This provides a collection of money-making schemes and elaborate practical jokes from around the world. There are over 1000 entries, fully indexed, cross-referenced and laid out in an A-Z format. The book also details the origins and methods of numerous classic scams - from the age-old shell game to cash machine swindles of today - and provides biographical information on a range of shady characters. Topics include the supposed skull of Piltdown Man which was regarded as the missing link for a generation before it was proved to be an elaborate hoax and Dr John Brinkley who became a millionaire with his quack surgery for reviving male sexual prowess by providing male patients with goats' testicles.