Confidence trick

A confidence trick, confidence game, or con for short (also known as a scam) is an attempt to intentionally mislead a person or persons (known as the mark) usually with the goal of financial or other gain. The confidence trickster, con man, scam artist or con artist often works with an accomplice called the shill, who tries to encourage the mark by pretending to believe the trickster. In a traditional con, the mark is encouraged to believe that they will obtain money dishonestly by cheating a third party, and is stunned to find that due to what appears to be an error in pulling off the scam they are the one who loses money; in more general use, the term con is used for any fraud in which the victim is tricked into losing money by false promises of gain.

Confidence tricks in the movies and television

• The Rainmaker. 1956. Produced by Paul Nathan. Paramount.
• The Hustler. 1962. Directed by Robert Rossen.
• The Music Man. 1962. Produced and Directed by Morton da Costa. Warner.
• The Flim-Flam Man. 1967. Produced by Lawrence Turman; Directed by Irvin Kershner and Yakima Canutt. Twentieth Century Fox.
• The Italian Job. 1969. Directed by Peter Collinson
• Skin Game. 1971. James Garner & Louis Gossett. Dir. by Paul Bogart.
• Paper Moon. 1973. Directed and produced by Peter Bogdanovitch. Paramount.
• The Sting. 1973. Directed by George Roy Hill. Universal.
• Cheers. 1982-1993. NBC. Featured a reoccuring "Flimflam man" charecter, Harry 'The Hat' Gittes
• House of Games. 1987. Produced by Michael Hausman; Directed by David Mamet. Orion.
• Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. 1988. Directed by Frank Oz.
• The Grifters. 1991. Produced by Martin Scorsese; Directed by Stephen Frears. Miramax Films.
• The Spanish Prisoner. 1997. Directed by David Mamet.
• Blue Streak. 1999. Directed by Les Mayfield.
• Nueve Reinas (Nine Queens). 2000. Directed by Fabián Bielinsky.
• Boiler Room. 2000. Directed by Ben Younger.
• The Prime Gig. 2000. Directed by Gregory Mosher.
• Bandits. 2001. Directed by Barry Levinson.
• Heist. 2001. Directed by David Mamet.
• Heartbreakers. 2001. Directed by David Mirkin.
• The Score. 2001. Directed by Frank Oz.
• Catch Me If You Can. 2002. Directed by Steven Spielberg.
• Confidence. 2003. Directed by James Foley.
• Matchstick Men. 2003.
• Out of Time. 2003. Produced by Neal H. Moritz; Directed by Carl Franklin.
• Criminal. 2004. Directed by Gregory Jacobs.
• Con, 2005, created by Skyler Stone.
• Ocean's Eleven. 2001. Directed by Steven Soderbergh.
• Ocean's Twelve. 2004. Directed by Steven Soderbergh.
• Hustle, British TV series. 2004.