Ferdinand Waldo Demara – The Greatest Imposter Among Us

11-02-21

Episode Transcription

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Hey Man, what's up, I had something like contact. You wear contact, you know. No. You always made fun me for wearing contacts. How long have you were in contact since eighth grade? There's no way I made funny for in you idiot for wearing content, what a you can't have strong natural eye site I've, not a thousand and twenty vision. You don't you suck. I've never said that as why I swear. Are you thinking of someone else? No! No. You think that I was trying to pass off my contact wearing eyes for just like this is natural. I think this is a Mandela effect yeah. This is definitely like a barons tein guys kind of situation. You know, because I have there's no way. I Made Fun of you for that yeah. You never work out, there's so many other things. I invite you for. I don't know why I would choose context, there's just a whole other list. You know yeah you don't you never work it. I don't buy it. Jar, never wore contact. Yeah Jaren doesn't have eyes anyway, you I you listen to the podcast version. You don't know that. You know you listen to ad, you know, that's just skinned Wi S. I should be yep there's not as an ice ogist. My ol doesn't have eye sockets, it's just a flat. Just there's a no stan out, there's a Freeson, you know and it's just a flat landscape of a face. You know it's pretty gruesome to look at Ye. I guess I would assume I don't know. I don't know what. Then I don't know what it makes like know what things look like, but I will say, as a non e having person, I did make fun of Tim for wearing contact. I, like you idiot how poor is your vision and he was like. I have odes you know, and what, when I did, try to shove two pickles to straight into my face. I was like I heard this worked somewhere this I got pickles for eyes. It's going to be a medical manual, get this for Canadian Lumber Jacks. Well by God. That's fine got a screw in it best night of my life. I know that it doesn't sound like it. What? If what, if hold on what, if you impostor the motor things anyway for for listers, I just need to let it be mown that a couple days ago, Jan and I had a conversation because our eels episode got really o Yeah Percent Yeah and we were like yeah, it took us forever to talk about the content and that up yeah and we keep doing bits at the beginning. You know so, if you're here I don't know what this topic is, but if you've googled it. Your is very interested in. We haven't even mentioned what we're talking about yeah and then you've made it. This far, you've probably skipped a lot, but you have made it this, for I have a way man, I'm sorry, yeah, welcome to the show Tim has eyes. So have you heard of Ferdinand Waldo de Mara for Folorn Waldo and Waldo Yeah de Mero, diner damara damara yeah, Feminine Okay, it's not it! Now! It's an as IT'S FEMININE! Is that okay, it's linguistics! So No, I haven't heard of any of this, so he is as wikipedia calls him an American impostor known for impersonating other people. Yeah is this frank calliades real name Bro? I does he like I impossibe he imposther and steal money and stuff. No, I think it's a hobby he's like no he's like a he's a. What do you even call that person an impostor? No, I would commeant. No, no! No! I mean like okay, but I'm saying like does he m? Does he imposter to take money? No? No or to like trick people I thier? Is it an act? Where he's like? I can do these voices, you know it's not an act. What kind of is an act, but it's not really an act honestly. I think he's just addicted to seeing how far he can convince people that he's somebody else, yeah like how you try to convince people that m done as your yeah brother cousin brother to cousin Hasan. She is my cousin, we're cousins yeah. If you say it enough. Yes, I she is get cousin, we're cousins, look her at Emma Stone Tim Stone, Amiston from Phoenix Arizona, Tim Stones, Linea just from Phoenix Arizona. You don't have to dig that deep to be a man reaped page says it yeah. Her wipe stage, let us his family Tim Stone, Co host of things so on he time you have five weeks to make that happen. I realized that Gonta add it to infinity. Let me just go into our back in here and let ad a little show note. I'm literally adding good to yeah got to try to figure that out also could a cut this part out to make it just look smooth or leave it in, so people can get it behind the scenes. Look, you know how you can get it behind the scenes. Look Tuesday, Tuesday, Tuesday, that's right! That's where new episodes drop on patron, patrons a way to get early access to episodes and a their content and exclusive merchandise, and we're not going to stop there because we have a private discord with our host and producers in it for less than seventeen cents a day. That's right! That's! FIVERS! A month you two can be a Patriot supporter and not your advertisements in this freaking podcast anymore text, till in the six, eight six, six, otherwise I'll come to your house. I will find you. I will destroy everything. That's good in your life until we're the only thing left anyway. Here's another advertisement so fetiche Alfredo for a man Al do de Mar I'm very close. Okay. So here's the thing: here's! What this guy did? It's incredible, I'm just going to I'm on a start from beginning this way. I don't want to Embarras, you can kind of thing or he's just like. I just want to see how far I can get almost yeah, okay and I'm gonna, I'm not going to tell you a lot of times. I tell you his accomplishments and then we go on this R, I'm sure to tell you the story, because it just it just goes so I think it all began when he was about thirteen years old. This guy was born in one thousand nine hundred and twenty one. So this is the early S. His family was pretty well off until the Great Depression, and then they had to move to a much poorer neighborhood, and I think I think, for Ferdinand one of the his problems he always struggled with. was he just got bored really easily? He had a photographic memory. He was very intelligent, but he couldn't keep his attention on one thing for very long and I think, especially after his family moved to this poor neighborhood. He didn't know what to do for fun. Until one day they lived in Massachusetts, he managed to get his hands on a couple manikin legs, and so he goes out. They moved to Massachusetts, and wouldn't you believe it just everywhere in Massachusetts- is just Massachusett Mannikins and their legs. What happened on the tors torn arms? I don't. I have no idea what happened he just grabs. It lags. He somehow got the legs and there was a big snow storm, and so he just stuck them out the snow drift on this busy highway. That's fun. I just hung out watching people swerve off the highway and pull this the I of this guy. I am again in all I O wow. This guy really nailed it. That's Hilarious, where you did that thirteen yeos prodigy! That's a are you kidding me yeah, that's funny, so he did that three years later he's sixteen he's in high school and he's he just he's like man, this school stuff. Really Boring not into it. Yeah doesn't give me the high yeah that watching people freak out over Manicola he's, like he's, been chasing that his whole life. You know he's sitting there in eighth grade in eighth grade he's just like at his desk, just like, Oh my God, zoning out in class, just like looking at the front of the classes, imagining the Manikin legs and like not even in a creepy way, I'm not like in my God. I have manikin a lot of crises to anyway. You stop at like a yeah, but like a man that was my moment or he's just like in his head he's like did I pikat thirteen you know is that homecoming freshman here wins. I you win Tom Thinking, I mean he like. He has high school accomplishments, he's the quarterback of the football team right, he's the Brom King graduates top of his class. A still your heads, not in a none of it, is like he's just like yeah I'll take what my head is in s, no drift in Massachusetts. That's where Moroni was gonna say so. Tempt Massachusetts is a two thousand and three email album yeah. I love it. The snow drifts in Massachusetts, so I he's sixteen and he just gets tired of school and he says you know what I'm going to do. I'm going to run away and yeah. You know what I'm gonna do. I'M gonna run it's. What is this? The early es yeah? The is a classic movie where he's just like you know what I'm going to do. You see that open road, I'm gonna walk and I'm gonna keep blocking. I'M NOT gonna. Stop till I kep where I'm going so I know when I get there. I don't know where it is now, but I'll know when I get there. So it's sixteen. He run away from the House. He runs away from home at sixteen to you, take the legs and runs to Rhode Island. I only hope you know you know all those like things where they got the stick in that bag. On the end of the TI, just kind of a manikin like, and a bag hanging off, the ankle of it he's just walking down the road thumb up, trying to get a ride, guys like driving down the highway. It's the late es drive down the highway in Rhode Island on my ways and he's like Cindy Lou. Does that boy have a leg? Is that it is that a lake he's got on? Well, don't worry about him down. Just keep Dr There's a screw sticking out of that thigh. What do they do to that woman? There's a screw sticking out of that thigh well by God that five got a screw in it. cindly eyes have never seen such a thing. I know that you're blind and don't have any, but let me try to explain it that boy. That boy must have a screw loose, but there ain't a screw loose in that time. I go so he runs away to Rhode Island and he lies his way into a monastery and becomes a silent monk. Convinces them he's older than he. This is the plot of a good place, though we heustis like the quick, the easiest way to get away with. Something is just to not say anything yeah. So he lies his way into this monastery becomes a monk, but it's a silent monastery, they're silent monks, and he stayed there for a few years, but he eventually gets kicked out for lying, which is ironic because to lie. You have to be not silent, what they can write stuff. I mean, I guess so so yeah he broke the roles they kicked him out and so then he's like well I'll, join the army, so in forty one he joins the US army lot perfect time to join. I think yeah great great year to get an jump on in you know he joins the army and really quickly realizes not a fan of this, but he joined the army legitimately. He didn't just show up to camp and was like yeah he like legitimately enlisted and then, while he was there, he his tent mate Anthony Agnola. He created a pretty good relationship with him, got to know him really well and then realized. Not a fan of the army, so I am now Anthony Agnola and I am going a wall, and so he just ditched the army. What happened in the Real Anthony Igoe did so he dishes the army goes to. Canada enjoys the Canadian Navy, then, like the American army, you I like a different arm. It was the American part I didn't like and he becomes a hospital Corman as Anthony Amelia, yeah yeah. So now he's Antiano, Lia and just took up his personality took on his like fake paperwork. Pretending to be him becomes a hoss hot again. I say this every time we tell these stories yea. I wish that I lived in that time. Era Yeah. You could just start over Yep Yep Yajus go somewhere and be like this is who I this is me, I'm this guy. This is real to see. Is Me I'm exactly who I'm supposed to be so so he he became a hospital Corman, oh you're, mad, that I sing songs. I'm now that you say that so that's fair. So he becomes this hospital Corman. But he's like he's like a medical assistant, he's not like. Actually doing much but he's assisting now doc did he pretend to be a doctor, so he's just assisting yeah. I can hear it in your pace of your voice. You're, like Oh man, this guy yeah. Okay. Here we go, but he never got to the position he wanted in the navy. So he chases, I don't know a resident of President of the day E, I'm the emperor of the Canadian Navy, so he fakes his. I he fakes as suicide. Oh my God files, another name, Robert Linton, French, who is another real person, he's a doctor who man don't Dr French Yeah, R, French and he goes, and he manages to get all of French's paperwork so his birth certificate, his PhD, like all of his paper to paperwork, just gets his hands on. What do you steal it or they go? I don't know how he did that just goes in the office and is like. I was like Hey, Hey, I'm Robert French. Could I get his license and his PhD and my my license and my PhD please so yeah, I don't know how he does it, but somehow he pulls off getting all of his paperwork like his legal, identifying paperwork and he moves to Erie Pennsylvania and gets a job teaching psychology and ethics at Gannon College love that which a teacher yeah. So it seems like he's working his way through the good place, cast right right, because at first he was Jason as the silent monk now he's cheaty teaching ethics Yep Yep, and so he actually stays here for a while until eventually he got bored moves to the gotbische takes on some other identity. You say it like that say like what Lost Angelis, I don't know, you moved to Los Angeles, moved to lost last an gales, oh my, and he becomes an orderly at the La Sanitarium. What is any of those words, you just said mean I'm going to be honest and I m not positing orderly at the La Sanitarium Yeah. So the sanitarium was the cleanest place in La no it's a a medical facility for long term illness. So they typically or treated turberculosis for antibiotics and orderly, I'm pretty sure, is kind of like a nurse and attendant at a hospital responsible for non medical care of patience and the maintenance in order of cleanliness so yeah it was the cleanest yeah. He just came and cleaned like the bed, pants and stuff. I don't know He. I think he was like kind of like a kind of like a nurse was like guy I'm over qualified for this. What was his name at this point? I don't know he took on another identity, it's hard to keep track of all the identities that he took on s because he took on something it's crazy. That that's. The other thing too, is that he has to keep track of those things yeah. You know like in his head when he's in Pennsylvania, he's gotta, be Dr French right M M yeah. I don't know how he how he kept up with it, but yeah so he's in La and then he also was. I don't know how he did this, but he was like commuting back and forth between shifts, so he would do it some time in la at the sanitarium and then he would drive up to Washington and teach classes at Saint Martin's College. As dodger French, I think as the well whoever his orderly personality was. So he was like some like adjunct, nursing, professor or something like that more like ad junk right, but somewhere, someone in one of those jobs was like kind of got, win to something's fishy here and alerted the authorities. The FBI starts keeping tabs on him and figures out. Oh Hey. This is that guy who deserted the army back one thousand nine hundred and forty one? How do they track that down? I don't know, but they ended up. I rest O it a lot of stuff there. I don't yeah. I don't know how they pained him for that, but they ended up, arresting him and giving him six years in prison for a military desertion yeah. He ends up only serving eighteen months and gets out on good behavior and after his release he took us out because he impersonated a guard right. He was like guys, it's me guard Bernard and they were like. Like I do you know Bernard you know I mean I guess so I don't know how you ended up on that side of the yeah. Get you out of there Gardar classic in no. Now I tried to median legs. You know still has the mania legs this whole. That's of that! That's how the fate they were like you have two manikin legs. You know we saw a guy deserting the military and all he took was to Manikin legs yeah yeah, so he gets out of prison and he's like, I think, I'll, try being a monk again. So he does that again. He joins the brother's Christian instruction in Maine, which is a Roman Catholic order, and things go well. There gets bored, I moves back across the country and assumes a new fake identity and studies, law and northeastern university. Okay, realizes halfway through the program that he's like. I don't need to get the degree I'm just going to fake one. Oh yeah he's like what am I doing it's like. Why am I going to school? I am a doctor. I am my military monk Doctor, I'm an orderly military monk doctor. I don't Raly, do I of this, so he so he starts teaching law and why he's teaching law a Canadian surgeon moves into the same as us? Well he's starting catching it yeah. Well, he finds some Universi that he's like Hey, I'm a law professor and they were like, like okay, all right l, you can teach this kid, have an empty law classroom that you can just walk on it, there's actually a class in there right now, yeah professor waiting for a lawyer, so I me Fen hold on hello you're a what no way I was just praying for a new law prefect's, a class waiting for you right now. Yeah like got our last law. Professor just got arrested for personating a lot pean here I was praying about what you do now and here you are, and here you come ready to teach low. That's for in a row that have just lied anyway. What's your salary that you need you, Oh yeah, that's pretty big, but I pretty high, but we need based on the resume that you wrote by hand. I will pay you that so Canadian surgeon again this is the era of world that I miss yeah base that people just trusted each other Yep. They just believe each other. So a Canadian surgeon named Joseph Sir moves to a school to teach at his school so he's near the twilight is creer something and he's moving to America, something moving to America, so he needs help with his paper work. So he asks his new friend Ferdinand to help him get his. He was like he was like. Oh I. I will gladly help you so Ferdinand. Just takes the copies all his documentary and moves to Canada and opens up a practice as Ferdinand ser the surgin, and then there was a surgeon yeah. Never really does anything in Canada ikey much immediately. Yeah the Korean War breaks out. Oh okay, okay, and so he says I thought you're going to say pretty much immediately. A patient came in, you know he had the tools and said there was like you're going to need to see a specialist about this one. I you know like how yeah you should see. How long can you push o o you just not e yeah, so he he he says, Hey. I got navy experience, I'm going to join the Canadian Navy, and so he joined the the navy again and he's on base, so he quits the practice as a serpatas goes on base, and he is like, of course, he's like guys. I know how to amputate things. Wet is like you have to that screw put itself there, there's a screw in that thigh and so here's. What he's where he's at he's he's been an orderly. He was a name Navy, coreman and so he's got a little bit of experience around the medical field. He's got a bit of an idea of how a lot of things work, but he's not he's, never done it. So, while he's on base waiting to be shipped out, he makes friends with all the other navy surgeons, yeah and he's got a he's want to compare notes ye no better. He tells all the other Navy Corman that he's working on a book and what it's going to be my. Is it O it's going to be a medical manual, get this for Canadian lumber jacks so that way, when they're out in the field, if they get injured, they can perform field sergey on each other news right step by step, yeah, and so he just goes to each of his his other navy surgeons and he's like hey. Why don't you do one on amputation? Why don't you do one on this kind of like and just gets them all to write? How to do these different series and he's saying he's writing parts to, but he's not, writing anything. That's honestly, I mean, and you got to respect it is the thing: That's brilliant he's a genius he's a genius, so he gets shipped out right and he's got his lumber Jack Buts. Again, you got to make it easy enough for some dumb lumber jack to read. You know tackles. I don't use words like that: the lumberjacks don't e!! well now yeah yeah, so he gets shipped out and he has an assistant. A medical assistant he's the surgeon on board his destroyer, his Canadian destroyer and but he has a medical assistant, and so he tells his medical assistant. He says: Hey. I want to train you up. He says this is a perfect opportunity, for you get some real world world experience, and so he says you're going to do everything I'm just going to offer my opinion going to observe yeah, and so the the the medical assistant does everything on board the ship Hatem until they get to Korea and when they get to Korea. Two important things happen. First, one of the naval officers on board the ship needs to have one of his teeth removed and so ferdinand stalls him for a minute and consults his lumberjack book and then welcomes him into the room and removes his tooth successfully, and so the naval officer is now none. The wiser he's like yeah, he's a real surgeon. He removed my tooth, everything went great, I think was fine. All I did was you know like he just title string around the anchor and when we dropped anchor that suckered as pop dry. Now I know yeah, so he weel surgeon. He pulled a tooth biggest procedure. He had ever done in his life right. Well, they get to Korea and aboard the ship, comes a group of Korean militants that needed medical attention and he was able to off load a lot of the work to his assistant, except for one who had a bullet lodged in his chest near his heart, and he was tasked with performing the removal and he was like. Let me consult Looso Yeah, so he does the same thing. He stalls for a minute. He's lumberjack book was out a full axe. That's all the tools they got in Te. Tam Sides He to get the bullet out of your heart, so he literally just wings it and he does it and it was successful and he saved this guy's life and it was such a phenomenal story. I there were naval officers there and a this guy can take teeth and bullets out of your body. There was naval officers in attendance watching it because it was such a big deal because it was like not one of our melaten. He was performing the surgery as a Lisenin surgery saved his life, everybody witnessed it. The naval officer wrote home about it because they were like this. Guy Needs a commendation like he save someone's life and he ends up in the paper. They take pictures of him on the ship, put it in the paper. It's it's all over Canada right. This Guy Saves Korean militants life, but then Joseph Sir's mom reads the paper obviously and says: That's not my son. Well, the Navy to told on me mom is so that was the danger of war stuff, you know was war stuff, but the danger was like, because people did long distance relationships, they wrote letters back and forth. You kept a picture in your wallet and you were like this is what she looks like. She may not look like that when you get home from war, my guy got a look different yeah. She may have had a head of surgery to get all her teeth out and you call home to you know: Gummy Gale, all right and she's, like hey, welcome home from war and you're. Like you, don't look at the picture anymore, you look nothing. That's not my girlfriend and and she's like war, kick a tall. You know. So I'm not your go friend. Now, I'm your gun, a! What, if is there a wit? Is there a way for him to convince the MOM like mom? You know me mom. It's me guys, I'm so sorry, she's suffering from the lumber, Jacolliot lumber, jacks call it de Menja. That's what she's got. I think I don't know. That's what the lover does. Call it a mom. It's it's! Your boy! Joey! It's your boy! Have you read of Tillin podcast March? That's right. We have a merged store full of tillin bread and teas, hoodies mugs and so much more. We also make new designs for every single episode, but those are only available for a limited time, so get them, while they're hot text till into six six, eight six six to get your till in March today, so she calls the navy yeah and the name L, one eight hundred a d may do she called the general, and so she calls the navy in the navy's, like okay hold on a second you're telling me that this is just some random guy who performed surgery on some other nations soldier, and they were like. Don't let anybody find out about this and they, Mrs Sir, that's her name. I don't know you're laughing at that. That's her name MISSIS, Sir! Please shut up! Please quietly walk into the sun. How about that? How about? How are you go away? You know that will pay you to never speak again. Actually we're going to have this we're going to have Joseph Sir. Remove your vocal courts can never tell anyone, so he so the navy is like the name is like a comet him and as like, hey so we're hearing these reports. That you're, not you, say sure, sir he's nighted at this point nited, Sir Sir we've got some reports that you're, not who you say you are, and he was like you guys. Like he's like I don't like oatmeal right yeah. You know I lied yesterday at breakfast and I was bigger than that. Okay, how Oh well? What do you do now? I got your teeth. Give it the note. I got your teeth. The the naval officers, like Sir Sir we've got some reports that you're not who you say you are and Ferdinand was like. Who Do you say I am Oh, my God I am so they just say: Hey! Look! Let's just keep this quiet. Let's just ship be back to America and let's just pretend how to this ever happened. We don't want to in international. You give me, though, no I have to give a bag like no, but you can keep the tooth in the bullet and so he's got. He got a bit a true man he's get Lix is to and the bullet. What's in your hand there nothing. Oh it's just a balloon. The tooth in that order, in that order, that's some serial killer, stuff yeah. So, while he's back in America, he's obviously got to try to get back into doing imposter ISM, im, posturing he's obviously got to get back to you know yeah pretend so he he tries to become a monk again. Does that for a couple years gets bored and then says you know what I'm Goin t old? Is He at this point he's no is Nienti is es yeah, so yeah. This is, I mean, he's doing like one to two year schemes here like these are quick schemes and then he's out of the next thing so somewhere between fifty hundred and fifty nine, a d exactly sure the year. He says you know what I'm going to start a Christian college, and so he opens up the Christian brothers of instruction and he made this religious teacher. I thought you were literally about to tell me, because in the s do you know what college was established angel? I thought you were about to go. That would be incredible started the school called Evangel universe. That would have been incredible, but I then started so you started the college, got it charted by the state and where we're at in Maine, okay and then he was really offended because the Christian well honestly, he should have gone the Christian around to begin with, because you can get some pretty prominent positions with zero qualification to its true, and so the Christian brothers instruction was at T. I did Christian comedy you like yeah, I'm not a comedian. No, I said I was a comedian, but there was like okay, whereas comedy clubs were like. No, we are you and then Christian. The churches were like yeah. You are yeah cool, that's good great come perform for our youth. We will literally not vet anything. You say yeah yeah, how much you want to get paid. Well. I guess I haven't even thought about that. I didn't think about getting paid. So so he took the Christian brother in struction. Wasn't our already an organization he took them, got them organized into a college, but then, when that happened, and he accomplished all of it with the state, he was really offended because he wanted to be named the Chancellor of the college or the rector of the college. Those were the two titles he wanted. They didn't give it to him. Okay, and did they give him a title? What did they give him? Another time I give him anything. They were just like thanks thanks sorry, and so he then said you guys picked an awful name for this college Christian Brothers Instruction and he just left and he's like I'm mad. That's what he's he left with an insult yeah, your name's, stupid yeah. I didn't like it anyway. I didn't want to be here anyway and so and then at night he's just looking at the pamphlet to join the college crying and his so so Hartman after he left the college moved to Canton Ohio and re organized as Walsh University, which is now actually a still school still school. They have about two thousand undergraduates and six hundred is about the size of angel yeah about the size of it. So if you went to Wash University your life a game, this guy made it up, your college is made up yea, they all are yeah. I mean I guess so you know at some point. So one was like we should start a college they're all made up. We could make up right now. Are we going to make a Tillin University? No we've already got. We got so many things. We've got vigilanti valley, right, yeah. We should just how hard is it to get accredited you make like a till in online course. I bet we could. I went to high school. I bet we could get a credit. We were going to get you an associate's degree. Okay, yeah I mean as long as we can charge tuition. We'll have Christian look into it: seven, email speaking of tuition yeah, we have a patron five s a month. That's your tuition to till an university he be to. You got a shout out Patriot in the I did it twice. I didn't really do it the first time we can cut the first time out great. We get that time on to. We can actually just we had to have to put an episode out. Speaking of putting episodes out next week, we're putting out a pretty big episode, yeah, we we haven't filmed it yet because we this week on it a couple days ago. Well, how does shows work? Do we pretend we've already filmed it because we haven't yet, but we could act like it? Okay, let's try that that sweet, sweet smashing success this weekend say thirteen people in the audience. Thank you so much. We still had twenty five tickets, alreadie yeah, but half a more show right. You know, and your wife's not going to be there. So that's fourteen right, so it was awesome. All Fourteen P Yeah! Is this: What we do? We pretend yeah yeah, okay, this o this is the impostor up anyway, the live. We recorded a live show by the time, you're hearing this we will have recorded a live show and it comes out like it comes out that episode that episode comes out next Tuesday. So I don't miss in so I set a little reminder in your syllabus at Tiller University on no was putting in the calendar. The syllabus yeah put a little reminder somewhere and remember to check out the A or he watched it on line or whatever yeah. If you were the ethics for coming out and you'll, maybe hear your laugh and a tenor yeah. If you were there. Thank you so much. We had a blast eastly than last night of my life. I know that it doesn't sound like it because I have not. I have no experience to pull from right now, so so, after the Homai name is o. So after the whole lost university incident, Ferdinand is in a weird spot: okay, because he got kind of famous with the whole navy thing, so his picture has been all over th place. He's trying to be in the navy, try to keep it on raps, but yeah a little bit of like a thread. That's like kind of leaking out there. Okay, well, a reporter at time. Figures it out and is like this guy has been lying, has been lying at least about the navy. Thing may be more, and so they reach out to him and they say hey. Can we buy your story and he's in some financial hard times, and so he says you know what yeah sure, whatever I'll sell my story, I'll sell you my story sure. So he sells a story. They put out an article, they do a photo shoot with him and like he is the cover story on life magazine. Why, for time, it's the same thing. If you look at the cover, look at the cover of life, look at the cover of time and tell me it's not the same thing. It's the same thing, but it was. It was life magazine, I probably said time, but it's life. Was it relevant or time Rotha magazine relevant magazine? I know what you're saying now it was life magazine. Was It club house? What's the One? That's the the like the folks in the family magazine Anyway, so he does the he does the magazine and he does he's like the center ful. Like all the stuff right he's the center Poles, the centerfold of the magazine, yeah, Okay Yeah, so they have a. They are a full body picture of Ferdina to Mayo, and I want a watnall do de ma, demar. Okay, for I just yeah. Did you buy this week's addition of Life Life magazine and not even he, he the whole time. He thought it was life magazine, it's life, cereal. So I e you pull out this poster on a n in boaster poster poster. I got my impostor poster in my cereal today. He's the senter fall is what you said. Oh my gosh, okay and the story goes wild everything, Oh yeah, the story right because he tells all in this story. Yeah, it says Life Magazine impostor tells all. That is what it says on the cover. Then after that comes out, he goes guys. I lied about that whole article. None of this. What what? If? What? If E, what if hold on what? If you impostor the Oster, what it was it an another guy comes out, was like Ho, that's Mandodari. What are waking credit for my surgery and that guys, like you, can't prove it the guys like look what's in my hands as of a bullet and the teeth you know so so he, after that things, start to get a little tough for him. He tries to get another job at a university, goes really far in the interview process, and then someone recognizes him and says you're the guy from that life magazine and he's like he's a like cereal but yeah, because he was using fate credentials again. So then he has to watch in an interview room and they have the frame center full on the wall. To a he's, like he's like trying to do that thing he's that they were getting at him he's trying to sit in front of it. You know he's like like trying to block it so itch on my back. I just slept with like this, but he actually gets pretty far. The interview process with this university doesn't make it because the guy recognizes him and so ends up working a few short term jobs like as himself because he's like. I can't do this anymore. Everybody knows me things quiet down a little bit and then he got himself some fate credentials, so he could become a guard at a prison in Huntsville, Texas, guard, Bernard Gar, Bernard Castela, and he having been to prison kind of gets. A G has a good idea about how to be a garden, so he just guards it up for a little while and then he he worked. His way onto a game show kind of work, his way back in what into public life? What game show take a good look, so there's three. It was three celebrity panelists that guest your identity, so this kind of propelled him back into the limelight, Oh yeah, because I was like Oh this- is that guy that, like wid about that stuff, yeah and then Hollywood picks up his story and they were like Hey. You want to play yourself at a movie, and I it was that a question. Or do they say that, because it sounded like they said that hey you want to play yourself in a movie is the way you said that that's how the Hollywood at least just approach people and they go. You want to do this and then someone goes. I want to do that's like a a way to do that baseball movie or that is that the old dad who became a pitcher or yeah exactly, and so they gave him a role in a horror film before his movie they're getting ready, they're putting his movie together, and so they said, Hey, let's put you in a small thing: Roll so can kind of get your feet wet. I M in a movie called the hypnotic eye. Apparently he showed up was like I'm the director I well no, and the dredger was like he's like no, you, your Fordonne Rado Yeah he's a you're, an extra in the scene and the girl was like okay. Okay, what do you want to be an extra end? So, ironically, his role in the film is he's a hospital surgeon in this horror movie. But here's the thing his his acting wasn't great, and so when the movie was in production and they were watching it back, they said sucks, we should hire somebody else. Er like wait. Hold on hold on hold on hold on hold on hold on this guy is not good at pretend. What we tar was acting is not good. This guy's not great at pretending we are talking about, so they end up casting someone else to be the lead and his and play him in his movie, and he gets really mad. Who Do you? Who Do you want to play you? Well, he didn't like who they chose him to be him because he's like he looks nothing like me. I were like Ivy Buddy, it's pretty much the same so so he gets angry becomes a drunk for a little while because he's really mad about his failed, acting career and then gets bored with being a drunk he's. Only pretending every night he's just drinking water and then, like I'm, an angry drug. That's what they do. That's how you know when you're at a Bar- and you hear someone say I am an angry drum- that's the time to go home now I will say if you're at a bar and someone legitimately does say that it is the time to go home. But that's how you know is that he goes I'm an age, that's probably why they like his acting stuff. As he's back there doing the hypnotic eye movie and he was like. I am a surgeon and they're. Like you don know, no people can trelsar the context. CLUES YEA is like it's like he's like there's no lumber Jack books in this operating route, because I'm a real boy was and like hey, write that down. I think we can use that anyone at in a different movie. So after being a drunk for a little bit, he actually goes to the Union rescue mission in downtown L A and becomes a counsellor for seven years. This is one of his longest dints in any of his cons. This is a corn yeah, he's note, counselor he's a consoler that your say and then in sixty seven. He says you know what it's time for me to do something real for myself, and so he goes to Bible school and gets a legitimate Bible degree in Portland, Oregon from the Maltine School of the Bible, and he becomes the pastor of Cherry Grove Baptist Church in Gaston Oregon, but he ended up. He didn't stay long, because rumor started to surface about everything he did in his life and he broisat point yeah. I tell you about my test. Let me tell you about who I used to be all right. I have the teeth and the bullets to show, and I great bullets teeth, there's just one. So he ends up resigning from that position because they felt that he was counting them again, even though he had actually got a Bible degree and had yeah legitimate creditis this time and was playing himself so play. He was getting to be his killing this role. To be honest, and so then he moved to tootle Washington toodle and he became the pastor of to the late Community Bible Church was there for a couple years and then he moved to Friday harbor, where he worked as a school desk driver and then, as long as you know how to drive a school bus, you know yeah later he became long as you're, not looking at the kids like all right. You guys are going to have to drive this thing. I'm just going to observe. You know, I'm just here to teach you how to drive a school bus, hmm yeah, so he became a hospital chaplain and then kind of lived out the rest of his dayse discipling people in the hospital and performing minor surgeries. He didn't do that, but eventually he died and that you can't imposter that you know yeah. You can't impostor your way out of death and that's really the message today is: Why are you waiting to be authentic? You know you can't fake your way into a better life, so he died in eighty two of heart failure and at this point he had lived a pretty amazing life as a naval surgeon. There was a stent that we didn't talk about where he was a Silva civil engineer didn't do a lot, but he was in built a bridge built. I don't know if you've heard of it the Brooklyn Bridge. Now I've actually heard he built the London Bridge Yeah and that's why it was falling down. Oh God, he was in a prison guard doctor of applied psychology, a hospital, orderly, a lawyer, a child care expert, a bending monk, a trappist monk. He was an editor at one point, a cancer researcher. At another point he also got a job teaching in an elementary school and then he also was teaching in the university started a university and performed a very successful or two pretty successful surgeries one was minor but and really pulled off by the best prank in Massachusetts. History, which is, is so tritone absolutely absolutely, which honestly he's got nothing on Robert Down and junior. Who was a investigative that one point was a brilliant master mind of solving crime and was a also a very rich person who became a Superhero Yep and also one of four brothers in Detroit Michigan who lost his step mom or adopted mom and brother and avenged them? Yeah Yeah also opened up a restaurant with his brother that he didn't really have a part of him, but he takes credit and yeah yeah. I don't you going of. I know many more things he he ran a. He was a veterinarian who could speak to animals and a movie they didn't. Do that great? I think I just realized. I am starting to blend Robert downy junior yeah. You were. I was Goin with you're, fine yeah. No, I heard you I heard you're fine, you find your fine. I was like you, he yeah. I know I know yeah you're good. I was letting you do it, though I was like okay, this guy yeah, like the same person yeah. They are to me at least right. He was also in the greatest showman. You know we might as well thor a huge Jack Wet in there. He was, I saying you might as well just keep going. Why did I think? I don't know you can was like all right S. s like Yeah Robert Donyer is more yeah wow, so prity incredible life or you're, saying yeah. So he he had a book written about him called the great impostor and then another followup book called the Rascal in the road like that Tater, like biographies. A couple songs came out about him: songs, yeah, some, some yeah anyways a couple times came out in dedication to them. The Old Im, pastor, fake thou life, Yeah Yo that one yeah so there's an episode of Mash that reenacted his surgery in worak surgery. There was the feature film that he was supposed to be in, but he wasn't in starting Tony Curtis, which he didn't like that Tony Curtis was him and then a couple of TV shows and and now he's lies on an infamy wow saved a life man saved the life and took a lot of identities, so yeah Yeah Fernand. You know what happened was he had? Actually gone into Georgia once to fiddle off the devil, but then, at the same time he went you want to play the fiddle a right, and then he tried to be the devil and that's kind of how he died. Yep, Yep yeah, so this final accomplish file accomplishment was pet to be the devil yeah and the devil was just like. I don't know how to play this thing, O like honesty, so the devil spent a couple of years learning the fiddle and the devil spent a long time, building up a defense against fiddle ors Ferdinand with a for her and was like you play the fiddle for and for today went back to La and he found all the people started, trying to become rock stars and he was like silver. So is the S he's like he's like selling your soul, I'll make you favit me your soul and he knew the guys in Hollywood because of his movie yeah. It's s like give me your soul. Like a couple les you made himself read: Yeah kicked open doors, had a fog machine he set out by the door. You want to give me your soul, Puthur here, Bon Jovi, I know you want to fame. I know that you Banjo VI. I know that you just got offset of that movie where you play for the Philadelphia he invincible whatever. I know that you just got off set for that. I need you real, quick, I'll, make you famous by joy or solely to this Solo Cup, we're half way to come on we're half way there. I met Er the rest, we're half way there. Somebody get a sharpe can label this budget LE, as is it it's this on my not sis pot joy. What's in this tree, watchin this dream Bun dofi. So what is that French? For a couple of years I lord fiddle came to La, and I was like, I figured it out. The devil rolls in the Oxalis and says I to read just walking around like has anyone seen for a name all to I figured it out. You might be saying his name, Satan Yeah, you, my she painted red anyone, seen the red man with a bunch of Red Solos of famous people. I need to so low CYAH. Actually, he started the Church of Scientology is over here, O love, the so the devil, chacked them down and feddle them on. Oh, my things are done. That night is a production of space. Tim Media produced by Christian Taylor, audio by as Garnett video by Coner bets are graphics and or logo by Kaleb, but Goldberg and our social media is run by Kelaba. Our host, our JERN myres and Tim Stone falls on your favorite social media platform at Tillin. PODCAST is till and podcast remember to tell all your friends about us and we'll see you next Tuesday for another episode of things I have on last night


Ferdinand Waldo Demara is quite possibly the most legendary imposter to ever live. This man lied his way into almost every career known to man. Throughout his long life, Demara was a correctional officer, a prisoner, a soldier, a medic, a lawyer, a surgeon, and so much more. All the while being unqualified and his contemporaries being none the wiser. Even after Ferdinand Waldo Demara became famous for fraud, he managed to fake his way into various careers. It’s hard to believe how good he was at lying. This is the wild story of Ferdinand Waldo Demara.

Where Do Imposters Come From?

Demara was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, in 1921. Ferdinand, or Fred as his friends called him, always struggled to stay committed to his schooling. He enjoyed playing pranks on the townspeople more than anything else. Eventually, he got to the point where he didn’t see the value in school anymore and dropped out at 16. He ran away from home and tried to become a monk in Rhode Island.

Ferdinand Waldo Demara - The greatest impostor of all time
Ferdinand Waldo Demara
photo courtesy of Wikipedia
A Journey Like None Other

Ferdinand Waldo Demara didn’t make it long as a monk. They weren’t too keen on the lies. But, like most things in the life of Demara, he moved on to something new quickly. Over the next several years, Fred served in the United States Army then the Canadian Navy. Later, he became a psychology professor, an orderly in an LA sanitarium, and a college instructor under aliases complete with fake credentials and birth records. Of course, it didn’t last forever, and he ended up getting caught for impersonation. But it didn’t stop there. After serving 18 months at the Naval Disciplinary Barracks, Demara was back at it. The second phase of his impersonation career was even wilder than the first.

Ferdinand Waldo Demara Gets Famous

Demara went right back to his old ways. He snuck his way into life as a law professor and joined a Catholic brotherhood. At this brotherhood, he met Joseph C. Cyr, a Canadian surgeon who recently moved to the States. Cyr enlisted Ferdinand to help him finish the immigration process. So, Demara and Cyr sat down with all of Cyr’s legal documents, and just like that, Ferdinand had everything he needed to become Joseph Cyr. So that is what he did.

As Dr. Cyr, Demara returned to Canada just in time to enlist as a surgeon in the Korean War. For most of his wartime experience, he was stationed on base. During the time on base, Demara convinced all the other surgeons that he was composing a field guide for lumberjacks to perform life-saving surgeries on one another. He requested that they assist him in his endeavor by providing step-by-step instructions in plain English for numerous procedures. He told them that he too was making additions to the manual, but of course, he was not.

The war picked up, and Ferdinand Waldo Demara was called into duty on the Pacific front. While onboard, a Canadian destroyer Demara was called upon to extract a tooth from a Naval Captain. He consulted his lumberjack guide and successfully completed the surgery. However, it did not stop there. He then was called upon to remove a bullet from a Korean militant. Again Ferdinand referenced the lumberjack guide and saved the soldier’s life. News spread quickly, and Joseph Cyr became a war hero. Papers published his story with pictures of Demara as Cyr.

That’s Not My Son

Joseph Cyr’s mother was thrilled to hear the news of her son’s life-saving procedure. She was shocked, however, to see that the picture in the paper was not her son. She alerted authorities and the Canadian Navy to avoid an international public relations nightmare, deported Demara, and agreed to silence the story.

15-Minutes of Fame Again

What’s better than 15-minutes of fame? A second 15-minutes of fame. A reporter for Life magazine heard of Demara’s story and his successes as an imposter. He reached out to Demara and got him to agree to sell his story to the magazine reluctantly. It was a nationwide sensation and sparked a movie inspired by his life. Ferdinand was cast to play himself, but when Ferdinand showed his acting skills to be subpar, he was replaced by an actor he was not a fan of. With his acting career stalling out and his ability to lie about his identity shaken by his fame, Demara retired from the imposter way of life.

Who Stays Retired Anyway?

After a few short years, Ferdinand Waldo Demara fell back into obscurity. With his newfound anonymity, Demara fell back into his lifelong pursuit of impostorism. During this run, he founded a college, served as a correctional officer, became a lawyer, and a civil engineer, just to name a few. It didn’t last long, though. He eventually settled into his passion for ministry and went to school to be a Pastor. For the first time in his life, he earned his degree truthfully and became the Pastor of a church in Washington. He wouldn’t finish his career at this church, but he would finish as a Pastor. It took him his whole life to find out who he wanted to be.

Conclusion

Ferdinand Waldo Demara is arguably the greatest impersonator of all time. He stole identities, faked identities, and worked his way to the top of numerous job ladders with little to no credentials. So, next time someone tells you that you can’t do something, tell them to look at the life of Demara. If he could be literally everything, then you can be that one thing you want to be. There are so many more crazy twists to this story. Hear those in this episode of the Things I Learned Last Night podcast.

Things I Learned Last Night is an educational comedy podcast where best friends Jaron Myers and Tim Stone talk about random topics and have fun all along the way. If you like learning, and laughing a whole lot while you do, then you’ll love TILLN. Watch or listen to this episode right now!

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Sources

Ferdinand Waldo Demara – Wikipedia


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