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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.

JERRI: He didn't want
his lights turned off.

He didn't want to be his dad.

Hey, pally boy.
BARRY: 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.

ROBERT: My commission check
is gonna be larger this week.

CAROL: Enough to pay
the gas bill?

(MUSIC PLAYING
OVER TELEVISION)

ROBERT: It'll be fine.

Mom said no MTV.

Ow!

Knock it off!
Shut up.

ROBERT: 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.

FRANZESE: That was it.
He wanted to make money
and that was it.

MIKEY: He wanted millions.

FRANZESE:
That's what drove him.

JERRI: He wanted the girls.

FRANZESE: He wanted people
to love and adore him.

JERRI: 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.

JERRI: He wanted to be a star.

MIKEY: 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.

* It's another great day

* It's another great day

* It's another fine moment

* And it keeps getting better

* Yeah, I'm making it happen

* This is where it all begins

* In my perfect world

* Perfect world

* I can't wait to wake up

* I can't wait to wake up

* And do it again

* This is where it all begins

* In my perfect world

* Perfect world

* Perfect world

* I can't wait to... *

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.

MAN: Hey, Ron,
you got a delivery!

Hey, Barry, give me one sec.
I'll be right back.

Yeah, yeah.

Oh, God!

MAN: 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.

(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING
ON CAR STEREO)

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.

ROBERT: 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.

WOMAN: And so,
as we look forward

to the excitement
of new lives,

we, the fresh-faced class...

MIKEY: 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.

JOE: Hey,
it's your favorite uncle.

BARRY: Hey, Uncle Joe.
How are you?

JOE: 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.

BARRY: Uncle Joe,
that's just jealous people

using their stories
as an excuse
for their mediocrity.

Yeah, yeah.
I'm hearing that, too.
See?

JOE: 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.

BARRY: I'll get someone
right on it.

JOE: 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.

BARRY: 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.

HALL: 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.

JERRI: In fact, there were
more people
that didn't believe Barry

than the ones that did.

But he only needed a couple.

HALL: 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.

JERRI: 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.

HALL: 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.

JERRI: 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.

JERRI: 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.

JERRI: It's theft
with a smile.

HALL: 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.

BROKER: 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.

* Yeah

* uh-huh

* It's a matter of life
or a matter after of death *

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?

* What if I told you...
A second chance to live *

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.

BARRY: 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?

DAN: 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.

DAN: I question whether
Peanut was a real person
or not.

It's a pretty good throw.

MIKEY: 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.

BARRY: 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.

JERRI: I never felt
that Barry
was rehabilitated.

FRANZESE: I believe
his transformation
was real.

MIKEY: Everyone in prison knew
that if you found Jesus

that would look good
on your record
to maybe get early release.

BARRY:
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.

FRANZESE: 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."

FRANZESE: 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.

MIKEY: It became just too much
of a temptation for him.

JERRI: Barry wanted
to kind of do
the Catch Me If You Can.

DAN: 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.

DAN: 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.

JERRI: 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.

MIKEY: "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.

FRANZESE: 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?

BARRY: 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.

MIKEY: 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."

SCOTT: 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.

SCOTT: 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.

MIKEY: Barry was
a master storyteller.

So even with Peanut,
for all I know

it was the same as
Jimmy Stewart's
Harvey the bunny.

LEROY: 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.

* Flat out deception

* Conscious intentions

* And with every reinvention

* No dance with redemption

* What kind of thievery
misleading, un-worshipping

* What a quick drop from grace
while the buzzers
were circling

* It's a slippery slope

* Pinning hope against hope

* It's a slippery slope

* Pinning hope against hope

* And nine lives
of fatal flaw

* Destiny's last call

* Does any single act
of good one does

* Ever trip the scales
of justice

* And is there
ever a light bulb
moment that's permanent

* Or does the moth fly
to the light just
to burn from it

* It's a slippery slope

* Slippery slope

* It's a slippery slope

* Pinning hope against hope

* Pulled out of the pack
and ripped from the headlines

* Deceitful free faller
no conscience no quarter

* Washed up and washed out
dead in the water

* Carried away by the floods
of the slaughter

* Slippery slope

* Slippery slope

* It's a slippery slope

* Pinning hope against hope

* It's a slippery slope

* Pinning hope against hope

* It's a skin on the true

* Stuffed with a lie

* Flat out deception

* Conscious intentions

* And with every reinvention

* No dance with redemption *

* Yeah

* Uh-uh

* It's a matter of life
or a matter of death

* When you take
your last breath
It's too late to regret

* All the pain you inflicted
now they got you restricted

* To four walls in time
'cos all you got is time

* To play it over and over
again in your mind

* All the souls and the lives
that you stole you was blind

* And all the wrongs
that you done did
that can't be undone kid

* Is there any room
in this place
for a little grace

* Everybody says that they're
never gonna change

* 'Cause the mind deranged
you lost, you insane

* You messed up
one too many times

* Breaking laws
making lives
taking lives

* In the hope you can't cope
with the life that you made
for yourself

* They say
you had it coming

* What you do
for a second chance in life

* Would you roll the dice
or pay the price

* For a shot at redemption

* Do you want
another chance to live

* Do you want
another chance to live
* Yeah

* It's never too late
It's never too late
No, no, no, no

* Redemption *

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