Catch Me If You Can is a semi-autobiographical book about criminal exploits allegedly engaged in by Frank Abagnale Jr., an American onetime con artist.

Abagnale claims that, as a young man, he cashed $2.5 million worth of bad checks while impersonating a Pan Am pilot, a doctor, a teacher, and an attorney.

Co-written by Abagnale and Stan Redding, Catch Me If You Can was adapted into a film of the same name by director Steven Spielberg in 2002.

He assumed various jobs, such as pretending to be a Pan Am pilot, a doctor, a teacher, and a lawyer, and for these impostures was pursued by the police and the FBI.

The book ends with an epilogue telling the story of Abagnale's final capture and his rehabilitation, which resulted in the creation of his security firm.

Inspired when he sees smiling pilots and pretty stewardesses leaving a hotel, Frank does some research on airline work culture.

Eventually, Abagnale uses his profits to advance a year's worth of rent in the city of River Bend and lie low.

He forms a relationship with one Brenda Strong, but the romance is overshadowed by his fear that the FBI could be close to tracking him down.

When Frank resumes his pilot persona, he recruits his own fake airplane crew at a flight attendant school on pretense of a commission for advertising stills.

He has a moment of genuine mortal terror because the surrender commands they shout are contradictory (Should he lie down, kneel, or stand with hands on head?).

He serves a long sentence at Perpignan's prison, barely surviving the subhuman living conditions.

The prospect of Frank being handed over to other countries with harsh prison systems, like Italy, earns him some sympathy.

Consequently though, the employers run background checks and see little choice but to fire him in light of his criminal record.

He finally changes his life by offering his services (for free, at first) as a security consultant on a specialized lecture tour.

To protect the right of those whose paths have crossed the author's, all of the characters and some of the events have been altered, and all names, dates and places have been changed.

"[1] The character of FBI Agent O'Riley is known to be based on Joseph Shea, with whom Abagnale went on to form a lifetime friendship.

[1] In 2002, Abagnale addressed the issue of the book's truthfulness with a statement posted on his company's website which said (in part): "I was interviewed by the co-writer only about four times.

Specifically he addressed details such as the amount of money he wrote in bad checks, and the years in which his crimes took place.

[4][5] The 2002 film Catch Me If You Can, directed by award-winning director Steven Spielberg, stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Abagnale and Tom Hanks as his FBI pursuer, renamed Hanratty in the adaptation.

Abagnale's life was adapted into a musical of the same name, which previewed on March 11, 2011, and opened on April 10 at the Neil Simon Theatre on Broadway.

The show starred Aaron Tveit as Abagnale, Norbert Leo Butz, Tom Wopat and Kerry Butler.