The Con Adds A Bigger Hook, Line and Sinker

If you haven't been following this blog from the first post to this one, I hope you will go to the beginning and read from there.  This story unfolds like a Lifetime Movie!  It's still so very unbelievable!

Okay, so where did I leave off from the last post.  Oh yeah.  Marvin not only told Gene and me that he was cashing in his matured life-insurance policy of $126,000 in order to invest $75,000 in the musical, but now he was also going to get a settlement from the Credit Union in Florida who had supposedly had three employees steal funds from those with social security and disability accounts.  He was talking to his "lawyer," Howard Newman, every day on the phone.

Marvin had moved into our home for a "two-day stay" on September 24, 2013.  It was now the end of October and he had been with us a month.  Things even got fun when Marvin  booked his first gig since getting back to Vegas. 

He was going to perform for a local drag show as "Cher."  I had given him an original song I wrote and recorded as Cher called "Cosmetic Surgery" to hopefully perform at this gig.  We wanted to see if it "read" enough to put in the new musical.

I even bought a sturdy I.V. pole for him to use as a prop.   He seemed to really want to perform this number.  (pictured to the right)

But he never learned it nor rehearsed it.  I then asked him, "Marvin, if you were a producer of a play, which you are since you are investing in it, what would you do if one of your stars never learned or rehearsed anything you gave to him?"  To this question, Marvin replied, "I'd fire him."  I wish I had taken his advice!


Gene and I were about to leave for a one-week working cruise over my birthday (November 7).  My birthday always reminds me of my Mother's passing on Nov. 1, 1991.  So, I try to keep myself very busy each year around that time.

 (My mother is pictured here on her wedding day)


Since we had been supporting Marvin for over a month now, we were hoping he'd get in his "life-insurance" check soon so that he'd be able to reimburse for what we had spent thus far and then move into his own apartment.

Before our leaving on the cruise, Marvin told us that not only would his $126,000 come in within the next few days, but that Howard (the fictitious lawyer) got him a $50,000 settlement on the Credit Union fiasco.  We left for the cruise on Nov. 3rd with high hopes.



The cruise was amazing!  It was called "The Malt Shop Memories Cruise" and hosted an array of iconic oldies stars such as Petula Clark, Bobby Rydell, Leslie Gore, Neil Sedaka, Bill Medley, Little Anthony and The Imperials, The Four Tops and more!  I was one of the not-so-iconic performers hired to entertain the over 2,000 guests aboard this beautiful Holland America ship.  I had a blast!

(Here's a pic of me performing through the audience, who were also dressed to suit the oldies theme)

On my birthday, I get a text from Marvin that his "big check has come in!" 

Gene and I were so very relieved.  Marvin was going to deposit it into his new US Bank account that day.  We were home-free, or so we thought.

As for the "settling of the Credit Union Fraud in Florida," Marvin was creating a lovely scenario wherein he had to do a deposition for the case.  He had been complaining that he did not want to have fly back to Florida to do this in person.  Oh, he was very convincing.  We got a text while on the ship that he was able to do the deposition by phone!  How nice for him.

We arrived back home on Nov. 9th.  Marvin had been enjoying free-reign of our home, car, food and more.   (I have since learned that he lied to one of the stars of the top drag show, "Divas," about my not wanting him to use my car to pick that star up at the airport during this time.  The star then thought I was a, well, you know.  We fixed all of that, thank goodness!)

Everything seemed to be in order and Marvin had done a good job watching our two Persian female cats, Emmy and Toni.  (Yes, I had to have and Emmy and a Tony in my home...lol!  Emmy is the white one and Toni is the tortoise shell.)

But his "life-insurance" check had not yet cleared and his story was that his bank account was brand new and that he did not have a Nevada Driver's License or home address.  Thus, they had to hold the check for ten days.  This was reasonable, right?

By now, you're probably thinking, "Why didn't Gene and Heidi see that they were being conned?"  Well, I had known Marvin for over 20 years.  We weren't close, but we kept in touch much over that time.  He had been in major shows and on many national television shows.  I had no reason to think he was a professional con.  Plus, he's an old, Jewish queen nearing the age of 60.  He seemed very harmless, which was a good cover.

By mid-November, we were still waiting for Marvin's "funds" to post in his bank account.  And, he had great news about "settling" his Credit Union case...

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