In the late 1990s Christopher Rockefeller was married to a former Playboy Playmate, driving a Ferrari, and living in Los Angeles, where he had booked himself an entire floor at the Beverly Wilshire. After growing bored of having his picture taken beside blondes with sculpted abs by D-list paparazzi, the French-born heir to an oil fortune moved back east, and in 2000 he lived on Further Lane in East Hampton, where he enjoyed telling people about the Pissarro and the Chagall in his art collection and taking calls from President Bill Clinton on his cell phone.
Except that he didn’t live on Further Lane, he had no art collection to speak of, and he had probably never met Bill Clinton. He lodged in only one room at the Beverly Wilshire, not an entire floor, as he would tell 60 Minutes in 2002, and he stiffed the hotel for $60,000. The marriage to the Playmate—that might have been real.
And his name wasn’t Christopher Rockefeller. It was Christophe Rocancourt, and in 2003 he would be sentenced by a United States federal judge to 46 months imprisonment for wire fraud and scheming to defraud, and he was ordered to pay $1.2 million to people he had fleeced.
Rocancourt sustained his grift with a dizzying array of lies. One victim told 60 Minutes he had promised to help her financially— he was a Rockefeller, after all—but first he just needed a little bit of cash upfront. Then he disappeared.
Denne historien er fra May 2023-utgaven av Town & Country US.
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Denne historien er fra May 2023-utgaven av Town & Country US.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Jersey, JE ΤΙΜΕ
Nearly 50 years ago a museum opened in Paris.
THE HUNGER GAMES
Two former bons amis grew up in the same expensive suburb and cut their teeth together in the Paris nightclub scene. Then they launched competing restaurant empires, and the gloves came off. Now one of them is facing a suspended prison sentence and a huge fine. Welcome to the city's most delicious grudge match.
HIDDEN in Plain Sight
T&C was invited into the private archives and secret workshops of Paris, to glimpse the treasures that have made this city famous for its style and craftsmanship. It's a reputation worth fighting for.
GUARDIAN of Objects
Laura Kugel is the go-to art dealer for the world's most discerning clients, but her family's Paris wonderland is open to all. Come inside, won't you?
Ecole! Elysée! SCANDALE!
The path to the French White House requires a political education at one of the country's elite universities. As controversy swirls around Sciences Po-class treason, #MeToo à la française, creeping le wokisme-will its grip on power finally slip?
Are There Still Mysteries in Paris?
Surely not, in the world's most visited city! And yet: Why is the Louvre called the Louvre? Why do the upper stories of its 17th-century buildings tilt in? Why do even familiar streets feel so enticing, unknown? One thing is clear: So many of us return because the City of Light is really one of mesmerizing shadows.
High SEAS
How seductive is a cruise on an ultraluxury ship (yes, that's a category) like the new Regent Seven Seas Grandeur? So much so that a 132-day sailing sold out in three hours. It was time to investigate.
The Cruise Cure
One definition of bliss at sea is padding down a ship's hallway from your suite to the spa in a robe and slippers. Here's what awaits.
Only a Day to Spare?
These hotel spas-mini-me's of destination, health retreats punch way above their weight. So, if you're in the neighborhood...
So, Where Do You Ride in Paris?
A fancy equestrian's guide to the best of Gallic galloping.
