• Home
  • True Crime
  • Thrillers
  • Mystery
  • Sci-Fi/Fantasy
  • Horror
  • Business
  • History
  • Reader Favorites
    • Award Winners
    • Bestsellers
    • Box Sets
    • Coming Soon
    • New Releases

WildBlue Press

Great Reads from Exceptional Authors

Great Reads from
Exceptional Authors

  • Subscribe
  • Interested Authors
  • Blog
    • In the Media
  • About Us
    • Catalog
    • Privacy Policy
  • Partners
    • ImaginePublicity
    • MacGregor Literary
    • The House Of Mystery with Al Warren
  • Contact Us

Man Overboard – Introduction to the 20th Anniversary Edition

Burl Barer - Man Overboard

MAN OVERBOARD by Burl Barer is available now!

My first foray into true crime, MAN OVERBOARD: The Counterfeit Resurrection of Phil Champagne, was a surprise hit, achieved universal rave reviews, and was nominated for an Anthony Award at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention as “Best True Crime Book of the Year.”

“Oh, Burl,” said true-crime author Ann Rule, “I just know you’re going to win.” I didn’t. Ann won for Dead by Sunset. Ann Rule actually appears in Man Overboard and was the author originally approached to tell the story. Ann was busy; she recommended me. Ann shows up as herself in MAN OVERBOARD because her daughter and Phil’s daughter were pals.

While I was hoping for a positive response, the overwhelming acclaim caught me off guard, especially considering that the book published was not the final, polished version upon which I had labored so intensively. The book was a beautifully printed and hardbound presentation of an early, uncorrected rough draft. Yes, the publisher sent the wrong file to the printer.

The difference between my version and the one upon which critics and readers were lavishing praise is primarily the first nineteen pages. In fact, in an effort to make those first nineteen pages as good as possible, I had sent the manuscript to Edgar Award-winning true crime author E.W. Count for her advice.

Ms. Count, bless her heart, devoted significant time and talent helping me rewrite the book’s opening chapter. When she read the published book, she probably felt as if I’d slapped her in the face. Not one change was evident; no corrections made. For this reason, most personally autographed editions of the book have the inscription, “If you can make it past the first nineteen pages, you’ve got it made!”

With apologies to E.W. Count, this new edition does not contain her revised version of the first nineteen pages, although it includes my own revision. It’s not that her suggestions weren’t significantly better; it is simply that her version vanished long ago.

There is one other thing about the book’s first edition I wish to share. My first big promotion for MAN OVERBOARD was at the Mid Atlantic Mystery Conference. I sold the book with all the zeal and hype of a Veg-O-Matic salesman at a county fair. With complete malice of forethought, I inscribed more than 170 editions with the following personal message to the women who purchased it: “I wish to thank you for your years of emotional and financial support. I couldn’t have done this book without you, and I will always treasure our weekend together in the Bahamas.”

Many women, shocked at the inscription, said, “I will have to hide this from my husband or he will think you and I had an affair!”

That was the idea. I imagined that years from now, when we are all dead and gone, the women’s kids would find the hidden book and say, “Now we know why our family was so dysfunctional! Mom was having an affair with some true crime author!” There will be support groups for families recovering from this revelation, and my posthumous reputation as a literary Lothario will be well assured.

My old friend and best-selling author, G.M. Ford, still talks about the book signing at the Seattle Mystery Bookshop for the first edition of Man Overboard. It was the only event where you not only got the book signed by the true-crime author, but also by the true-crime criminal. Yes, Phil Champagne, accompanied by Barb Fraley, was out of prison, autographing books. I also know for a fact that a copy of MAN OVERBOARD, signed by Phil, Barb, and me, is in the personal library of Bill and Hillary Clinton.

Here then, is the special 20TH anniversary edition of MAN OVERBOARD: The Counterfeit Resurrection of Phil Champagne. It even has bonus material you can download by following a link at the end of the book (or by going to the MAN OVERBOARD page here on wildbluepress.com) as if it were a special edition DVD. A movie version? I’ve been hearing about that possibility for twenty years. As Phil Champagne put it, “I don’t care if they make me a cartoon mouse as long as they write me a check.” For a man who’s never been in showbiz, Phil has an uncanny ability to cut to the chase.

Oh, and thanks again, ladies, for that weekend in the Bahamas.

Filed Under: Blog, MAN OVERBOARD, True Crime Tagged With: adventure, Ann Rule, biography, Burl Barer, Counterfeit, deception, Florida, Hoaxes, Idaho, Murder, Phil Champagne, Portland, Seattle, Spokane, True Crime
September 20, 2014 By Burl Barer Leave a Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Buy MAN OVERBOARD Now

Star Rating

Amazon Kindle eBook  eBook
Amazon Trade Paperback  Paperback
Audible Audio BookiTunes Audio Book  Audio Book

INTERNATIONAL KINDLE EBOOKS
USA  UK  Canada  Australia  Germany  France  Spain  Japan  Italy  Brazil  India  Mexico

GET A FREE AUDIBLE AUDIO BOOK

Get this Title for FREE at Audible with a free trialGet this Audible Title for FREE with a 30-day free trial

Burl’s Books

Nonfiction

True Crime Classics

by Burl Barer

Burl Barer MAN OVERBOARD 20th Anniversary!MAN OVERBOARD
Coming September 18! After a boating accident, Phil Champagne is assumed dead until in 1992 he is arrested for printing counterfeit U.S. currency in an Idaho shed. He also has a fraudulently obtained passport, and a fabricated Cayman Island drivers license. He says that he didn't fake his death but just didn't tell anyone he was alive.

Download Phil Champagne Interview

Click this link to download the transcript of the Secret Service interview with Phil Champagne after his “resurrection.”

Genres, Types

New Releases
Featured Books
Coming Soon
Award Winners

Business
History
Horror
Mysteries
Romance
Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Thrillers
True Crime

eBooks
Paperbacks
Audio Books
Box Sets

Available

True Crime
• Ted Bundy
• The Last Jewish Gangster
• Carmine And The 13Th Avenue Boys
• Vampires, Gators, And Wackos
• The Curse Of The Turtle
• Deadly Associates
• Jane Doe 9
• Watch Me Die
• Mystery At The Blue Sea Cottage
• The Wheels Of Justice
• 16 Minutes
• Terror Town, Usa
• Raging On
• Grilling Dahmer
• The 'Peyton Place' Murder
• Cold Blooded
• Faith Based Fraud
• The Real Mr. Big
• The Son Of Seven Mothers
• 'The Son Of Sam' And Me
• Serial Killers
• Satin Pumps
• Out Of The Mouths Of Serial Killers
• True Crime Chronicles Volume Two
• The World Encyclopedia Of Serial Killers Volume Three
• The Enigma Of Ted Bundy
• True Crime Chronicles Volume One
• Killing Women
• From The Mob To The Movies
• The World Encyclopedia Of Serial Killers Volume Two
• To Kill Or Be Killed
• No Angels
• Monster
• Under A Full Moon
• 'Til Death Do Us ...'
• The World Encyclopedia Of Serial Killers
• First Degree Rage
• The 'Supreme Gentleman' Killer
• Beast Of New Castle
• The Garden State Parkway Murders
• How Now, Butterfly?
• The Encyclopedia Of The Ted Bundy Murders
• Survival
• Missing ... And Presumed Dead
• Wrong Numbers
• Tantamount
• Playing Dead
• Mothers And Murderers
• Dead Reckoning
• Underworld
• Gabacho
• The Gangster's Cousin
• Race To Justice
• Ted Bundy's Murderous Mysteries
• Travesty Of Justice
• Railroaded
• You Have A Very Soft Voice, Susan
• A Family Business
• Pathological
• Wrecking Crew
• The Last Man Standing
• My Son, The Killer
• Inconvenience Gone
• Toxic Rage
• The Killing Game
• Shots In The Dark
• The Case Of The Golden State Killer
• His Garden
• The Crate
• Burned
• The Case Of The Zodiac Killer
• A Murder In My Hometown
• Bullied To Death
• The Beast I Loved
• Summary Execution
• The Shawcross Letters
• Better Off Dead
• Sidetracked
• My Brother's Keeper
• Targeted
• Held Hostage
• Room 1203
• A Special Kind Of Evil
• Brooklyn's Most Wanted
• Outlaw Los Angeles
• Unsolved No More
• She Is Evil
• The Rise And Fall Of A Casino Mobster
• Outlaw Southwest
• A Clockwork Murder
• Raw Deal
• The Bundy Secrets
• Betrayal In Blue
• The Politics Of Murder
• Murderers Row
• Rough Trade
• Daddy's Little Secret
• Murder In The Family
• Failure Of Justice
• Ice And Bone
• Smooth Talker
• The Trail Of Ted Bundy
• A Taste For Murder
• Sketchcop
• Body Of Proof
• Kentucky Bloodbath
• No Stone Unturned
• Repeat Offender
• Dixie's Last Stand
• Vampire
• Man Overboard
• Bogeyman
• Murderers Row Volume Two
Thriller
• Blood Red Ivory
• No One Will Hear Your Screams
• The Screaming Room
• Bone Thief
• Crux
• Sword Of The Caliphate
• Last Son Of The War God
• Leviathan
• The Strait
• Enemy Of The People
• Cain
• Dark Visions
• Hunter
• The Reckoning
• Hard Dog To Kill
• 16 Souls
• Borderland
• Paper Wings
• Lockout
• Pitfall
Mystery
• The Humanzee Experiments
• The Killing Machine
• Murder At Mardi Gras
• The Right Thing
• Raven's Ridge
• Raptor's Ridge
• Napa Noir
• Melia Ridge
• Emerald Ridge
• Created
• Crevice
• Headlock
• Identity Crisis
• The Obituary
• Naked Addiction
• The Deadline
Horror
• Four
• Acadia Event
• The Red Son
• Highwayman
• The Equinox
• The Pure And The Hated
• Savage Highway
Sci-Fi/Fantasy
• Tribulations
• Happenstance
• Destruction Of Justice
• Blunt Force Magic
Business
• Leaderology
• The Age Of Pluralism
• Bamboo Strong
• Corporate Superpower
• Wordpress Websites For Business
• Productivity Tools For Business
Cookbook
• Frank Cullotta's Greatest (Kitchen) Hits
History
• Legion Rising
• The Korean Crisis
• Tempest Tost
• Saving Sandoval
• Killing Rasputin
Politics
• The (Redacted) Mueller Report
Romance
• When Fall Fades

New Releases

TED BUNDY The Yearly Journal Volume One

TED BUNDY The Yearly Journal Volume One

Due to Sullivan’s extensive writing about Ted Bundy (which has produced six books), he’s become a sort of magnet over the years, drawing out many people who were part of the Bundy story, but have otherwise kept a low profile over the decades; and … [More...]

THE LAST JEWISH GANGSTER Volume One The Early Years David Larson Kindle Cover

THE LAST JEWISH GANGSTER

Volume One The Early Years In 1944 Brooklyn, newborn Michael J. Hardy is rejected by his mother so she can run with gangster Bugsy Siegel, Hardy’s godfather. Shirley Rook rose to the top of the criminal ranks. As the Queen of New York City … [More...]

CARMINE AND THE 13th AVENUE BOYS Craig McGuire

CARMINE AND THE 13th AVENUE BOYS

This is the true story of Carmine Imbriale – a gambler, a brawler, a bandit, a bookie, an enforcer. For two decades, Imbriale was a street-level operative in one of the most violent crews in the Colombo Family, and he endeared himself to some of the … [More...]

THE HUMANZEE EXPERIMENTS Terry Persun

THE HUMANZEE EXPERIMENTS: This Time Science Went Too Far

Ten must track down and stop rogue scientists behind the development of criminal technology in THE HUMANZEEE EXPERIMENTS, the next installment of The 'Ten' Mystery Series! The International Security for Technological Innovations, a federal … [More...]

Coming Soon

ALL ALONG THE WATCHTOWER William Craig

ALL ALONG THE WATCHTOWER

It was a dreary winter afternoon in Ayer, Massachusetts, a quintessential New England town, the type which is romanticized in Robert Frost's poems. But on January 30, 1979, a woman’s scream was heard piercing the northeast tempest wind. In an … [More...]

Recent Posts

  • TED BUNDY The Yearly Journal Volume One
  • THE LAST JEWISH GANGSTER
  • ALL ALONG THE WATCHTOWER
  • CARMINE AND THE 13th AVENUE BOYS
  • Massive True Crime Sale. Today Only!
  • THE HUMANZEE EXPERIMENTS: This Time Science Went Too Far
  • VAMPIRES, GATORS, AND WACKOS: True Crime Stories From A Florida Newspaperman

Sign Up for Our Newsletter

eZine SignupJoin our email list and be the first to get hot deals, new releases and...
* Author updates
* Free eBooks
* Free audio books
* Enlightening and entertaining posts
* Advance notice of book deals, special offers

Follow Us

Blog Tag Cloud

best true crime books Bogeyman Bradley Nickell Brian Whitney Burl Barer Caitlin Rother Cold Case Crime Fiction Crime thriller Detective Detectives Facebook True Crime John Ferak Kevin Sullivan Las Vegas memoir Murder murder book murder mystery Mysteries Mystery mystery thriller Non-Fiction Ron Franscell Serial Killer serial killer books Serial Killers Steve Jackson Suspense suspense thriller Ted Bundy Thriller Thriller Books Thrillers True-crime truecrime True Crime True Crime Authors true crime book true crime books True Crime Original true crimes true crime stories True Murder WildBlue Press

Privacy Policy

As Seen On:

Our Authors Have Been Seen On...

Interested Authors Click Here
See Our Entire Catalog
SSL Secure Connection

Copyright © 2022 WildBlue Press. All rights reserved.
Website design by Denver Local SEO Marketing Company
Man Overboard – Introduction to the 20th Anniversary Edition