Shownotes Transcript
My name is Ronald Dante and I'd like to thank you for inviting me into your subconscious. The legend of Dr. Ronald Dante spans decades, movie stars, fugitive yachts, continents, if you believe his version of events. But it all started on a stage. Before he was so many other things, Dr. Ronald Dante was a stage hypnotist like no other.
There were people who believed that Dante could mesmerize you with his eyes alone. I've heard stories of comedians, lawyers, famous Hollywood actors who were afraid to look the man in the eye for fear of being hypnotized. Deep breath. And wave. Wave.
A master of his craft. For his day, he was like what Muhammad Ali was to boxing. You get in the ring with Dante at one of his hypnotism shows, and you had no idea what might happen. Suddenly, you're a child. We are nine years old. Happy, wiggly, giggly. You're a singer. Now you're cold. Oh, my heaven's getting colder and colder. Or maybe you find yourself married to him. That happened to me.
Dante was tall, dark, Vegas handsome, with curly hair permed to perfection, suit pressed, nails manicured, immaculate. And he packed clubs all over America.
before long the whole town the whole city would be coming in to see his show he'd come into town dazzle them i love you too i love you and be off to the next stop leaving headlines and adoring fans in his wake fans of all kinds i used to go motorcycle riding with clark gable yeah sammy davis and i went but i was on the johnny carson show so did elvis presley catch my show all the time
Someone with his level of charm, street smarts, and wits could have done almost anything. He could have been an astronaut, a movie star, or a university president. Well, he did do that last one, kind of. But the place Dante loved best was just outside the reach of rules, red tape, and gatekeeping institutions.
I don't believe in any of that bullshit. Where he could truly live on his own terms. Showing him hypocrisy. He is Ronald Pella, a legendary con. He did it all. There was no con this guy didn't try. He's hustling wannabe hypnotherapist. I was in the Guinness Book of World Records as the highest paid speaker in the world. Another venture. This time, permanent makeup. He didn't have the first clue how to be a tattoo artist. No one but Ron Capullo.
Columbia State University. The school promises a bachelor's degree in 27 days. It can be done in 25 days. Columbia State University made millions of dollars. And there were thousands of people using these degrees out in the real world. There were police chiefs, magistrates, people who worked at NASA, engineers. People from the White House had gotten my diploma. I thought, wow, that's bad.
And by the time he was done, he would spend time on stages, in prisons, at the helm of one of the largest fake universities in U.S. history, on yachts pursued by the federal government. He went on a cruise ship. It was this 110-foot yacht. And all over the world. FBI store. They kidnapped me. They threw me in the trunk of a car.
It just seemed so ballsy. Leaving in his wake. Thousands of victims. I've been betrayed. It's a toxic memory. No one can figure out what to think about him. I think he liked fucking with people's heads. Dante was playful.
He just was so brilliant. He just has this charisma and this aura. The most evil person I have ever interacted with. He was the most generous con artist. He contracted somebody to go kill a rival hypnotist. He's so cool. He's so cool. Well, Bobby, it's just too easy. I'm Sam Mullins, your host for season five of Chameleon, Dr. Dante.
Coming in January from Campside Media and Sony Music Entertainment. What do you say to the critics that say Dr. Dante is a con artist? I say they're right. Yeah, I was. I was a con man. I was a good con man.