Exotic destinations, sexy women and all the money in the world brought no lasting happiness to a 16-year-old boy whose parents divorced.
In fact, Frank Abagnale Jr., whose life splashed across the big screen in Steven Spielberg's movie "Catch Me If You Can," today is content to focus on the simpler things in life, like his family.
Abagnale, who spoke Friday at the Manufactured Concrete Products Expo in downtown Salt Lake City, recalled his devastation when told by a judge his parents were divorcing.
"Because I was 16 years old, I needed to tell the court which parent I wanted to live with," Abagnale said. "I started to cry, so I turned and ran out of the courtroom. By the time my parents made it out to the lobby, I was gone."
Abagnale's escape led him on a five-year journey far away from his New York upbringings. Posing as a pilot, he crisscrossed the planet, cashed millions of dollars in bogus checks and developed a genius at deception.
Yet the world's greatest con man will tell you success has little to do with money, educational attainment or accomplishments.
"Today there are many people who write about me who say that I was brilliant. I was not brilliant. I was a 16-year-old boy who never made it past high school. I was an opportunist. That's all."
Eventually Abagnale was caught and served prison time in France, Sweden and the United States.
"I always felt what I did was immoral, illegal, unethical and wrong," he said. "I was never proud of what I did."
As a condition of his parole, Abagnale agreed to work for the FBI. That experience led to a flurry of national and international companies seeking out his expertise in fraud prevention.
Since then, the 54-year-old father of three has earned millions of dollars in royalties from his technologies, found in everything from drivers' licenses and bus passes to passports and gift certificates. Last year he celebrated his 26th year working for the FBI without compensation.
Still, Abagnale's story is really only about a boy and his dad.
Contrary to the film, Abagnale never again saw his father after running away. And his thoughts still wander back to that father left behind.
"There are some people today who say that I am gifted. I am, but not for what they think of me. I'm gifted because I was one of those few children that got to grow up in the world with Daddy. The world is full of fathers. There are very few daddies."
In spite of his near-celebrity status since the film's release in December, Abagnale said his life has changed very little. He credits his transformation from con man to family man to his wife.
"She changed my life," he said. "A real man loves his wife. And a real man is faithful to his wife. . . . The greatest thing I ever did was become a husband, become a father. There's been nothing in my life more rewarding, more worthwhile, has brought me more peace, more joy."
E-mail: danderton@desnews.com