Posted in: Comics | Tagged: comic books, film, Frame 313, John F Kennedy, Ponzi

7 Million Dollar Comic Book/Film Ponzi Scheme And The Kennedy Assassination

Published Tue, 24 Sep 2013 18:00:19 -0500

This one slipped through the cracks… back in May 2013, three men were sentenced to prison for a $3.5 million Ponzi scheme that involved comic books, movies and collectibles. And the most ironic part? Daniel Parrilli (62), John Lauer (48), and Chistopher Anderson (57) met while in prison in Oxford, Wisconsin.

The trio created a company called Sundown Entertainment Inc in 2006 to distribute comic book rights and films. They were able to raise $7 million from 150 investors. Though there were some comic books and movies produced, the company could not pay back the investors at the up to 150% rate they had promised and kept raising more money to pay off the initial investors until the scheme collapsed.

All three plead guilty to fraud charges brought against them in 2010. Parrilli got 70 months and was ordered to pay back $3.65 million, Lauer 31 years and ordered to pay back $457k and Anderson got 95 months with an order to pay back $3.7 million.

The only film produced by Sundown Entertainment was Frame 313: The JFK Assassination Theories. The movie suggested multiple people responsible including the single bullet theory, the CIA/Mafia theory, the Soviet Union/KGB theory, the Mafia hit theory, and the CIA/Anti-Castro theory. The movie caused quite a stir as it put the film's producers in connection with "Deep Throat" an anonymous witness that had key evidence to some of the Kennedy Assassination Conspiracy theories. There is some speculation by Allan Eaglesham and James V. Rinnovatore presented here that "Deep Throat" may have been a plant to make the film a larger profit. Anderson is credited as a writer on the film and Parrilli as one of the producers.