Lou Pearlman: Pop Music Con Man | Behind the Hit Charade | 4

American Scandal

Wondery

True Crime, Exhibit C, Society & Culture, History, Documentary, History Daily, American History Tellers, Lindsay Graham

4.6 • 18.7K Ratings

🗓️ 10 December 2024

⏱️ 41 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Journalist Tyler Gray was working in Orlando when he first heard about Lou Pearlman and his growing business empire. But it wasn’t until authorities apprehended Pearlman in Bali in 2007 that Gray began to investigate the story behind the man who created the boy bands NSYNC and Backstreet Boys. Today, Tyler Gray joins Lindsay to talk about his book, The Hit Charade: Lou Pearlman, Boy Bands, and the Biggest Ponzi Scheme in U.S. History.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, this is Lindsay Graham, host of American Scandal.
0:03.1	Our Back catalog has moved behind a paywall.
0:05.9	Recent episodes remain free, but older ones will require a Wondry Plus subscription.
0:10.6	With Wondry Plus, you get access to the full American Scandal archive, add free, plus early access to new seasons, and more.
0:17.7	Join Wondry Plus in the Wondry app or on Apple Podcasts.
0:32.0	Thank you. and more. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. From Wondery, I'm Lindsay Graham, and this is American Scandal.
0:36.2	Music Lindsey Graham, and this is American Scandal. The Backstreet Boys and InSync epitomized the boy band sound of the 1990s.
1:00.9	These two bands were the brainchild of Lou Pearlman, head of transcontinental enterprises.
1:05.8	And for a while, it seemed like everything Pearlman touched made money.
1:09.3	But behind the fancy offices, the Rolls-Royce,
1:11.8	and the Gulfstream jet lay a dark truth. Lou Pearlman was running a massive Ponzi scheme.
1:17.6	He financed the boy band's rise to fame using other people's money and helped himself to their
1:22.3	profits. When the Backstreet Boys and InSync sued and parted company with Perlin, he continued
1:27.3	his scheme of selling phony retirement accounts to family, friends, and elderly people. When the Backstreet Boys and InSync sued and parted company with Perlman, he continued his
1:27.6	scheme of selling phony retirement accounts to family, friends, and elderly people, even his barber.
1:33.2	But it all caught up with him in 2008 when a judge sentenced Lou Perlman to 25 years in prison
1:39.0	for bilking more than 1,400 victims, including people and banks, out of around $500 million.
1:45.6	Today I'm speaking with Tyler Gray, the author of The Hit Chirade,
1:49.8	Lou Pearlman, Boy Bands, and the biggest Ponzi scheme in U.S. history.
1:53.7	Lou Pearlman held that infamous record until Bernie Madoff broke it.
1:57.4	Our conversation is next.
2:06.7	Pay by card.
	...

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