Crazy Eddie: Biggest Fraud in America — Gary Weiss

Real Talk: The Charles Mizrahi Show

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He was known to millions as Crazy Eddie. Eddie Antar turned a tiny Brooklyn store into the largest electronics retailer. In the 1970s and 1980s, his commercials were everywhere.

“Crazy Eddie! His prices are insaaaaane!" They were even spoofed on Saturday Night Live. But Crazy Eddie’s success was a fraud from day one.

In fact, before Enron, Madoff, and The Wolf of Wall Street, Antar's corruption was second to none. When it was uncovered, it turned out to be one of the largest SEC frauds in American history.

I recently sat down with Gary Weiss, author of Retail Gangster: The Insane, Real-Life Story of Crazy Eddie. What Weiss told me affirms the old adage that truth is often stranger than fiction.

Topics Discussed:

• An Introduction to Gary Weiss (00:00:00)
• Who’s Crazy Eddie? (00:02:42)
• Fraud from Day 1… (00:13:25)
• Taking the Scam to Wall Street (00:25:03)
• Two of the Unluckiest Takeover Artists in the History of Takeovers (00:41:50)
• What Happens to the Antars? (00:48:34)

Guest Bio:

Gary Weiss is an American journalist and author. He’s been uncovering Wall Street wrongdoing for nearly two decades. He’s written for Barron’s, Businessweek, as well as Conde Nast Portfolio.

His latest book is “Retail Gangster: The Insane, Real-Life Story of Crazy Eddie.”

Resources Mentioned:

• Retail Gangster: The Insane, Real-Life Story of Crazy Eddie
• Crazy Eddie Ad

Transcript:

https://charlesmizrahi.com/podcast/

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