Feb 15
5 min read
Why Con Artists Seduce Us
Bernie Madoff, Elizabeth Holmes, Anna Sorokin, and the "Tinder Swindler" share one trait.
In 1841, P. T. Barnum staged one of his most fantastical shows. At the time, his rival Charles Wilson Peale had made a fortune entertaining crowds with "mesmerism" (hypnosis). Peale billed his show as a slice of scientific progress with high brow appeal. Mesmerism…
