11,224 that something was wrong. 960 00:42:11,398 --> 00:42:14,053 They had to balance my lifestyle, 961 00:42:14,227 --> 00:42:16,185 my current Mercedes, nice apartment, 962 00:42:16,359 --> 00:42:18,274 and money to burn, 963 00:42:18,448 --> 00:42:21,495 with, do I really want to know all the details? 964 00:42:21,669 --> 00:42:24,846 [soft music] 965 00:42:25,020 --> 00:42:29,285 - It took me about a year, year and a half 966 00:42:29,459 --> 00:42:33,202 to realize that something wasn't right. 967 00:42:33,376 --> 00:42:37,946 Christmas Eve, I opened one of the largest accounts 968 00:42:38,120 --> 00:42:40,209 Stratton ever saw. 969 00:42:40,383 --> 00:42:44,257 Who's calling anyone Christmas Eve? 970 00:42:44,431 --> 00:42:46,259 A chubby, broke Jew. 971 00:42:46,433 --> 00:42:49,654 Sure enough, I got this guy on the phone. 972 00:42:49,828 --> 00:42:52,570 I then walked into one of the partner's offices. 973 00:42:52,744 --> 00:42:56,617 I was as green as they could be and said, 974 00:42:56,791 --> 00:42:59,577 I have a funny feeling if that stock goes higher, 975 00:42:59,751 --> 00:43:02,449 like I just told him, he'll buy more. 976 00:43:02,623 --> 00:43:04,799 And the partner said, oh yeah? 977 00:43:04,973 --> 00:43:07,715 Oh, good job, Howie. 978 00:43:07,889 --> 00:43:10,631 I walked back to my desk, 979 00:43:10,805 --> 00:43:13,895 and the stock was up 3/4 of a point. 980 00:43:14,069 --> 00:43:17,246 - ♪ It's gonna be great ♪ 981 00:43:17,420 --> 00:43:20,293 - I thought to myself, am I that fucking smart, 982 00:43:20,467 --> 00:43:24,123 or did that guy in that office just do something? 983 00:43:24,297 --> 00:43:26,691 [dramatic music] 984 00:43:26,865 --> 00:43:28,431 What did I do? 985 00:43:28,606 --> 00:43:31,478 I immediately called the guy back. 986 00:43:31,652 --> 00:43:35,090 - ♪ There's nothing I'll let get in my way ♪ 987 00:43:35,264 --> 00:43:37,571 - And he bought double the amount 988 00:43:37,745 --> 00:43:39,965 he had just bought five minutes ago. 989 00:43:40,139 --> 00:43:42,620 - ♪ Oh, it's starting today ♪ 990 00:43:42,794 --> 00:43:47,842 - And that was the first sign that there was some-- 991 00:43:48,016 --> 00:43:50,366 there was some funky dunky going around. 992 00:43:50,540 --> 00:43:54,457 ♪ ♪ 993 00:44:00,812 --> 00:44:05,164 - So this is now 1991, and in those couple of years, 994 00:44:05,338 --> 00:44:07,383 Jordan built himself up a big empire. 995 00:44:07,557 --> 00:44:09,603 He had a lot of brokers working for him. 996 00:44:09,777 --> 00:44:11,779 - When Jordan started making money, 997 00:44:11,953 --> 00:44:13,259 he and the brokers would go out, 998 00:44:13,433 --> 00:44:15,174 and he would wine and dine them. 999 00:44:15,348 --> 00:44:17,132 It was almost like a harem that would follow him. 1000 00:44:17,306 --> 00:44:19,265 [percussive music] 1001 00:44:19,439 --> 00:44:21,963 We would frequently go to Atlantic City. 1002 00:44:22,137 --> 00:44:25,793 - It could be a regular Tuesday after the market closed. 1003 00:44:25,967 --> 00:44:30,232 - We'd have helicopters take us to casinos. 1004 00:44:30,406 --> 00:44:33,148 - We would land on top of a helipad. 1005 00:44:33,322 --> 00:44:35,585 - And the casino hosts would meet us 1006 00:44:35,760 --> 00:44:39,502 and take us to some, like, ridiculous suite. 1007 00:44:39,677 --> 00:44:42,462 - The butlers had already rolled all the joints, 1008 00:44:42,636 --> 00:44:44,464 laid out all the quaaludes. 1009 00:44:44,638 --> 00:44:46,422 We then got fucked up. 1010 00:44:46,596 --> 00:44:47,815 ♪ ♪ 1011 00:44:48,250 --> 00:44:49,904 - Belfort's there, and Danny's there. 1012 00:44:50,078 --> 00:44:51,427 And they would gamble 1013 00:44:51,645 --> 00:44:53,734 thousands of dollars a hand in blackjack. 1014 00:44:53,908 --> 00:44:55,475 ♪ ♪ 1015 00:44:55,649 --> 00:44:58,086 - We'd have what we refer to as a hoedown. 1016 00:44:58,260 --> 00:44:59,653 It was hookers. It was drugs. 1017 00:44:59,827 --> 00:45:01,350 It was Sodom and Gomorrah. 1018 00:45:01,524 --> 00:45:02,743 It was gambling. 1019 00:45:02,917 --> 00:45:06,051 It was more of this, more of that. 1020 00:45:06,225 --> 00:45:08,967 - We were all walking around with a lot of cash, 1021 00:45:09,141 --> 00:45:10,316 and they'd pull out, you know, 1022 00:45:10,577 --> 00:45:12,622 50 grand out of their pocket in hundreds. 1023 00:45:12,797 --> 00:45:14,712 [somber music] 1024 00:45:14,886 --> 00:45:18,628 And we would seek to get these poor women 1025 00:45:18,803 --> 00:45:23,242 to do the most disgusting possible things 1026 00:45:23,416 --> 00:45:26,898 a human being and a human body could do. 1027 00:45:27,072 --> 00:45:30,553 And we would just keep pulling out hundreds 1028 00:45:30,728 --> 00:45:33,078 until the price was reached. 1029 00:45:33,252 --> 00:45:36,298 And it was such a tragic thing just to see 1030 00:45:36,472 --> 00:45:39,737 what money could make somebody do. 1031 00:45:39,911 --> 00:45:43,741 We would do stuff like that all the time. 1032 00:45:43,915 --> 00:45:48,223 I just hate myself for acting that way. 1033 00:45:48,397 --> 00:45:51,139 And I paid the price for it, rightfully so, 1034 00:45:51,313 --> 00:45:53,141 which I'm sure we'll talk about. 1035 00:45:53,315 --> 00:45:56,754 ♪ ♪ 1036 00:45:56,928 --> 00:46:00,409 - The lifestyle was incredible. 1037 00:46:00,583 --> 00:46:03,412 Jordan was absolutely on top of the world. 1038 00:46:03,586 --> 00:46:05,937 And that was his whole demeanor-- 1039 00:46:06,111 --> 00:46:08,461 keeping everybody happy, 1040 00:46:08,635 --> 00:46:11,420 giving them enough to keep them going. 1041 00:46:18,210 --> 00:46:22,083 - That's my number one post on TikTok and Instagram. 1042 00:46:24,129 --> 00:46:27,045 --beautiful five-carat emerald ring. 1043 00:46:27,219 --> 00:46:30,048 He proposed to me in front of my favorite fast food place 1044 00:46:30,222 --> 00:46:32,615 in Sheepshead Bay, Roll-n-Roaster. 1045 00:46:32,790 --> 00:46:36,097 I mean, at the end of the day, I'm still a Brooklyn girl. 1046 00:46:36,271 --> 00:46:38,491 So there's all these grand gestures. 1047 00:46:38,665 --> 00:46:41,276 And yeah, it was fun. 1048 00:46:41,450 --> 00:46:43,148 - At Jordan's house in Westhampton, 1049 00:46:43,322 --> 00:46:45,193 he would have parties. 1050 00:46:45,367 --> 00:46:48,893 - Those parties could be filled with people by the hundreds, 1051 00:46:49,067 --> 00:46:52,984 and 99% of these people didn't even know who he was. 1052 00:46:53,158 --> 00:46:56,814 - The Hamptons, you typically had normal families, 1053 00:46:56,988 --> 00:47:03,124 and here was this house where it was Sin City, 24/7-- 1054 00:47:03,298 --> 00:47:07,172 drugs galore, hot chicks galore. 1055 00:47:08,521 --> 00:47:10,479 - Then at one point, Jordan decided 1056 00:47:10,653 --> 00:47:12,351 to give one of his speeches that he would do 1057 00:47:12,525 --> 00:47:13,961 at Stratton Oakmont every morning, 1058 00:47:14,222 --> 00:47:17,530 but here it was on the back balcony of the house. 1059 00:47:17,704 --> 00:47:21,142 - It was exactly as it appears in the movie. 1060 00:47:21,316 --> 00:47:25,538 He had an upper deck outside of the master bedroom. 1061 00:47:25,712 --> 00:47:27,670 - It's gonna take this company 1062 00:47:27,845 --> 00:47:30,891 into the fucking stratosphere! 1063 00:47:31,065 --> 00:47:34,373 - He would be up there motivating, talking them up. 1064 00:47:34,547 --> 00:47:35,809 - It was a wild scene, 1065 00:47:36,070 --> 00:47:37,463 and the movie depicted that pretty well. 1066 00:47:37,637 --> 00:47:39,334 [tape whirs] 1067 00:47:41,902 --> 00:47:44,600 - This is the big Hampton party where Jordan gives a speech 1068 00:47:44,774 --> 00:47:46,341 and gets everybody riled up. 1069 00:47:57,526 --> 00:47:59,354 [cheering] 1070 00:47:59,528 --> 00:48:02,575 - I was down below on the pool deck, 1071 00:48:02,749 --> 00:48:05,186 just looking up and listening to Jordan's speech. 1072 00:48:05,360 --> 00:48:08,233 Everyone else around him is on the string. 1073 00:48:08,407 --> 00:48:11,671 - The brokers really felt like they were 1074 00:48:11,845 --> 00:48:13,151 part of something big, 1075 00:48:13,412 --> 00:48:16,154 and it was a privilege to be included. 1076 00:48:16,328 --> 00:48:17,807 People revered him, 1077 00:48:17,982 --> 00:48:20,027 and he made sure they looked up to him. 1078 00:48:20,201 --> 00:48:21,507 You're in my home, 1079 00:48:21,986 --> 00:48:24,162 and I'm serving you lobsters and champagne. 1080 00:48:24,336 --> 00:48:26,686 I don't think anyone really believed that there 1081 00:48:26,860 --> 00:48:30,559 was something coming, looming. 1082 00:48:31,821 --> 00:48:33,606 And even if they did know, 1083 00:48:33,780 --> 00:48:37,697 I don't think they really thought that it would ever end. 1084 00:48:37,871 --> 00:48:40,700 [pensive music] 1085 00:48:40,874 --> 00:48:43,921 ♪ ♪ 1086 00:48:44,095 --> 00:48:46,097 - Jordan Belfort and me, 1087 00:48:46,271 --> 00:48:49,448 we sort of had parallel careers in some respect. 1088 00:48:49,622 --> 00:48:52,799 When he was beginning his fraudulent career, 1089 00:48:52,973 --> 00:48:56,063 I was beginning my career catching the guys 1090 00:48:56,237 --> 00:48:57,978 who were doing what he was doing. 1091 00:48:58,152 --> 00:49:00,633 I think we both underwent a learning curve. 1092 00:49:00,807 --> 00:49:04,942 In my case, it was really all about the hunt for me, 1093 00:49:05,116 --> 00:49:07,074 unwinding the best scam 1094 00:49:07,248 --> 00:49:09,903 that a very intelligent guy could put together. 1095 00:49:10,077 --> 00:49:11,949 I knew I was going to take him down. 1096 00:49:12,123 --> 00:49:13,776 I never doubted it. 1097 00:49:13,951 --> 00:49:15,953 And he hadn't counted on that. 1098 00:49:16,127 --> 00:49:18,999 [tense music] 1099 00:49:19,173 --> 00:49:26,050 ♪ ♪ 1100 00:49:41,021 --> 00:49:43,719 - In the early '90s, the money that was flowing 1101 00:49:43,893 --> 00:49:46,461 into these guys' hands was just unlimited. 1102 00:49:46,635 --> 00:49:49,682 - We were loaded and powerful and famous. 1103 00:49:49,856 --> 00:49:52,641 - That alerted the authorities. 1104 00:49:52,815 --> 00:49:56,471 Time to really look into what these guys are doing. 1105 00:49:56,645 --> 00:49:58,647 - The FBI sets up a group of agents. 1106 00:49:58,821 --> 00:50:01,041 - Now you're under full investigation. 1107 00:50:01,215 --> 00:50:04,566 - The organized crime guys knew what kind of money 1108 00:50:04,740 --> 00:50:06,307 Jordan was making. 1109 00:50:06,481 --> 00:50:08,701 - Pressure started to take its toll. 1110 00:50:08,875 --> 00:50:12,139 - Jordan was ripping apart furniture, looking for drugs. 1111 00:50:12,313 --> 00:50:14,011 - These cracks are forming, 1112 00:50:14,185 --> 00:50:16,056 and there's going to be a reckoning. 1113 00:50:20,191 --> 00:50:21,931 [dark music] 1114 00:50:22,106 --> 00:50:24,978 [dark music] 1115 00:50:25,152 --> 00:50:32,333 ♪ ♪