FAKE!: The Story of Elmyr de Hory the Greatest Art Forger of Our Time, by Clifford Irving

FAKE!: The Story of Elmyr de Hory the Greatest Art Forger of Our Time, by Clifford Irving. 1969 First Edition hardcover. 243 pages, very nice condition.

FAKE! is an incredible and often hilarious tale of a man who swindled oil tycoons, movie stars, top art galleries, and great museums, and almost caused the collapse of the international art world. It is considered the best book ever written about fake art and was the inspiration for filmmaker Orson Welles' last major movie, "F For Fake," now a cult classic.

The story of Elmyr De Hory is a fascinating study of a man whose talent as a forger and taste for the finer things in life led him into a life of dubious dealings. The entire con game goes into a full tailspin. The final chapter of Fake is particularly good, as it really rationalizes how forgeries get into the market, what fuels that market, and how de Hory was able to pass off over 1000 forgeries over two decades. Irving wrote this in a flowing, gripping, 1960s style, and it reads like a novel.