"A case so bizarre that even the most imaginative mystery writer would hesitate to use the plot"
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Self-Styled traces the remarkable strange-but-true story of the enigmatic American confidence man, Doctor Robert Vernon Spears. This was made possible by the remarkably diverse trail captivating newspaper headlines and forensic breadcrumbs he left along the decades of his life’s journey--some comical, some endearing, and others tragic.
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In mid-century-modern America, Dr. Spears became a household name as themost famous man of confidence—pushing presidents, kings and dictators off front pages of the nation’s leading papers, and even drawing headlines in Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom. His role in the still-unsolved mystery of National Airlines Flight 967 can only be understood by a deeper analysis of his past.
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Meticulously researched, Self-Styled is at once a historical treasure, and an exquisite explanatory narrative, a dramatic melding of characters built upon thousands of pages of newspaper articles, criminal and civil court proceedings, military service records, penitentiary files, census documents, health profession journal articles, letters and other materials left in Dr Spears wake.
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“His voluminous record is full of dramatic tidbits and reads like a cloak and dagger romance, with aliases, mistaken identities, illicit mail, a mysterious plane crash, and intrigues”
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