Marvin Hewitt
Marvin Harold Hewitt
Hewitt was born in Philadelphia on March 24, 1922, the son of Samuel Hewitt, a police officer who was killed in 1947.[3][4]
Hewitt was a
Hewitt's first imposture began in 1945 when he selected a famous name from a list of university teachers and used it to apply for a position of an aerodynamic engineer. However, the name was too recognizable and he was soon exposed.
The next identity Hewitt adopted was that of Julius Ashkin, a physics professor. He applied and was accepted first into a pharmacological college in Philadelphia and the next year into teacher's college in Minnesota. When he began to gain academic fame, the real Ashkin wrote him to suggest that he stop.
Hewitt proceeded to adopt the persona of George Hewitt, former chief researcher of
In 1954, Hewitt was on his fifth teaching job as Dr. Kenneth Yates, an associate professor of physics at the
Hewitt died on March 31, 1991, aged 69.[7]
References
- ^ "Flashback". The Daily Utah Chronicle. 16 April 1991. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ "U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947". Ancestry. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ "Philly Offers Help To Fake Teacher". The Pittsburgh Press. 11 April 1954. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ "1930 United States Federal Census". Ancestry. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- ^ Slapper, Gary (May 23, 2008). "Weird cases: faking it". The Times. London. Retrieved 6 January 2010.
- ^ "Professor Marvin Hewitt's Twisting Journey from Dropout to Rocket Scientist". New England Historical Society. Retrieved December 6, 2017.
- ^ "U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007". Ancestry. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
- Burton, Sarah (2001). Impostors: Six Kinds of Liar. Penguin. ISBN 0-14-028250-5.
- The Compulsion. Time magazine. March 15, 1954
- Honest career for Ph(ony)D: brilliant hoaxer Marvin Hewitt becomes a respected engineer. Life magazine. January 21, 1957, pp. 57–82.