In 1983, David Hampton arrived in New York City with no money, but an extraordinary knack for persuasion. After being refused entry to the exclusive nightclub Studio 54, he realized that high society doors opened wide for celebrity offspring. Posing as Paul Poitier, the fictitious Harvard-educated son of legendary actor Sidney Poitier, Hampton began weaving an elaborate tale.
He claimed he was a student who had been mugged, lost his wallet, and urgently needed a place to stay while awaiting his father's arrival in town. His charisma and encyclopedic knowledge of film and literature thoroughly convinced Manhattan's wealthy elite. For months, Hampton enjoyed lavish dinners, cash loans, and stayovers at high-profile residences, including the apartments of actor Melanie Griffith, billionaire real estate tycoon Mortimer Zuckerman, and playwright John Guare.
The ruse eventually collapsed when Osborne Elliott, the former dean of the Columbia Journalism School, returned home to find Hampton in bed with another man and called the police. Hampton was arrested in October 1983 and ordered to pay restitution, though he continued to engage in similar scams throughout his life. His bizarre and captivating story profoundly inspired John Guare to write the hit 1990 play Six Degrees of Separation, which was later adapted into an Oscar-nominated 1993 film starring Will Smith as the charismatic charlatan.