…based on a true hallucination
The Doclopedia
About this character: Well, he’s not a pirate, but he is a scoundrel of the first order. Based upon a real person.
#24: Fresno Freddy
Main Trait: Con Man/Grifter
Second Trait: Disarmingly likable
Third Trait: Ladies Man
Flaws: Excessive loyalty to family, Fear of flying
Frederick “Fresno Freddy” Hagajanian was born of an Armenian father and a Portuguese mother in Fresno, California in 1901. By age 10 he was running with the wrong crowd and by the time he was 14, he was working with a husband and wife team of grifters in the Los Angeles area. By the time of the Great Depression, he was an accomplished con man and remains one today.
Freddy does it all: long cons, pigeon drops, real estate rackets, wealthy widow scams, badger games, stock swindles…you name it, he does it. Since 1922, he has worked with his wife, Hildy, and his best friend, Jack. In recent years, they have stuck to the West Coast, but every so often they travel to other states where “the greed is wide and the money is deep”.
Although Freddy once plied his trade in Europe, he has not been there in decades, mostly due to his fear of flying. As for his other flaw…well, Freddy would be a lot richer if he weren’t constantly shoveling money to his less than smart relatives and in laws.
In his spare time, Freddy enjoys staying in fine hotels, eating fine food and telling grifter stories to young people.
Note from June, 2024: The real “Fresno Freddy” died in 1993 at the age of 92, five months after his wife died at age 90. I got word last night that his youngest niece, a friend for many years and a good grifter in her own right, died at age 88. End of an era.
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