#115 Gary Vider: The Con Man and The Comedian

Gary Vider is the son of a con man. His father Manny ran a series of schemes in and around New York City for years while Gary was growing up, including dozens of times when father and son conned their way into Madison Square Garden while posing as media members for Sports Illustrated for Kids. Gary met some of the biggest names in sports - John Elway, Mario Lemieux, and even Michael Jordan - all because Manny had what all good con artists have: The ability to ignore all the possible consequences of his actions. “Most people can’t do it,” Gary says, “but my dad was the master.”

But what happens when those actions destroy a family, and leave a son isolated from his father for almost 25 years? On this episode of Paternal, Gary looks back on growing up with a con man for a father, what he learned by trying to reconnect with his dad decades later, and why it took becoming a father himself to question what he really knew or believed about his own dad.

Gary Vider is the host of the podcast #1 Dad.

Episode Timestamps: 

00:00 - 09:30 - Intro and life as a fake writer for Sports Illustrated for Kids
09:30 - 12:14 - Comedians and dad issues
12:14 - 15:34 - Manny Vider, the master con man
15:34 - 19:45 - Life as a con man’s son
19:45 - 21:35 - The influence of becoming a father
21:35 - 23:45 - Midway break
23:45 - 30:04 - Father and son reunite
30:04 - 32:08 - Deciphering what’s true and untrue
32:08 - 36:40 - An atypical father/son relationship
36:40 - 38:01 - Outro